Many Ukrainians refuse to join the army, and there are soldiers at the front who have been fighting for over two years. Therefore, Kiev also allowed prisoners to join the army. The interest among them is great.
Convicted in Ukraine can now exchange prison uniforms for military uniforms. This possibility exists after the adoption by the Ukrainian parliament of a law that allows prisoners to apply for service in the army, reports ARD.
According to the prisoner Vladimir Baran, this is good, he is not afraid that he may be rejected by the other soldiers: "This is a good law, as all Ukrainians must defend our country,", the man is convinced. Another prisoner - Oleh Omelyuk - formulated things to ARD correspondent Andrea Ber like this: "This is mostly a chance to get out."
Convicted must meet certain conditions
However, not all 65,000 men who, according to the Ukrainian authorities, are currently serving sentences could benefit from the new opportunity - there are a number of conditions that must be met. First of all - the sentence should not be longer than three years. War criminals, murderers and sex offenders are excluded from the potential military contingent. The same applies to those convicted of terrorism, crimes against national security, assisting or attempting to kill police or military personnel.
For a few, however, the motivation to join the army is to go free, says ARD Oleg Tsvili, head of a non-governmental organization that advocates for the rights of prisoners. Most of them applied for amnesty in the first days after the invasion of Russia, but it was refused, Tsvili also points out. After serving their sentences, however, they joined the army, where they still fight today. Many gave their lives at the front.
"If someone wants to correct their mistake, that's fine"
Whether the relevant prisoner has the right to join the Ukrainian army is decided by a court, which does not cancel the sentence, but replaces it with a suspended one. The military, in turn, is not obliged to accept ex-prisoners - not all commanders want them, recently explained the Ukrainian Minister of Justice Denis Malyuska.
Commander Ivan Buryak of the 93rd Mechanized Brigade is not among them. "I think that every person should be given the chance to make amends," he told Ukrainian TV station Suspilne. "If someone admits his mistake, it shows that he has thought about it. And for him to want to fix it, including shedding his blood, I think that's fine."
Voluntary candidates for mobilization are few
At the same time, fewer and fewer Ukrainians are willing to join the army and replace exhausted and often repeatedly wounded soldiers, some of whom have been in service for more than two years.
The reluctance to mobilize has many reasons: demobilization not regulated by the state, the lack of weapons and equipment at the front, cases of corruption in the army, as well as the fear of death, injury or maiming.
Of the 20,000 prisoners who can be mobilized, as many as 3,000 have applied so far, writes ARD, citing data from the Ministry of Justice. Prison officer Oleksandr is not surprised: "Many of the convicts would like to join the army".
Help for resocialization, but also risks
The mobilization of convicts is a complex issue, explains the human rights organization "Human Rights Watch". On the one hand, it can help with resocialization, but on the other hand, there is a danger that the rights of ex-prisoners will be violated
Recently, a court in the city of Khmelnytskyi ruled for the first time on the requests of two convicted thieves who would like to fight in the National Guard of Ukraine. They have passed the health and psychological tests and are in good physical shape, the court said.
Prisoner Mykola Rybalko would also like to join the army - one way or another: "I have no other option. Either I can be mobilized from prison or after my release," he told ARD.