Reports, including soldiers, suggest that psychological and physically unfortunate men are being summoned to the Ukrainian army, where they can be placed on their own and others. How is this happening?
Memory lapses, disorientation, confusion with numbers and colors: these are just some of the problems with which Vasyl, a 28 -year -old in central Ukraine, read daily. In truth, receives psychiatric treatment for a personality disturbance since 2015. But none of this has prevented man – whose real name was not revealed for privacy – to be summoned to the Ukrainian army.
According to his mate, Olena, Vasyl never recognizes her problems and may well have not done it during the physical examination that was done before joining the army. Vasyl was considered fit for the service and recently sent south of Ukraine for basic formation.
Olena tried to explain all this to Vasyl’s new commander. After showing understanding, he ruled out the 2015 report from a psychiatric clinic that Olena brought him, claiming that he was out of date.
“But how can this not be a reason for discharge, if the his condition is incurable? ”Asks Olena.
DW saw the report, which includes a list of Vasyl’s problems. When stressed, symptoms get worse, Olena observes. This would make him danger not only to himself, but also to others.
How can mental patients be recruited?
There is a Ukrainian database that military doctors turn to to find out if potential recruits are sick in any way. It is called Helsi and, on its English website, is described as “the most popular medical information system for health institutions and medical portal for patients in Ukraine.”
But Vasyl’s psychiatric diagnosis is not in this system, says Ukrainian lawyer Yevhen Tsekhmister, because details about psychological diseases can only be kept there with the patient’s permission.
If the diagnosis had been made, according to Order No. 402 of the Ministry of Defense, Vasyl would be considered unfit for the service. Order No. 402 determines what the Military Medical Examination should verify and how to evaluate a soldier’s aptitude for the service.
Tsekhmister explains that military doctors rely only on official documents because Many men pretend psychological disorders to avoid recruitment.
“If legal advice had been sought faster and more up -to -date evidence had been provided, Vasyl would not have been recruited,” said the lawyer.
Thousands of complaints about recruitment
At the end of 2024, the Ukrainian Human Rights activist Looks Reshetylova was named Military Ombudsman by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, so that soldiers and their families had a form of denounce violations of your rights.
RESHETYLOVA recommends that individuals take responsibility to update their own clinical history in the Helsi system and with the Armed Forces, recognizing that the mental health of recruits can deteriorate during basic training. Higher officers do not want sick individuals to serve in their units anyway, which is why they often offer treatment, if necessary, told DW.
Since the beginning of this year, there have been more than 2000 complaints about human rights violations committed during mobilization, reports Dmytro Lubines, Ukrainian Parliament Human Rights Commissioner. In 2024, there were 3500 complaints of this type in total.
Although not all complaints are justified, we always react, ”he said. “There are cases where my local representatives personally go to the enlistment council to help citizens claim their rights“He told DW.” Thanks to our interventions, sick people were dismissed from the army. “
It is true that sick people have been called, admitted Lubines, although there are no concrete numbers about how many exactly.
“This can happen when the team ignores medical documents or the condition of the person, ”says Lubinets.
In general, he believes that new recruits should be allocated more carefully in the Armed Forces.
“Not the whole health problem makes it automatically unfit,” he said. “With back problems, you can’t join stormtroopers, but You can work on the computer.”
Soldiers ‘without teeth, with tuberculosis’
A Ukrainian brigade commander told DW his experiences with the newly trades. Spoke on condition of anonymity.
“In fact, I had the privilege of being able to choose my own men,” he said. “But some arrived without teeth or with tuberculosis – Even the training center! ”
Some of these men had been offered to the brigades several times, but no one wanted them, not even to build trenches, he said.
Kyrylo, who also declined to reveal his real name, is another recent recruit that was summoned earlier this year. While being on the recruitment council, he says he saw homeless with swollen legs, toxicode dependents and alcoholics. The medical examination is often just a formality and, in some places, it doesn’t even happen, he says. Only when you arrive at the training center does a more complete medical examination take.
Another soldier, Oleksandr – who also declined to reveal his real name – says he He even saw epileptic when it was summoned. This type of recruitment actually took a man with schizophrenia To be highlighted for a Marine Brigade in 2024, after basic training, he says. Fortunately, the state of man quickly became clear.
“They gave him no weapon And they sent him away a few days after a few days, ”says Oleksandr.
Tsekhmister doesn’t think this kind of things is that unusual.
“A 38 -pound 1.75 meter -tall soldier with vision problems, developmental deficiency and the bad chest, can not walk or breathe with a bulletproof vest,” argues the lawyer. “But it has been in the army since 2022. It is constantly transferred from one unit to another, or to hospitals, and receives basic care.”
But, since none of the many problems individually makes it unfit for service, cannot be dismissed for health reasons.
Unit commanders cannot give these military jobs “seriously”, nor can they dismiss them. The situation is particularly bad between land troops and logistics services, because they have become a kind of “garbage deposit” for sick individuals, explains Tsekhmister.
“They end in brigades that should be building lines of defense“He notes.” But they are useless there. “
A danger to themselves and others?
The command of Ukraine medical forces, the service responsible for medical support to troops, insists that things are being done in the right way.
“Military doctors are based on expert diagnoses,” said Yuriy Podoyan, colonel and deputy commander of the medical forces, in response to DW’s questions. “An assessment based on the combination of various diseases is not foreseen.”
Podilyan also stated that Order No. 402 of the Ministry of Defense is in compliance with local legislation and international standards.
The Military Provider Resehetylova has a different view and believes that the lack of possibility of this type of evaluation means that something has ran badly and has to be reviewed. The Ministry of Defense is apparently already working on it.
As for Vasyl, your basic training is almost at the end and will soon be highlighted for a unit. Lawyer Tsekhmister is trying to organize a second psychiatric assessment by military doctors. According to Vasyl’s companion, Olena, he has access to weapons.
“If it ends up on the front line, It will be a danger to the whole unit“Tsekhmister warns.“ There is no way to predict when your mental health will get worse, or who may be the target. ”
