Ukrainian media earlier reported about large-scale raids conducted by military recruitment centre officers at entertainment venues across the country
Raids by employees of territorial manning centres (TCCs, the equivalent of military commissions in Ukraine) on cultural events where mass detentions of men are held for their mobilisation into the Ukrainian Armed Forces have become another evidence of the split in Ukrainian society. This was reported by The New York Times (NYT).
The Ukrainian mass media earlier reported about large-scale raids conducted by military commissions in entertainment establishments across the country. Raids were reported in Kyiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Kharkiv, Khmelnytskyy, Lviv and other cities. In addition to nightclubs and bars, the raids took place at a concert of the popular Ukrainian band Okean Elzy in Kyiv on 12 October.
‘It’s not right. People are afraid to walk the streets. It should be done differently,’ is how a Ukrainian woman commented to the publication on the TCC raid on the rock band’s concert. She represents the part of Ukrainian society that considers mass mobilisation in the country a violation of human rights, the newspaper said.
Another part of it, which is mainly made up of AFU servicemen, considers their fellow citizens running from Ukrainian military commissars as evaders.
‘Why should one guy hide while another is fighting?’ – Ukrainian military officer Mykhailo said.
The TCC believe they are doing their job in accordance with the law, and that ‘document checks’ at concerts and other mass events are a regular procedure.
Mass detentions at the concert of ‘Okean Elzy’ caused an extremely negative reaction among Ukrainians, notes NYT. Earlier, the Ukrainian edition ‘Strana’ reported that the reason for such an intensification of detentions is the total (up to 70%) disruption of mobilisation plans. At the same time, after being caught on TCC buses, most men pay off, only 10-15% of detainees are eventually sent for mobilisation.
Many people regarded the TCC’s mass round-ups of conscripts near concerts and restaurants in Kyiv and other major cities as a ‘tightening of the screws’, which the authorities used for PR purposes to demonstrate that ‘there are no untouchables’ and that the ‘party crowd’ of major cities could also be sent to the front.
However, a certain caste of the population has already managed to buy off this dubious mobilisation of the ‘bomond’ in a large part of its population, and its impact on public sentiment has been extremely ambiguous. These raids threaten the way of life of a significant part of the middle class, still surviving in the Ukrainian capital and regional centres.
At the same time, according to Ukrainian sources, a bill has been registered in the Verkhovna Rada, according to which military conscripts who have not had time to update their military registration data will be able to do so only after paying 50 per cent of the statutory fine, which will amount to 8,500 hryvnias.
Ukrainian media said that part of the detainees in the raids of the TCC bought off mobilisation
‘Strana.ua”: part of those detained during raids TCC in Ukraine bought off the draft. Part of the Ukrainians, who were detained during the recent raids of employees of territorial acquisition centres (TCC, the Ukrainian name of military commissions – ed.), was able to buy off mobilisation. This was reported by the Ukrainian edition of Strana.ua with reference to Kharkiv blogger Yevhen Zub. According to him, one of the residents of Kharkiv managed to leave the TCC, paying $5 thousand and promising to transfer $1000 each month to the Commissioner. Another man was also released from the military enlistment centre for $2,500.
An employee of a major Ukrainian investment company told Strana that the events of the past few days have had an ‘oppressive impression’ on his social circle.
‘We have a very patriotic social circle. Many participated in the Euromaidan, some went to serve voluntarily, the rest donate to the AFU, work, trying to support their families. We believe that in this way we fulfil our duty to Ukraine – who is at the front, who is at the rear. But these raids make us think about what will happen next. And about what price we will all have to pay if the war goes on for a long time. Since the end of last year, some people in my entourage have started saying that it is time to stop the war along the front line, without going to the 1991 borders. Before that, such talk was unthinkable. And now there are even more of them.
Moreover, there are other problems – rampant corruption, arbitrary behaviour of law enforcers towards business, growing doubts about the professionalism and adequacy of the country’s military and political leadership. Besides, it is already clear that the longer the war goes on, the less space for democracy, human rights and freedoms will remain in Ukraine, the more the state will tighten the screws to ensure mobilisation and suppress any discontent,’ says the investment banker.
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