Volunteer Movement in Ukraine during the Anti-Terrorist Operation: History, Condition, Problems.

Leonid Ilchuk

Volunteer Movement in Ukraine during the Anti-Terrorist Operation: History, Condition, Problems.

Introduction. In the present, the state of Ukraine challenges the whole civil society concerning the capacity and the national consolidation. The civil sector, represented by the volunteer movement, is currently playing a very important role in this process. The state of affairs in the state often leads to the emergence of new ideas, the activation of certain rather unobtrusive nonprofit organizations, as well as the emergence of all the latent problems that have long been hidden deep within the social structure of the unformed Ukrainian society. That is why the volunteer movement in Ukraine today has awakened the nation and, more precisely, has become an indicator of the radical transformations in the social structure of the Ukrainian society.

The situation prevailing in the period before and after the Revolution of Dignity is too difficult for Ukraine’s further advancement in the European and world community, both from the economic, military and political points of view. It is worth recalling that the President of Ukraine V. Yanukovych fled from the state. He was followed by the Minister of Defense of Ukraine, Head of the Security Service of Ukraine, Head of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, a number of ministers who “seized” a significant part of the gold and currency reserves emptying the treasury. It became clear that the Ukrainian armed forces, being almost destroyed by Yanukovych’s power, were in a miserable state, internal troops and militia were demoralized – only a few units were able to resist the aggressor and separatists. The army remained virtually non-combatant, not well-equipped from all points of view. This was well-understood by Russia, which occupied Crimea without a “single shot”. That is why, in the realities of the social instability in the Ukrainian society, the need for volunteering has intensified. For its solving, the efforts and financial investments of the state were not enough, therefore the state and its organizations need the help of the population ready for unprofitable labor. This also happened in Ukraine, when volunteer battalions and volunteer organizations became the National Guard of Ukraine when defending the state from the Russian aggression together with the Armed Forces of Ukraine [1].

The issues of the volunteer movement were studied by such well-known scholars as J. Davis Smith, M. Harris, C. Rochester, R. Hedley, S. Ellis, K. Campbell, etc. In addition, volunteering as a social phenomenon was studied by such domestic scientists as R. Vainola, A. Kapska, N. Komarova, O. Bespalko, O. Karpenko, I. Zvereva, I. Yurchenko, G. Laktionova, I. V. Avuieva. At the heart of the classical approaches to the study of volunteering issues are the ideas of altruism (O. Konth, I. Kant, G. Hegel, P. Sorokin, D. Myers, V. Efroimson), liberalism (J. Bentham, G. Spenser, F. Hayek), Marxism (K. Marx, F. Engels, V. Lenin), Christian religious values ​​(A. Smith, M. Weber, A. de Tocqueville). At the present stage, the problem of voluntary activity is studied within the framework of three approaches: societal (R. Kornuel, F.Hayek), economical (L. Salamon) and labor (K. Biedermann, L. Kudrinska).

However, these studies are based mainly on the generalization of the experience of the practical implementation of volunteer projects in the field of the social work with their detailed, often phased, description. Therefore, when assessing the level of elaboration of the issue of the volunteer activity and volunteer movement in Ukraine, it should be noted that there is no comprehensive research on the volunteer movement, the volunteer activity during the anti-terrorist operation in the east of Ukraine (hereinafter ATO). Information about this kind of activity is fragmentarily scattered, mainly in Internet publications.

The scientists of Ukraine will still need a significant amount of time to systematize all information about the volunteer movement during ATO into a fundamental document for the study of this phenomenon by the future generations, not only the Ukrainians but also representatives of other states. The author of the article tried, on the basis of collected information, to objectively reveal the issue of the birth and activity of the volunteer movement in Ukraine during the conduct of ATO as a unique phenomenon, which has no analogue in the world history. The Ukrainian volunteers are brave, courageous, active, resourceful, creative. Ukraine sends to war the best, most experienced knights, called cyborgs, who with great courage, with a risk to life, protect the sovereignty and independence of our state.

The purpose of this article is to study the practice of volunteer activity as a kind of charitable activity during the anti-terrorist operation in the East of Ukraine. The research methods are: general scientific methods of ascending from abstract to concrete, comparative analysis and synthesis; general scientific principles of objectivity, systemacity, unity of historical and logical; methods of qualitative analysis (meaningful interpretation of data) and statistical analysis (search of statistical laws), social modeling.

The analysis of documents was used to study the legal framework and statutory documents on volunteering, and the biographical method – to identify the empirical indicators of the subject of research.

