Revision of the amount of fines for evading mobilization, unusual functions of the TCC - part of the unresolved problems
In the third year of a full-scale war in Ukraine, the revision of mobilization legislation continues. Everything comes with great difficulty. For more than a month after the adoption of the bill in the first reading, its consideration has stalled at the level of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on National Security, Defense and Intelligence. Representatives of opposition factions criticize the work of the relevant committee, saying that Bankova now lacks the political will to approve the mobilization bill.
Members of the defense committee from the pro-government camp are also not silent. They openly call 4,195 amendments “spam” and populism (as of March 17, just over half a thousand were considered). Some members also blame the head of the committee from the Servant of the People, Alexander Zavitnevich, for the chaos. He allegedly demonstrates "poor management."
In a commentary, people's deputy from the Servant of the People faction, member of the Defense Committee Fyodor Venislavsky admitted: the process of amending the mobilization legislation has been artificially politicized. According to him, some parliamentarians, despite understanding the importance of the problem, are trying to write down the rules in a way that citizens would like. At the same time, according to the Glavkom’s interlocutor, the bill risks not achieving the ultimate goal - establishing order, taking into account those liable for military service and forming a base for the demobilization of the military, who have been fighting for the third year.
“During two weeks of work, the parliamentary committee on national security united all the proposals of deputies into 16 blocks. For example, there is a block to limit the constitutional rights and freedoms of persons who evade the reconciliation of accounting data in the TCC. The committee reached a consensus: we will remove all restrictions (the government bill provides for temporary restrictions on the right to drive a car, travel abroad, seizure of funds and other valuables of the evader, which he stores in financial institutions or non-bank payment service providers, including this will apply to money in electronic wallets - “Glavkom”), except for restricting the right to drive a car. However, already during the voting, some committee members deviated from these agreements. In addition, there was agreement regarding a deferment from conscription for disabled persons, caretakers, adoptive parents and persons who support persons with disabilities. We also agreed on the issues of booking persons. Now there has been no voting on these blocs,” Venislavsky said.
Draconian fines are still on paper
One can agree with the pro-government politician: the issue of mobilization is too sensitive for society. And any tightening of the screws instantly causes a negative reaction.
Since the end of December 2023, a government bill designed to sharply increase fines for draft dodgers has been collecting dust. For violation of military registration rules by conscripts, those liable for military service, and reservists, it is proposed to impose a fine of 8.5 thousand UAH to 17 thousand UAH (now the penalty for this is no more than 1.7 thousand UAH). And violation of the legislation on defense, conscription and military service, mobilization training and mobilization will cost 34-85 thousand UAH in fines (for citizens and officials). If this violation is committed under the conditions of a special period, the fine will increase to 153-204 thousand UAH.
For now, the government is probably weighing the risks of implementing its initiatives. On March 15, military journalist Yuri Butusov published a mobilization concept on Facebook. According to him, these proposals are being considered in parliament and supposedly can be built into a “mobilization” bill. Among these developments, the section “Coercion” catches the eye. In particular, a 100 thousand UAH fine may be applied to those liable for military service who evade clarification of military registration information. If they ignore this requirement again (within two weeks), the fine may increase to 200 thousand UAH. It is proposed to impose the same “educational” sanctions on men for failure to appear at the TCC after receiving a summons.
But People’s Deputy Venislavsky assured the “Commander in Chief”: the Verkhovna Rada Committee on National Security, Defense and Intelligence is not considering the concept of mobilization promulgated by Butusov. At the same time, the chosen one agrees: sanctions for evading mobilization must be strengthened, they must be tangible.
“Today, a fine of several hundred hryvnia is definitely not an incentive for citizens to fulfill their constitutional duties. However, it must be said that the issue of fines is not discussed within the framework of government bill No. 10449 on amendments to some legislative acts of Ukraine regarding certain issues of military service, mobilization and military registration,” the politician explained.
The role of the TCC. Social support or punishment machine?
The main role in the current mobilization is played by the territorial centers of recruitment and social support (TCC and SP), former military registration and enlistment offices. The day before the full-scale invasion, on February 23, 2022, the Cabinet of Ministers updated the functionality of these bodies. It remains unchanged: TCC and SP ensure the functioning of the military registration system for conscripts, those liable for military service and reservists. In addition, they carry out advertising and propaganda work among the population to recruit for military service under a contract, and also attract the help of the police in delivering those liable for military service to the buildings of the TCC and SP. Recently, the government has expanded the powers of the former military registration and enlistment offices, transferring them to round-the-clock operation.
