Only no serious criminals Those who fight against Putin are released from prison
Ukraine is running out of soldiers. So Kiev is turning to a previously untapped potential: men who are in prison. Up to 5000 men could be recruited in this way.
02.07.2024, 21:02
dpa
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- Ukraine urgently needs more soldiers.
- In a new program, prison inmates are to be recruited for the front: Those who perform military service will receive freedom in return.
- Over 27,000 offenders are eligible for the program, and Kiev is expecting around 5,000 new recruits.
In a rural penal colony in south-eastern Ukraine, several prisoners stand in front of a barbed wire fence and listen to a military recruiter who makes them an offer: You can be released on parole if you join the fight against the Russian invaders.
"You can end this and start a new life," says the man, who is part of a volunteer assault battalion. "The main thing is your will, because you will defend the motherland. You won't succeed with 50 percent, you have to give 100 percent of yourselves, even 150 percent."
Russia's war of aggression has already lasted more than two years, and Ukraine urgently needs more forces on the battlefield. Now hundreds of thousands of additional men are to be called up for service, and for the first time Ukraine is also turning to a previously untapped potential for recruitment: imprisoned criminals.
Over 3000 prisoners already in the military
There are no official figures on the number of Ukrainian soldiers deployed or casualties. But commanders on the front line openly admit that they are facing serious personnel problems, especially as the Russians are reinforcing their troops in eastern Ukraine and gradually advancing towards the west.
More than 3,000 prisoners have already been released on parole and assigned to military units after parliament approved this type of recruitment under a controversial mobilization law in May, Ukrainian Deputy Justice Minister Olena Vysotska told the AP news agency.
The ministry estimates that around 27,000 convicted offenders could be eligible for the new program. According to Wysozka, a driving motive for many potential candidates is to "return home as a hero rather than from prison".
A chance to do something for the country
Ernest Wolwatsch would like to accept the offer. The 27-year-old was sentenced to two years in the penal colony in the Dnipropetrovsk region for robbery. He works in the kitchen there, filling bowls with food.
"It's stupid to sit here and do nothing," says Wolwatsch, who says he has wanted to "do something for Ukraine" and have the opportunity to enlist in the military since the start of the war. Now he has a chance to do so.
For security reasons, Ukrainian soldiers on active service usually only give their first name or a nickname. Many of the inmates in the penal colony also asked to be identified only by their first names in order to avoid problems in the event of their military service.
This includes 30-year-old Volodymyr, who makes metal bolts in a workshop in the penal colony. He says he wants to join the armed forces voluntarily when he has served his sentence in a year's time, but not now, as there is no home leave under the probation program.
Serious criminals are to be sorted out
Before being released, prisoners are questioned and medically examined. And anyone who has been convicted of rape, other sexual assaults, murder of two or more people or crimes against national security is not eligible for the program.
Ukrainian officials are careful to distinguish between their offer and the Russian recruitment of prison inmates for the notorious Wagner mercenary group. Those fighters have usually been channeled into the deadliest battles, but the Ukrainian program is aimed at integrating those released into regular Ukrainian units on the front line.
According to government statistics provided to the EU, around 42,000 people are imprisoned in Ukraine. While recent reforms have reduced the number of inmates and improved conditions in some facilities, there is still external criticism of the treatment of some prisoners. In its 2023 Human Rights Report, the US State Department spoke of credible reports of "degrading treatment or punishment" by prison authorities.
"I will be more useful in war."
Those who qualify for release on parole are quickly sent to camps where they learn how to use a weapon and other essential combat fundamentals. The training is later supplemented and completed after integration into individual units.
The released Mychajlo has completed an assault course and says it has been hard to meet the physical demands - climbing in and out of armored personnel carriers and tackling obstacle courses after months of relative inactivity in prison.
"I decided to enlist in the Ukrainian volunteer army because I have a family at home, children, parents," says the 29-year-old, having to drown out the noise from a nearby shooting range. "I'll be more useful in the war."
Deputy Justice Minister Wysozka says that interest in the probation program has exceeded expectations. It could bring in up to 5,000 new recruits. "That would definitely help."