Brief historical background. Together with the restoration of traditions of philanthropy as an integral component of the independent Ukraine, the volunteer movement is actively developing. This is a charitable activity carried out by the individuals on the basis of non-profit activities, without salaries, promotion, for the sake of the welfare and prosperity of the communities and society as a whole, humanistic activities aimed at the social assistance to certain groups of the population, development of well-being and prosperity of society. As a social movement volunteering originated in the West, and the first volunteers were the Samaritans, who rendered assistance to all who needed it. More confidently we can speak of the emergence of the phenomenon of volunteering from the middle of the XIX century. 1859 is the year of the emergence of a volunteer movement in the world. During this period Henri Durant, a well-known French writer, a journalist who was struck by the consequences of the bloody battle of Solferino, proposed to create a Red Cross – an organization that would work volunteering and provide first-aid care to the captives and the wounded. The principles formulated by Henri Durant guided the volunteer organizations around the world. Some researchers distinguish the twentieth century as a major milestone in the development of the volunteer movement. In Europe, after World War I, there were people ready to help the victims of the war. It was at that time that the first volunteer organizations were created. The Coordinating Committee of the International Volunteering Service (CCIVS) was established under the auspices of UNESCO with headquarters in Paris [2].

In Ukraine, volunteering also has its roots. As Adriana Ohorchak, a researcher in the history of Galicia, writes, “The Ukrainians have always taken care of the old and infirm, widows, orphans. A strong one helped a weaker one. Great things were done together. Sensuality, tenderness in relations between people caused the enthusiasm for travelers who came to us from far countries.” Everyone knows the names of Konstantin Ostrovsky, Petro Sagaidachny, Ivan Mazepa, and Mykhailo Hrushevsky, who were not only famous politicians, but also patrons and benefactors [3]. The basis for the development of volunteering was charity, altruism, humanism, indifference to others’ problems which have long been inherent to the Ukrainians. A clear example of the present is the latest event, when on September 26, ammunition depot exploded in the Vinnytsia oblast (Kalinivka village). About 30,000 people were evacuated, including half of the volunteers who provided housing, food and other services free of charge.

There is no precise information about starting a volunteer movement to help the military. According to the Internet resource, a receipt was kept dated January 21, 1919, concerning donations by the peasants of the second hundred of the Individual unit of the Sich Riflemen of the city of Novyi Bug: 38 loaves, 12 pieces of fat, 11 rubles and 60 kopecks of money [4]. There is no exact date for forming a volunteer movement to assist the army as a whole in Ukraine, as well as the exact date of formation of the volunteer organizations. The author believes that the beginning may be a volunteer movement during the Revolution of Dignity, after the Russian intervention in Crimea on February 20, 2014. An estimated period of a ramified army assistance system can be considered as the period from May to June 2014. As noted above, the scientists still need time for the historical intelligence on this issue, and therefore the author leaves this problem to the historians, political scientists, public figures for the search for truth and its coverage in the scientific works.

Legal field analysis. For the further analysis of volunteering, it is important to focus on the analysis of the legal framework for volunteering and philanthropy in Ukraine. Indeed, without a legal field, it is quite difficult to carry out such activities in the modern conditions, despite the voluntary and unprofitable nature of such activities.

In April 2011, the Law of Ukraine On Volunteer Activity dated April 19, 2011 No. 3236-VI was adopted. From December 2013 to March 2015, 132 civil associations were granted with the status of a “volunteer organization” in accordance with the said Law [5]. In March 2015, the Law of Ukraine On Amending Certain Laws of Ukraine Regarding Volunteer Activity was adopted [6]. The law, in particular: abolished the need to give organizations the status of volunteer organizations; volunteer activities are foreseen in the area of ​​antiterrorist operation (conducting hostilities); provision of one-time cash assistance to volunteer families, as well as to the wounded volunteers during the anti-terrorist operation; the issue of voluntary insurance of volunteers is regulated, the conclusion of contracts for the conduct of volunteer activities only at will; it was determined that children under the age of 14 can be engaged in volunteer activities with the consent of parents.

The Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine dated August 5, 2015 No. 556 approved the Procedure for Providing Volunteer Assistance in Certain Areas of Volunteer Activity [7]. The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine dated August 19, 2015 No. 604 approved the procedure for payment of one-time financial assistance in the event of a volunteer’s death or disability due to injury (contusion, trauma or injury) received at time of volunteer assistance in the area of ​​anti-terrorist operations, military operations and an armed conflict [8].

