Child homelessness and neglect in Ukraine and Poland in the 1920s: The state of the problem and legal measures to combat it

Abstract

Background: With Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine and other problems that have arisen in recent years, the issue of Ukrainian children who find themselves in difficult life circumstances has become a significant problem. This situation demands urgent measures. For better or worse, Ukraine has experience in this regard and a history of combating the problem of child homelessness and neglect in the 1920s. Moreover, Ukraine’s neighbour, Poland, also has a history of combating the same problem in the 1920s. In this article, child homelessness and neglect in Ukraine and Poland were studied. Furthermore, legal measures to combat this problem were explored. It was useful to examine the state of the problem and legal measures to combat it to see what lessons could be learned from the successful experience in Ukraine and Poland in solving the problem of child homelessness and neglect in the 1920s. Methods: Historical and legal methods were used to study the issue effectively. This method allowed us to investigate the state of the problem in two countries at the same time and to outline the main measures that were used to combat the problem of child homelessness and neglect. The comparative method was also used to reveal the differences in combating the problem mentioned above. Results and Conclusions: Some suggestions that could be used in Ukraine to solve the problem of children who find themselves in difficult life circumstances were proposed in the conclusions.