Despite the extremely important tasks, at least for the last year the work of the TCC and the joint venture has often been accompanied by scandals. A few highlights from news feeds:
- in Bukovina, men armed with axes attacked representatives of the TCC;
- TCC workers in Lviv forcibly dragged a volunteer into a minibus;
- in Buchach, Ternopil region, a 49-year-old man died at the local military registration and enlistment office, where military registration documents were being verified;
- in the Lviv region, two former servicemen of the TCC and SP, who tortured and illegally detained four citizens, will be tried;
- in the Kyiv region there was another scandal with employees of TCC and SP - they allegedly beat up a truck driver;
- the Intermezzo group stated that their lead singer Vladimir Bilyk and his friend Andrei Duletsky were allegedly detained and beaten by TCC employees in Chernivtsi;
- The State Bureau of Investigation sent to court a case of torture of men in the Ternopil military registration and enlistment office.
In addition, in the Khmelnitsky region, since the beginning of the year, citizens have filed appeals to the courts regarding the illegal actions of representatives of the TCC and the joint venture. One of the complainants noted: on the morning of January 22, on Vokzalnaya Street in Khmelnitsky, unknown persons in military uniform detained her husband and brought her to the TCC. He was prohibited from leaving the premises. There, the Military Military Commission declared the man fit for military service, despite a severe incurable disease of the cardiovascular system. The next day, the man was examined by other doctors, who refused to recognize him as fit for service due to heart defects. The investigating judge advised the woman to contact the police with a statement about committing a criminal offense.
A similar incident occurred at the bus station in the city of Volochisk, Khmelnitsky region. On the morning of January 5, unidentified servicemen, according to the applicant, grabbed him and struck him seven to eight times in the back, stomach and forearm (with car doors). The men were released in the morning of January 6. On the same day, he went to the emergency room of the Khmelnitsky City Hospital. The court ordered the Khmelnitsky district police department to open criminal proceedings based on a citizen’s statement, which spoke of a possible crime under Part 1 of Article 146-1 of the Criminal Code “Forced disappearance.”
To all this there is a reaction from the Verkhovna Rada Commissioner for Human Rights Dmitry Lubinets: employees of the territorial center for recruitment and social support do not have the right to check documents of citizens and forcefully detain men liable for military service right in the middle of the street.
“The main issue raised by citizens of Ukraine is the inconsistency of the mandates of the TCC. This is when they demand to check documents, take away documents and physically detain Ukrainian citizens. They do not have such rights,” the ombudsman noted.
Lawyer Roman Kichko also agrees with Lubinets. In a comment to the “Commander in Chief”, he noted: the main problem of mobilization is that it has become a kind of punishment and is acquiring more and more coercive features. And it is not a fact that a person who has the right to a deferment is not mobilized illegally.
“An example from my practice. The person liable for military service is reserved by the Ministry of Economy. TCC and SP unilaterally changes his military specialty number and, after booking, declares the booking invalid, refuses to issue a deferment and issues a mobilization summons. TCC and JV do not have such powers; they do not have the right to “cancel” the reservation of the Ministry of Economy unilaterally. However, such situations are common,” the human rights activist said.
Kichko explains: if a person has the right to a deferment, then the TCC and the joint venture have an obligation to formalize this right. Not to provide, but to formalize. Situations are common in which the TCC and the joint venture confuse the grounds for deferment, demand non-existent documents, as a result they illegally mobilize a person, and then high-profile articles about illegal mobilization appear in the news, the lawyer adds.
The human rights activist also noted the formal approach to conducting military medical commissions (MMC), the problem has not been resolved since the beginning of the war. Kichko directly encountered situations in which a person liable for military service for a number of diseases should have been declared unfit without alternative and excluded from military registration, but was recognized as limitedly fit, which provided for the possibility of his mobilization.
Another problem is the impossibility of updating credentials without a visit to the TCC.