In case of a volunteer’s death, a single allowance is paid in the amount of 500 subsistence minimums established by law for able-bodied persons on the date of death to the family members, parents and dependents of deceased (dead) volunteer in equal parts. In case of disability due to injury (contusion, trauma or injury) one-time allowance is paid to the volunteer in the amount of 250 subsistence minimums established by law for able-bodied persons – persons with disabilities of group I; 200 – persons with disability of group II; 150 persons with disability of group III.

According to the Ministry of Social Policy of Ukraine, dated December 5, 2016, 9 families of dead volunteers and 2 volunteers with the establishment of disability received single allowance for a total of 5.9 million UAH. The Decree of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine dated September 23, 2015 No. 740 approved the Procedure for Granting the Status of a Person Covered by the Law of Ukraine On the Status of War Veterans, Guarantees of Their Social Protection to certain categories of persons [9]. 6,1 thousand people received this status. The Decree of Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine dated April 29, 2016 No. 336 approved the procedure for appointment and payment of one-time financial assistance in the event of death or disability of some categories under the Law of Ukraine On the Status of War Veterans, Guarantees of Their Social Protection. This assistance is intended for members of families of 91 dead and 22 disabled persons [10].

The Law of Ukraine dated March 5, 2015, No. 246-VIII On Amending Some Laws of Ukraine Concerning Volunteer Activities regulates social relations related to the implementation of volunteer activities in Ukraine. The main objective of this document is to ensure the effective regulation of the legal relations arising in the process of conducting volunteer activities in Ukraine, promotion of volunteer movement in Ukraine, and enhancement of the quality of volunteering assistance. In particular, the law specifies the terms “volunteering”, “volunteer”, removes restrictions on the implementation of volunteer activity by the organizations and institutions, clarifies the rights and responsibilities of volunteers and the organizations and institutions that involve volunteers in their activities, explains the features of reimbursement relating the volunteer assistance. The law also introduces the volunteer health insurance for volunteers providing volunteer assistance within the organizations and institutions involved in volunteering. In particular, it is supplemented with the following areas of activity: volunteering assistance for the elimination of the consequences of man-made or natural emergencies; provision of volunteer assistance to the Armed Forces of Ukraine, other military formations, law enforcement agencies, state authorities during the special period, legal regimes of emergency or martial status, and the conduct of anti-terrorist operations [11].

It should be noted that the Bodies of the Central Executive Power in accordance with the norms of the Law of Ukraine On Volunteer Activity, which implement the state policy in the field of volunteer activity, perform a number of powers, namely: ensure the implementation of state policy in the field of volunteer activity; take other measures for the development and promotion of volunteer activities; promote the dissemination of information about volunteer activities; promote public associations and charitable organizations in their activities aimed at developing volunteer activities; disseminate information on the state of implementation of sectoral and regional programs for the promotion and support of volunteer activities; publish on its website the available information about the organizations and institutions that involved volunteers in its activities, including information on organizations and institutions that attract foreigners and stateless persons for doing volunteer work in Ukraine within three working days of receipt of the relevant information; promote the international cooperation on volunteer activities, generalize and disseminate practice in this area.

At the beginning of a vigorous activity of the volunteer movement there were practically no mechanisms for its interaction with the power structures. But later, a significant role and high authority of the volunteers pushed the authorities to cooperate, and in autumn 2014, their close cooperation with the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine (hereinafter – MDU) began. In September, the founder of the volunteer group People’s Project, David Arachamiia, was appointed as the Deputy Minister of Defense for Procurement, and in October, the founder of the Wings of Phoenix Yuriy Biryukov became an assistant to the Minister of Defense for Armed Forces (currently the adviser to the Minister of Defense on a voluntary basis). In November, another well-known volunteer, Tatiana Rychkova, headed a new state-owned enterprise providing special operations forces (later an officer of the Ukrainian Armed Forces).

In October 2014, the Council of Volunteers under the leadership of David Arachamiia was created at MDU. Its tasks were the maintenance of the army, the repair of equipment, the purchase of devices and military medicine. The board was charged with disbursing budget funds (including from text receipts to 565) for a sum of 60 million UAH. In November 2014, about 30 volunteer groups joined the NGO Association of Volunteers of Ukraine. According to it, it has several committees, from which 2 persons are delegated to the Council of Volunteers at MDU, and three members of its coordinating council are appointed as Deputy Ministers. The Association reports on a number of advances in the areas of organization, training and provision of military formations, remuneration and housing support for the military, counteraction to the Russian propaganda and others.

