Ukrainian Pacifist Movement: Bill № 3553 on Zelensky's military dictatorship should be withdrawn

WRI affiliate Ukrainian Pacifist Movement (UPM) released a statement condemning a bill introducing “intolerable elements of military dictatorship” in Ukraine. UPM said, Bill No 3553, proposed by the president Volodymyr Zelensky, introduces mandatory military registration for employment, as well as draconian fines and imprisonment for conscientious objectors and those showing solidarity with them.

The bill also gives powers to the police to hunt for draftees on the streets with forcible transfer to army recruitment centres. In addition, the bill includes components regarding “the maintenance of a costly and dangerous shadow army of military reservists ready to rapid mobilization for adventurous military campaigns” as put by UPM.

UPM said “If parliament passes the bill, Ukraine will face further bloodshed, crime will rise, and our economy will fall into deeper misery and shadows. Thousands of additional Ukrainian citizens will seek asylum abroad, away from war and violence destroying their peaceful way of life.”

Read the full statement here.