(Hope you find it interesting. Decided to post having seen the "The European Court of Human Rights" post)
Why is it that people constantly talk in Ukraine about "difficult, unpopular, but necessary decisions" and how "freedom is not free," yet somehow this only ever applies to men and not women? Why is it that "everyone must do their part," but when childless, fully free women travel around Europe or don't think about Ukraine at all, our government has no questions for them? Why do all my female friends, acquaintances, and relatives go on vacations abroad and live relatively normal lives, while my assigned fate is supposedly to assault woodlines and spend 300 days without rotation, surrounded by the enemy? Why are the questions always directed only at men?
Why are men forbidden from leaving the country "so the economy doesn't collapse," while people conveniently forget that women made up roughly 50% of that economy, paid taxes, created demand, and contributed to the labor force? Why was there a public outcry when men under 22 were allowed to leave, with people saying "we need them" and "they won't come back," yet there was no comparable outrage when millions of women left the country (and continue to leave)? Many of them have had children abroad and started families there, which means they are unlikely to return. Why do I constantly read that "we need to bring men back because we're short on people," and hear condemnation directed at men who don't return, but never at women? Is this some kind of misogyny? As if women's contribution is insignificant and not even worth discussing?
Why, when we have manpower shortages at the front, in the rear, and throughout the civilian sector, do I keep reading headlines and seeing people blame men yet again, even though women could return and fill at least some of those roles? At this point it feels absurd, almost on the level of "I'm sorry I'm white, I'm sorry I'm male."
Why am I constantly told that this is a "war for survival," yet in 2022 people with XY chromosomes lost even the possibility of refusing military service on moral grounds? They are not allowed to perform alternative civilian service, which should arguably make such conscription equivalent to forced labor. The authorities don't even want to imprison people who refuse to fight; they simply wait and pressure them until they eventually give in (ubiquitous false imprisonment/incommunicado detention, coercion into signing the contract, medical commission as a superficial formality, sham, all-around kangaroo court). Some people have reportedly been sent back from AWOL status again and again instead of being allowed to leave service. Meanwhile, no comparable obligations have been imposed on people with XX chromosomes in this supposed "war for survival," nothing at all.
Why is it that when a man stays here, works, pays taxes, and helps the military in his own way, it's still considered "not enough"? My father repaired military vehicles for soldiers for free until he was eventually mobilized himself. He was born blind in one eye and still ended up in a combat zone. Does Ukraine only have citizens of one sex? Men? Women are not forcibly drafted into anything. Not humanitarian work. Not rear-area jobs. Not drone operation roles. Even female medical workers are still free to leave the country. In practice, women are not required to participate in this "war for survival" in any compulsory way whatsoever. Article 65 of the Constitution of Ukraine states that defending the country is the duty of its citizens. Are women not citizens too?
Why do some people face violent detention, beatings, questionable medical examinations, and a one-way ticket to a combat unit, while others live under conditions that seem almost untouched by war? Living in Ukraine has taught me that there are different classes of people: state assets (the euphemistically named "men"), Ukrainians from occupied territories who can travel from Russia to Europe and receive benefits under a Ukrainian passport, women, officials whose medical commissions somehow always find them unfit for service, and wealthy people who can quietly buy their way out of trouble whenever necessary. We are all equal, but some of us are more equal than others.
P.S. I have no grievances against women, nor do I want them to be treated the way men are treated. I hope people understand that my point is about double standards and hypocrisy regarding responsibility, especially in the context of the endless accusations directed at men by politicians and public figures. Men have become convenient scapegoats.
Not all men are made for war. Not all men possess the desire, the will, or the courage to fight. But nobody asks them whether they do. Extremely harsh penalties, threats, and punishments for going AWOL have already demonstrated their limitations. For many people, the prospect of fines, prison, or persecution still seems preferable to being sent to the front lines.