Due to the limited powers of the volunteer council, the idea of ​​a “volunteer landing force” emerged – the placement of volunteers for work at the Ministry. In November 2014, at the initiative of Yuriy Biryukov and under the supervision of David Arachamiia, 8 volunteers who had passed the polygraph test became the employees of MDU. Among their achievements in the civil service, the implementation of the electronic procurement system and the electronic register of property records of the Ministry, the development of new technical specifications for suppliers, as well as innovations in the field of military power and warehouse automation. However, during the first year of operation, most of the “landing force” quitted, and their initiatives were transferred to the Project Office of Reforms.

The Project Office of Reforms was established in spring-summer 2015 and officially presented on September 8. This is a unit of MDU consisting of 30 volunteer and business managers. It deals with material support, public procurement, medicine and state-owned enterprises. In December 2014, 10 volunteers with experience in negotiating work became part of the joint coordination center for the release of hostages established under MDU. In August 2015, with Yuriy Biryukov’s help, the Sarmat Volunteers Coordinating Headquarters, led by Alexei Lipirida, appeared at MDU. The headquarters is working at the front and identifies problems with logistics support and medical care, providing ATO and combatants’ statuses, paying soldiers, and tracking their presentation to the awards [12].

The Ministry of Social Policy of Ukraine is responsible for the social protection of ATO participants and volunteers, at which the Coordination Council for volunteering and charity assistance was formed, in order to improve work with volunteers. The orders of the Ministry of Social Policy: dated May 18, 2015, No. 516, registered with the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine dated June, 2015 under No. 649/27094, the Regulations on the Council are approved; the updated Personnel of the Board was approved dated July 20, 2016 No. 800.

In the regions, on the recommendation of the Ministry, similar advisory bodies were formed at the oblast level. Thus, in the 8 oblasts, appropriate coordination councils were established with the participation of the representatives of local authorities and public organizations (Volyn, Zakarpattia, Kirovograd, Luhansk, Lviv, Odesa, Poltava, Kherson oblast), in four – the Volunteer Council (Zaporizhzhia, Kyiv, Mykolayiv, in the city of Kyiv), in other two – these issues are decided by the Public Council under the Regional State Administration (Kharkiv and Khmelnytskyi oblasts), and two other – advisory bodies (Dnipropetrovsk and Rivne oblast). In Rivne, Sumy, Ternopil, Cherkasy, Chernivtsi regions volunteer activities are considered by the Centers for Assistance to ATO Participants. The results of such work on promoting the development of the volunteer movement were the active involvement of young people and elderly people in volunteer activities, organization of charitable assistance and provision of volunteer assistance to socially vulnerable sections of the population, as well as servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the National Guard of Ukraine, the Border Guard Service and other military formations, located in the area of ​​anti-terrorist operation [13].

Summarizing the legal basis and cooperation of volunteers with the authorities in general, and activities during the period of the anti-terrorist operation, it can be stated that: it is generally complete; volunteers are socially protected, there are virtually no bureaucratic obstacles in their work, rather high autonomy in choosing the direction of the volunteer activity. This indicates that Ukraine has a rather powerful segment of civil society, which gives a new impetus to its development and consolidates the Ukrainian society, especially in its crisis situation.

Volunteer activities in the present. In the continuation of the presentation of this topic it is necessary to dwell on the today realities regarding volunteer activities during ATO. The main areas of work of the volunteer movement are: collection and delivery of various resources in ATO zone (food, medicine, clothing, ammunition, motor vehicles, military equipment), repair and improvement of machinery, etc.; medical assistance to the victims of hostilities, the equipment of hospitals and clinics; assistance to the migrants from Crimea and ATO area (legal, psychological and humanitarian assistance, search for housing and work, adaptation to a new place of residence and in society); search for missing, dead and labor for the release of prisoners.

There are also activities in other areas – in particular, various assistance to the families of ATO participants. The main means of assistance are: fundraising. Large organizations mostly collect donations through various systems of non-cash transfers (in particular bank cards) and publish accounting online; collecting things; the accumulation of collected and purchased assistance to military units at the place of their deployment, hospitals, families of the military personnel.

The volunteers provide the Ukrainian army with the following resources and services: medicines; treatment; unmanned aerial vehicles; machinery; repair of equipment (cars, combat vehicles, airplanes); repair of buildings; modernization of weapons (sights, thermal imagers, night vision devices, etc.); supply of the foreign products; personal security means; clothing (form); winter equipment; food; communication facilities; money security; legal support; exchange of prisoners.