“Although my position as a lawyer is that such data can be updated remotely (the law uses the term “report in person”). But the TCC always insists on the personal appearance of the person liable for military service. At this stage, due to the negative image and mistrust, a number of questions arise among those liable for military service: “If I want to update my data, why should I come in person? If I come, what will happen next? I saw the forceful mobilization on the news.” Moreover, even during a visit to the TCC, the person liable for military service is immediately sent to the Military Military Commission. A person again has a question: why should I undergo an IVC if I came to apply for a deferment?” - asks the lawyer.
Registration of a deferment and passing the IHC are different legal processes, but the TCC and the joint venture identify them, the lawyer adds. He noted that this is all happening despite the fact that there are court decisions with a clear instruction from the court: the registration of a deferment should occur regardless of the passage of the IHC, since these are different processes.
Mobilization of the economy. Unanswered Questions
No less important in the issue of mobilization is the economic aspect. The law “On mobilization preparation and mobilization”, among other things, outlines the powers of the Cabinet of Ministers. In particular, the government is responsible for developing Ukraine’s mobilization plan, which it submits to the president for approval; prepares a document on mobilization preparation of the national economy of Ukraine; creates a mobilization reserve of material, technical and raw material resources.
To find out what exactly the current Cabinet of Ministers has done from the above, the “Commander in Chief” sent a corresponding request. Deputy Minister of Economy Igor Fomenko responded very dryly: “Central and local executive authorities have completed the activities determined by the relevant mobilization plans, transferred to the mode of operation under martial law and continue to carry out the tasks determined by law.” And he cited three resolutions of the Cabinet of Ministers, two of which concerned the reservation of military personnel for the period of mobilization.
At the same time, lawyer Dmitry Buzanov, in a conversation with Glavkom, emphasized that conscription for military service by mobilization is just the tip of the iceberg. To systematically transfer the national economy and the activities of government bodies to work under the conditions of a special period, a whole range of measures is necessary.
The transition of the national economy to functioning under the conditions of a special period is hampered by a lack of budget funds, the lion's share of which is allocated to finance the Defense Forces. As a result, ordinary Ukrainians raise funds for clothing, ammunition, and other support for a person who is being drafted into a military unit. Thus, part of the state responsibility for proper provision of the military falls on the population, the lawyer states.
Buzanov noted that this state of affairs affects the motivation of those liable for military service. The issue of financing benefits and social payments in the event of a person being injured or killed while performing military duty remains open to society. It is obvious that the state has found itself dependent on funding from partners, both to cover general budget expenses and the defense budget, to provide benefits, and social payments.
“The state, lacking funding and lacking the necessary communication with those liable for military service, turned the process of conscription into military service into a method of punishment. In the media, we see cases where offenders for any offense, and most often for violating the curfew, are issued summonses to the TCC and SP,” added the human rights activist.
How to change approaches?
Military lawyer Daria Solareva offers her own recipe for getting out of the mobilization zugzwang. Firstly, it is important to work to ensure that those liable for military service do not associate military service with punishment. “There’s no need to shove all the alcoholics, drug addicts, and so on there. Service in the Armed Forces of Ukraine is not a punishment, there are the best men and women who give their health and lives for our peace,” said the human rights activist.
Secondly, it is necessary to stop forceful mobilization. If a person really avoids mobilization, use legal measures rather than physical force, the lawyer suggests. In her opinion, many men are afraid not of military service, but of the fact that in the TCC and SP they will be humiliated and used physical force.
Third, provide adequate assistance to military personnel and those discharged from military service. This is about ensuring that people understand that they will have adequate financial support, and if they are injured, they will be provided with medical care and the necessary treatment, rehabilitation, and appropriate financial support. And when the protector/defender is captured, they will look for him/her, an exchange will take place, and their family will be provided not only financially, but will also have information about their whereabouts. If he dies, there must be a decent burial and provision for the family.
Fourthly, the issue of reservation of military personnel should be resolved.
“Now there is an opinion in society that war is only for the poor. The proposed changes to the “cost” of booking, which employers must pay for booking workers, confirms this thesis, unfortunately. Men who work in factories and enterprises have great difficulty obtaining “reservation”, or even do not receive it. At the same time, the agendas do not reach the wealthier segments of the population. Using the example of people’s deputies who have a guaranteed “reservation,” we can consider this option: if a people’s deputy does not attend more than 25% of meetings, deprive him of the right to “reservation,” the military lawyer voiced her ideas.
