Chapter 5. Observing rights and freedoms of persons who suffered temporary occupation and armed conflict Article 50(2) of the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War 117 provides that the occupying Power shall take all necessary measures to facilitate identification of children and registration of their family ties. This rule of international law was later extended to define the obligation of the occupying Power to register births, deaths and marriages54. It was for this reason that the court procedure to establish the legal fact of a birth or death was introduced. However, going to court involves dealing with bureaucratic red tape. Citizens of Ukraine living in the temporarily occupied territory must apply to any civil registry office in the government-controlled territory, presenting a birth certificate issued by the occupation administration, and be denied registration of the fact of birth. Such a refusal is a ground for going to court. Although the court procedure for such applicants is simplified, only around 5,000 Ukrainian birth certificates were issued to children born in the occupied territories in the first half of 2019, while data from open sources of the occupying state show that more than 17,000 children were born in this territory in the same period. Law of Ukraine 3674-VI “On Judicial Fees” of 8 July 2011 provides for an exemption from payment of court fees for applicants in cases of establishing legal facts – births and deaths – that took place in the temporarily occupied territories. But unfortunately, not all the applicants from the temporarily occupied territories are aware of this right, and therefore not everyone enjoys it55. Contrary to the requirement of legislation in force regarding that such cases should be considered immediately, the court procedure is lengthy. In particular, the time between the first visit to the registration authority and issuance of the certificate averages two to six weeks. During this time, the applicant has to stay in the government-controlled territory of Ukraine and spend money on accommodation. There is yet another significant shortcoming in establishing the fact of birth. It is only possible to apply for Ukrainian documents through the administrative procedure within one year of the child’s birth. If more than a year has passed, the procedure for renewal of the act record is applied, and this can last at least three months. Law 2268-VIII was the first step towards introduction of an administrative procedure for citizens from the temporarily occupied territory in Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts. Unfortunately, the mechanism provided by this Law can only be applied to the temporarily occupied territories in Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts; therefore, the needs of the residents of occupied Crimea are again ignored. 54 In national law, such international standards are enshrined in Article 9 of Law of Ukraine 1207-VII “On Ensuring the Rights and Freedoms of Citizens and the Legal Regime in the Temporarily Occupied Territory of Ukraine” of 15 April 2014: any act (decision, document) issued by the authorities and/or persons who operate illegally on the territory of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea is invalid and does not create legal consequences. According to NGOs, in 2018 and 2019 in Kherson City Court, 90 and 93 per cent applicants paid court fees in cases establishing the facts of the birth of a child, and 65 and 68 per cent of applicants paid court fees in cases establishing the facts of death respectively. In addition, case law shows that in most cases, judges throughout Ukraine interpret the rule on exemption from court fees as applicable only to internally displaced persons, leading to situations where other groups of persons affected by the conflict are forced to pay court fees in such cases. 55 CHAPTER 5 There are also problems establishing the fact of the birth if the mother’s name on her marriage certificate issued by the occupation administration and that in her Ukrainian passport are not the same. In this case, the court cannot establish the fact of marriage or paternity and, as a result, the woman receives the status of single mother, and paternity is established in court.