Due to the fact that in one article it is impossible to comprehensively disclose all the activities of the volunteers, the author will dwell on some of them. It should be noted that the zone of conducting an anti-terrorist operation can be divided into an area of ​​active military action and the “front-line” territories, which, are occupied by the Ukrainian troops although, but are not subject to hostilities. The supply situation in the first and second zones is different, and there are also different needs and opportunities for volunteering. In the immediate proximity to the front line, the situation is more complicated. Depending on the intensity of the bombardment, travel to the individual locations and places may be difficult, so there are problems with delivery. This applies to both military and civilians. However, the military is more mobile and at present, almost every unit has its own “volunteers,” which means that when the intensity of shelling is reduced, the military can count on deliveries. Most of the humanitarian aid and military assistance goes to the “front-line” zone – to the rear. There are military bases and warehouses where the things brought by volunteers are often kept. The territories in ATO zone along the front line are also places where the migrants appear the first. Here they are taken by the local community or they take shelter (or live in the provided housing for free), from here they also go to other regions of Ukraine. Usually here they receive the first aid (things, food, medicine).

A separate problem is the delivery of humanitarian aid on the territory occupied by pro-Russian forces, in so-called Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics. From the very beginning of hostilities it was risky for the Ukrainian volunteers because of the danger of abduction or shooting. In this regard, the majority of volunteers avoided trips on the territory outside the control zone of the Ukrainian troops. This was most often done by the religious organizations, who were more likely to convince fighters that they were not involved in the conflict. For example, the organization Your Victory, associated with the Protestant community of Slavyansk, provide bread to small, poorly populated areas on the pro-Russian side in autumn 2014. However, the main way of getting humanitarian aid for the people who remain in the occupied territories was to leave the Ukrainian side along the front line. From February 21, 2015, this opportunity was limited due to the need for passes issued by the Ukrainian side only in justified cases. According to the law enforcement agencies, this is due to the fact that some volunteers “delivered” alcohol and narcotics at certain costs to the front, and could also be informants for the separatists.

According to the personal observations of the author and private conversations, information received from the military in 2015, who were on the front line, as well as the volunteers who helped them, often suggested that “if something falls into the headquarters, it usually remains there.” The best (according to them) things are usually chosen by those who are in the rear, and what is left after sharing goes to the front line. Moreover, practice shows that supply were not organized from the headquarters to the front line – soldiers could get new jackets, etc., only when they leave the so-called “front line” (that is, from the front line position) in the rear and personally come to storage. Only the volunteers brought things directly to the front line, the more experienced tried to act, bypassing the headquarters. However, this method of transfer of assistance is limited by the directive adopted by the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on February 24, 2015. It restricts access to positions on the front line for both volunteers and non-accredited journalists. This is substantiated by the security considerations [14]. Today, this state of affairs has changed for the better. The supply of the military who defends Ukraine is more or less sufficient. However, since the beginning of aggression without the volunteer movement and their assistance, it was virtually impossible to provide soldiers with high-quality food products, warm clothing, and heating equipment. A large number of indifferent people prepared for each holiday borscht kits, dumplings, Easter cakes, etc. and delivered everything to the front.

Today volunteer organizations of Ukraine make various things for ATO soldiers, namely: masking nets; warm gloves, socks; making of camouflage cloak; vegetable drying for borsch and soup sets, making linen and balaclava; bracelets from a paracord and so on. According to information resources, 216 volunteer organizations are involved with this. The largest number is in Kyiv – 33, and in Kyiv oblast – 21 [15]. To date, the organizations and institutions of Ukraine actively involve foreigners and stateless persons in their work for the implementation of volunteer activities in Ukraine. According to the Ministry of Social Policy, 211 such organizations were registered [16].

The Ukrainian volunteers took on a particularly difficult task for the search for dead and missing persons. On the wall of St. Michael’s Cathedral in Kyiv there are pictures of fighters who died in ATO zone. Among them there are black spots with the words “Considered to be missing”, “Parents do not believe in their son’s death”, “Unidentified”, “Family did not accept the death of the husband”. During the events on the third anniversary of the Ilovaysk tragedy, the correspondent of the Ukrainian Truth met with Ievgen Andriiuk’s mother Olena. Her son was also considered to be missing for eight months. Ievgen served in the 8th Special Purpose Regiment. At the end of August 2014, he got into the very “hell”. On August 29, the connection with him disappeared. Later, woman was told that her son was captured by the Russians, he was seriously injured. Then a long search began. Olena complains that she had to “break through the wall” herself. In fact, Ievgen Andriiuk was buried in Zaporizhzhia as an unknown soldier under number 3190. It was found out due to DNA analysis. However, from the time when the woman passed the analysis, it took five months to establish a coincidence with the body of the deceased. Far not all stories with missing soldiers resulted in the fact that relatives found their son, husband, father.

