Plumbing services to the border, fake enrollments in a foreign university or as a driver for humanitarian aid: there are many ways to avoid the ban on men leaving Ukraine
“I’m not a traitor,” claims Anton, name changed, a businessman who fled the war in Ukraine. On February 24, he set off with his wife and two children to the border to escape the war. They traveled all day and it was at that moment that President Zelensky imposed the ban on men aged 18 to 60 leaving the country. That is why only Anton’s wife and children managed to cross the border, Deutsche Welle writes.
He then started looking for ways to join his family because for him “commitments to family are a priority”. He first tried to reach Romania through a border village. “We were a lot of men. But the local people betrayed us and we were captured,” says Anton. Then he heard that traffickers were asking for $5,000 each to drive them to the border. In the meantime, he was mobilized, but the army never found a suitable assignment for him. So he returned home and continued to make plans to escape.
Ideas from social networks
The ban on leaving the country does not apply to single fathers, to fathers with three or more children, and to people with disabilities. Also excluded are students in foreign higher education institutions, drivers transporting humanitarian aid, as well as people with permanent residence abroad.
Men who do not fall into these categories, but still want to leave Ukraine, do so through, for example, Crimea. Some enroll in foreign universities, others look for work as volunteer drivers or try to leave Ukraine on foot across the border.
There is no shortage of advice on social media aimed at these people. In group chats, information is being spread about how to get a certificate of study started at a Polish or other European university even before the start of the war, and within ten days – for 980 euros.
Anton managed to leave the country – through a friends’ foundation. “The foundation asked for permission to leave the country. We all left, the cars with the humanitarian aid returned to Ukraine, and I stayed in the EU. People like me are called traitors,” he says. “I’m not afraid of the front, and if I didn’t have children, I would have been there a long time ago. But we didn’t give birth to them so that my wife would take care of them alone.”
Interest in the possible departure is high. From channels called “Legal Move Abroad” or “Help at the Border”, it is clear that for $ 1,500 a certificate of unfitness for military service can be obtained for health reasons. And for the disguise “driver” of a humanitarian transport, 2000 dollars are paid. It is estimated that around a dozen men leave the country this way every day.
There are also reviews on social networks of people who used the advice: “I left as a helper, everything became much faster and easier than I thought”; “Thank you for helping my son – he is now in Italy”; “I reached Bulgaria, I am very grateful”. DV tried to contact many of these users, but received a response from only one. He wrote that he “doesn’t want to risk anything and doesn’t want to tell.”
“For” and “against” the departure ban
Odesa lawyer Alexander Gumirov launched a petition in May to lift the ban on men leaving Ukraine. In just a few days, 25,000 signatures were collected and the petition had to be considered by President Zelensky. He reacted sharply and stated that the petition should be addressed to the parents of the soldiers who gave their lives for the defense of Ukraine.
According to Gumirov, the ban is meaningless: “If someone wants to protect his beloved homeland, his home and his family, he does not need a ban on leaving the country. But even if someone does not want to protect his homeland, this ban is still unnecessary.”
Gumirov says that many men in Ukraine are currently unable to find work, support their families, or pay taxes. In addition, prohibition leads to corruption. As part of his law practice, he receives daily inquiries about what “loopholes” can be found to circumvent the ban. But all of them are connected with bribes, Gumirov points out.
The material has been published HERE
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