The situation in the offices and in the refugee centers is often chaotic. Ukrainians are ahead in the queues and, for example, obtaining a visa can be a several-day "fight". A collaborator of our editorial office living in central Ukraine in the city of Poltava, which already
She has been in the Czech Republic for 4 years and has been fluent in Czech. She returned due to the war and was processing a visa last week. She spent two days after 4 hours at the office in Jihlava (Department of the Ministry of the Interior, Department of Asylum and Migration Policy) in unsuccessful waiting in queues. It wasn't until the third day that she took care of everything she needed, and when the clerk heard her speak Czech, she asked her if she would do an interpreter. She willingly agreed and for a few hours, she goes as a volunteer to interpret every day. Frauds with a state-guaranteed refugee allowance (CZK 5,000 per month to cover basic needs) are also increasing. Ukrainians who are not entitled to it often ask for it - for example, they just "bounce" from Poland, where they are already registered. The officials are therefore working at full capacity and, in addition to the usual handling, they must be careful and control everything.
There are many reasons why not only women with children, but also women themselves are fleeing Ukraine. War, among other horrors, also brings violence against women, which is often not only the result but also a war strategy. Sexual violence can be perpetrated by the military as a means of control and power over the enemy party. Thus, women who remain in Ukraine and have not fled before the war for various reasons are especially at risk.
There are also women who do not run away because they are fighting! Olga Semydyanova, a mother of 6, was killed in a battle against the Russian occupiers. She expressed a desire to defend the country to the end, even though she knew their battalion might not survive. She is the heroine of Ukraine.
However, even women who decide to leave Ukraine are exposed to various dangers. Along the way, there are risks associated with human trafficking or rape, not only from migrant men, but vulnerable women lurking at sex crossings. Police officers have a lot of work to do, especially in Poland. There are a growing number of fraudsters trying to lure Ukrainians into housing and security in Germany in order to force them into prostitution or slave labor. Slave labor must be perceived as having your documents confiscated, you are in a closed area under supervision, you work, for example, 12 hours a day, you have a place to sleep, you have something to eat and a place to wash, but you do not receive any money.
4 million people have already fled Ukraine, of which almost 300,000 remain temporarily or long-term in the Czech Republic. It should be noted that all officials, police officers, doctors, firefighters and volunteers must be paid tribute! From the available reports, the Czech Republic has reached its limit and asked for EU support.
In conclusion, only a few sentences about what you can capture here and there, for example on Facebook or in a telephone conversation, but also in person, so-called face to face. "When there's so much solidarity everywhere, I'll send you my account number and you can contribute." "Ukrainians will take our jobs." "Helping Ukrainians will destroy the Czech economy." "They let the Czech man suffer and the Ukrainians feast on each other."
Our editorial office, as has been mentioned repeatedly, does not take anyone's opinion. We always try to have an objective view - sometimes on the edge of our own psychic possibilities :-) Well, the refugees from Ukraine are breaking away from our cake. It's "terrible" and we will probably all starve soon :-) The fact that women with children flee from rockets, bombs, tanks and machine guns is unimportant, our children are not fed by anyone either. The fact that we have the historically lowest unemployment rate in the Czech Republic (3%), that people in many fields are missing and employers have problems, is also uninteresting. The fact that the war is taking place a few hundred kilometers from our borders is also irrelevant, because it is still a long way off. The fact that there is our national experience with the Russian power process must be forgotten. Yes, we can think like this for a long time ... But the question is whether we will then be able to look at ourselves in the mirror. Of course, we respect the opinions of forged communists and say "comrades, it will be good ..." :-) An interesting paradox is that at the expense of refugees are expressed mostly people who did not do much for the Czech Republic and their work does not smell much "."
The opinion of the editors is simple. With every help to Ukraine and Ukrainians, we help the Czech Republic and Czech citizens - Putin must not win!