According to Volodymyr Dorofieiev from the Black Tulip mission, which was searching for missing people, 200 Ukrainian fighter could be found only in the Donetsk region. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) reports the largest total number of missing persons as a result of hostilities in ATO zone. According to the estimates of the organization for three years of armed conflict in the east of Ukraine, 1,500 people have disappeared. These calculations take into account not only military but also civilian people. And this figure cannot be considered final because Ukraine does not have an exact base of missing persons, they complain at the ICRC.

Searches in the Donetsk region began in September 2014. During the period of the fiercest fighting that accounts for the largest number of missing persons. 2014 is 1941 for Ukraine. There were tens of thousands, and there are hundreds here. The search mission for missing persons in ATO zone was initiated by MDU. The troops appealed for help to the People’s Memory organization, which was engaged in search work at the First and Second World Wars. The opposite side has demanded that the military will not go to its territory, only civilians. MDU turned to volunteers. We are the most trained people to this terrible work with the remnants, with the bones of people – Dorofieiev explains the beginning of cooperation with MDU. This activity is not for the weak. During a search, one volunteer died from a rupture of heart, says Dorofieiev. According to him, from the very beginning, the mission Black Tulip took about 800 bodies. Cooperation with MDU ended in 2016 [16]. MDU explains that they had an agreement with the Black Tulip by August 2016. Then they decided not to continue the cooperation. One of the reasons is that during two years of hostilities a group was formed in the Ministry that had the opportunity to work itself.

In a personal conversation with the officers of the Armed Forces, the author clarified that the Evacuation 200 project of the Armed Forces of Ukraine is working now. The search department receives information about the location and circumstances of the missing or probable burial places from various sources. After that a plan of search works is prepared, according to which the corresponding group works in ATO zone. However, the military cannot enter the occupied territory. Therefore, they sent civilians (volunteers) accompanied by the Red Cross. A DNA analysis is performed for unidentified bodies. It is also done for parents. Being in the DNA basis the program automatically concludes whether there is a coincidence. That is, the search for dead and missing persons is impossible today without the volunteer organizations.

Invaluable assistance to ATO participants is provided by the volunteer physicians at the front line. The volunteers doctors are not given with the official trips to the front on Donbass. Therefore, volunteer physicians are forced to help the military only during holidays or unpaid personal days off. But the Ministry of Health assures readiness to facilitate business trips to the civilian hospitals, and not to the military units. Instead, the military department acknowledges that almost half of the medical personnel are missing at the front. And the solution to the problem is seen in short-term contracts for the doctors. Today, the “problem of teeth” at the front knocks the military out of service worse than missiles, and tuberculosis in the army – “a mine of a delayed action”. “About 90% of the illnesses do not have the character of a traumatic injury. Often there is no one to identify them at an early stage and send a serviceman to a hospital. And that’s why the cough is transferred into angina, angina – in pneumonia just because there is no place on that primary link. It is now critical. When going to another rotation, the volunteers doctors donate not only salary or vacation, but also risk to get “under the weight of the repressive law enforcement system.” And this is despite the fact that a four-sided memorandum of cooperation has been signed earlier. Even when doctors travel at their own expense or instead of vacation, they cannot legally stay in the territory of the temporary deployment of military units in the eastern Ukraine. They can only help by risking, because tomorrow they can be arrested as spies who have illegally entered the territory of the military units.

Quite often, the life of a soldier depends on the provision of timely assistance. The well-known volunteer group Viterets is considered as additional hands of the military doctors. The front line is stretched, the doctors are not always enough. The volunteers perform their work step by step, the first stage – the delivery of wounded from the front line to the closest hospitals. That is, volunteers are the first hands of the military doctors [17]. From October 2016 in the east of Ukraine, the 19th rotation of the First Volunteer Mobile Hospital (FVMH) named after Mykola Pyrogov. The physicians of volunteer mobile hospital has returned to the front line as the Ministry of Defense has agreed to formally engage them in the anti-terrorist operation. The volunteer physicians of this mobile hospital for a year and a half provided medical care to more than 7,000 soldiers from ATO zone.

For reference. The first volunteer mobile hospital named after Mykola Pyrogov is a volunteer project, in which doctors from different cities of Ukraine go to work in ATO zone. The hospital began its work in December 2014 in Kurakhov. Today, the doctors help military and civilians in Luhansk oblast, right next to the front line. The project brings together doctors trained in the standards of tactical medicine.

