A campaign for forced passporting is underway in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine. Representatives of pseudo-administrations resort to new manipulations and intimidation of the civilian population.
How passporting takes place in the newly occupied territories, read in a new Tribun article.
“The occupying “administrations” are probably carrying out “plans and orders” sent from Russia, while resorting to manipulative methods of passporting. People are being intimidated that if they do not receive a passport, citizens will be deprived of access to social and other services,” Violeta Artemchuk, coordinator of the Donbas SOS NGO, told our correspondent.
According to her, the hotline of the human rights organization has been contacted by people who remain in temporarily occupied territories for various reasons. They were threatened to stop importing drinking water if they did not receive the Russian document by September 2023.
“If you don't get a passport until December 2023, the social worker will stop visiting you,” is how the occupying “authorities” intimidated a woman with limited mobility from the temporarily occupied Luhansk oblast.
Those who work in the occupied territory of the Zaporizhia oblast were told that without a Russian passport they will be paid only 50% of their salary, and in Luhansk oblast will be paid only 70% of their wages.
“Also, we received a message that in order to continue work in the Donetsk oblast, it is required to have passports of the Russian Federation,” Violeta Artemchuk added.
The occupiers resort to other manipulative threats, which especially affect the most unprotected and vulnerable categories of population, which are extremely dependent on foreign aid.
According to Tribun, people in the occupied Troitsk and Svativ raions are threatened with “cutting off” the electricity, blocking exit from the raion's villages. If you have a Ukrainian passport they can to issue a large fine.
(Screenshot from the local Telegram chat)
“Why do I call such threats manipulative? First of all, there are currently no clear deadlines for obtaining Russian passports (at least a single position on this matter was not announced either in the previously captured or in the newly occupied territories). The mentioned terms probably depend on the passportization plan and its implementation by the collaborating authorities,” said the coordinator of the Donbas SOS. — Whether the occupiers will really carry out the threats they resort to – no one can either confirm or deny. After all, you can't be sure of anything in territories where there are no laws in force.”
Lawyers assure: even if circumstances forced a person to get a passport of the Russian Federation, for Ukraine, he still remains its citizen. Even if, when receiving a passport, a person was forced to sign a paper about “renunciation of Ukrainian citizenship” and to say on camera about the refusal. Note that Ukraine accepts its citizens without a passport through humanitarian corridors.
Ukrainian Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said:
“I would advise you to take a Russian passport and make a decision to survive for yourself. This is the most important thing. We understand that this happens under pressure, physical pressure. Therefore, take a passport, survive, wait until we liberate this territory. After that, the relevant law is being worked out – to officially give up this passport and return to normal life. Or to make a decision for yourself and leave this territory in any way through any territory of other countries, but simply leave there. We understand that it is now a question of survival in this territory.”
He also assured that Ukrainian citizens who will receive Russian passports in the temporarily occupied territories and will not work in the local “administration” will not be punished after deoccupation.
“As a human rights organization, we work and will work to ensure that this is indeed the case," added Violeta Artemchuk, representative of the Donbas SOS.