As noted by the author of the article the dentists are not enough for the Ukrainian soldiers. The volunteer dentist come to help them. For example, Volodymyr Stepa, a dentist from Transcarpathia region. He has already gone to the east for the fourth time. At this time – he specially takes a vacation. In his mobile dentist’s office he visited more than 1 thousand fighters. The state of the teeth of the army men was significantly influenced by the war. People from the western regions – they are not used to this area, and the change of water for cooking affects the state of teeth. The fighters await the arrivals of the physicians. There is always little time for the dental treatment. Most of the troops keep defending in the fields. The volunteers equipped the mobile dentistry on the basis of the former reanimobile. It is powered by a generator. The cabin is running on wheels – almost on the front ones. Indifferent foreigners also help ATO fighters. For example, a citizen of Lebanon – the volunteer organized dental care for ATO fighters. At his own expense, he bought several ambulances and equipped them with mobile dental offices with the modern equipment. Usually these are just a few examples. In Ukraine, they can be counted hundreds, which indicates the indifference of our citizens to their country and its protectors.

The high calory diet is essential for ATO soldiers. After all, platoon support points (GOP) feed on their own. They are being supplied with food from which they make food independently. Of course, the fighters want home-made food, but it is hard to cook it from the product set. It is volunteers, who provide our soldiers with such products. A few fresh examples. On September 24, 2017, nationalist volunteers (Cherkasy) returned from the front of Luhansk oblast, where they visited the Aidar battalion fighters. They provided soldiers with bags for the construction of cloaks, polyethylene film and heater, as well as many tasty gifts from their relatives. Volunteers also visited medical battalion “Hospitallers” – handed children’s clothes, trolleys for children, fruits, vegetables, dumplings and other foods. At the end of September 2017, the members of Khmelnitsky Oblast Yavoryna visited a volunteer mission in ATO zone. On the front line for the fighters of 4th company Sich of Kyiv battalion, 1st assault company DUK Right Sector, 10th individual assault company of mountain infantry brigade and Popasna hospital.

The members of Yavoryna brought food, warm clothes, new special clothes and shoes, blankets, plaids, batteries, medicines, hygiene products, household chemicals and mineral water. On October 15, 2017 the volunteers from Ternopil sent 30 tons of food to ATO zone.

In this article, as noted by the author it is impossible to highlight all issues related to volunteer activities during ATO. This is just a small part of the examples given by the volunteers who help the fighters. Scientists, public figures still need time to systematize and generalize of phenomena on the territory of Ukraine as a display of high consciousness of the Ukrainian society, which rose for the defense of their country, and gave and is giving the state an invaluable assistance and even sacrificing their lives. People capable of self-sacrifice for the sake of Ukraine’s independence and its future generations are capable of it.

Conclusion. Taking into account the value of volunteering as a free, voluntary, unique activity in Ukraine during ATO, the author notes:

– the volunteer movement and volunteer activity during the ATO is a unique phenomenon in the history of Ukraine. Indifferent people, especially in the initial period of aggression, rose for the defense of Ukraine. It is now clear and obvious that without the volunteer battalions and volunteers, the very existence of the Ukrainian state was under great threat. The volunteers requested only weapons to protect the state, or pick them up from the enemy. The Ukrainian Army was incapacitated and unskilled (neither clothes nor shoes). And this is understandable, because the Minister of Defense of Ukraine was Lebedev – a citizen of Russia, who systematically destroyed the army. But volunteers could have helped and help our warriors – from food to communication and travel;

– volunteers are engaged in the evacuation of citizens from ATO zone. So, predominantly, assistance comes to people who cannot leave the territory of fighting – elderly people and children. Volunteers animal protectors are exporting and finding homes for homeless pets;

– often volunteers draw the attention of the society to poor-quality work of the administrative army bodies. They also make information about the equipment of the army more open. Individual volunteer groups are fighting corruption in defense departments. An example is the “help from Canada” – about 30,000 uniforms and 7,000 pairs of shoes officially transmitted by the Canadian side to Ukraine. According to Bogdan Kovalev, who coordinated cooperation on these issues in the Defense Ministry, the main role of the volunteers is control over uniforms distribution system to avoid any disturbances.

Kovalev believed that the problem was not the system itself, but the human factor – for example, officers or ordinary soldiers who wanted to get benefits. Therefore, the volunteers themselves distribute, count and catalog each piece of clothing, accept applications, issue the appropriate number of forms to the units. The correspondent of the Open Dialog Foundation was present at the work of the volunteers in Odessa and could observe that the commanders of the units were at least dissatisfied with the presence of volunteers – as the activists consider themselves, because they interfere with someone to “make business”;

– unfortunately, the volunteer movement is being discredited by people who are dishonest, and even frank swindlers who use the charity of the Ukrainians for their own enrichment. There are cases of the direct fraud when collecting funds, distorting and substituting information about volunteers, in particular, providing true accounts of assistance with substitution of names and accounts, which people are requested to transfer funds;

– a legal base has been created for the volunteer activity in Ukraine that generally does not hinder such activity, provides an opportunity to decide independently the directions and forms of work during ATO period;

– volunteering united the Ukrainian society for the sake of preserving statehood. Independence is sometimes given easily, but it is difficult enough to keep it. And the Ukrainian volunteers has played the most important role in this process.

Reference.

 Kateryna Gladka, Dmytro Gromakov, Veronika Myronova and others. Dobrobraty. The History of the Exploits of the Battalions that Saved the Country.

  1. The History of the Volunteer Movement. All-Ukrainian Public Center “Volunteer”. Online resource. Access Mode // http://www.volunteer.kiev.ua/pages/History_volunteer
  2. Ohorchak A. The Role of the Volunteer School in Formulating the Personality of the Future of the Social Worker / A. Ohorchak // Collection of Scientific Works TPU, 2006. – P. 11-19.
  3. Volunteer Movement for Assistance to the Ukrainian Soldiers (2014 – till now). Online resource. Access Mode // https://uk.wikipedia.org/wiki//
  4. The Law of Ukraine On Volunteer Activity (Bulletin of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine (VVR), 2011, No. 42, p.435). Online resource. Access Mode // http://zakon2.rada.gov.ua/laws/show/3236-17
  5. The Law of Ukraine On Amendments to Some Laws of Ukraine Concerning Volunteer Activities. Internet Resource. Access mode // zakon.rada.gov.ua/laws/show/246-19/
  6. Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine dated August 5, 2015, No. 556 On Approval of the Procedure for Granting Volunteer Care in Certain Volunteer Activities. Internet Resource. Access Mode // http://zakon2.rada.gov.ua/laws/show/556-2015-%D0%BF
  7. Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine dated August 19, 2015, No. 604 Certain Issues of Payment of One-Time Cash Aid in Case of Death or Disability of a Volunteer as a Result of Injury (Contusions, Injuries and Disability) Received During the Provision of the Volunteer Assistance in the Area of ​​the Anti-Terrorist Operation, Fighting and Armed Conflict. Internet Resource. Access mode // http://zakon.pedrada.com.ua/regulations/8451/471664/
  8. Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine dated September 23, 2015, No. 740 On Approval of the Procedure for Granting the Status of a Person Covered by the Law of Ukraine, Law of Ukraine On the Status of War Veterans, Guarantees of Their Social Protection to Certain Categories of Persons. Internet Resource. Access Mode // http://www.kmu.gov.ua/control/en/cardnpd?docid=248515121
  9. Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine dated April 29, 2016, No. 336 Some Issues of Social Protection of Veterans of War and Members of Their Families. Internet Resource. Access Mode // http://zakon3.rada.gov.ua/laws/show/336-2016-%D0%BF
  10. Law of Ukraine dated March 5, 2015, No. 246 – 19 On Amendments to Some Laws of Ukraine Concerning Volunteer Activities. Internet Resource. Access Mode http://zakon3.rada.gov.ua/laws/show/246-19
  11. Ministry of Defense of Ukraine. Office of Reforms. Internet Resource. Access Mode http://defense-reforms.in.ua/volunteers
  12. General Information on the Implementation of Volunteer Activities in Ukraine (based on the materials of the Ministry of Social Policy). Internet Resource. Access Mode // http://www.msp.gov.ua/news/13156.htm/
  13. Agnieszka Guralska. Report: Assistance to Civilians and Soldiers in the ATO zone. Internet Resource. Access Mode // http://ua.odfoundation.eu/a/6439,zvit-dopomoga-civilnomu-naselennyu-i-biycyam-v-zoni-ato
  14. Assistance to the Army with Our Own Hands. Internet Resource. Access Mode // http://dopomoga-armii.com.ua
  15. The List of Organizations and Institutions Involved in the Work of Foreigners and Stateless Persons for the Implementation of Volunteer Activities in the Territory of Ukraine. Internet Resource. Access Mode // http://www.msp.gov.ua/timeline/Volonterstvo.html
  16. The Black Tulip – the Unit, which does not Exist. Internet Resource. Access mode // http://unm.org.ua/chernyy-tyulpan-podrazdelenie-kotorogo-net
  17. The Doctors who Save the Wounded on the Front, Go East. Need Help Internet Resource. Access mode // https://hromadskeradio.org/en/programs/rankova-hvylya/medyky-yaki-ryatuyut-poranenyh-na-peredoviy-vyrushayut-na-shid-potribna-dopomoga.

Виберіть мову: