This has never happened in Russia before.” A human rights advocate on roundup raids for contract recruitment ...

“This has never happened in Russia before.” A human rights advocate on roundup raids for contract recruitment

Men in Russia are facing a new threat: roundup raids for contract recruitment. Human rights defenders documented several such cases this spring. In an interview with Dozhd, Sergei Krivenko, director of the human rights group “Citizen. Army. Law,” explained how to protect yourself and what to do if this happens to you.

Human rights organizations began receiving reports of roundups in the spring. This had simply never happened before in Russia, when a man walking down the street on his own business is approached by unidentified people who either talk him into it or shove him into a car and take him to a military enlistment office.

“Shadow” recruitment using violence and coercion is continuing in Russia. But whereas previously this violent recruitment targeted obvious groups, primarily conscripted servicemen, migrants, and so on, now they have started going after ordinary people walking down the street.

According to Krivenko, any man can now be exposed to this risk. A man is brought to a military enlistment office and taken into a room where several people begin psychologically pressuring him, appealing to patriotism and money.

And they use lies like, “Sign a contract for just one year.” We know that contracts cannot now be terminated after they end, even if the paper says a six-month contract.

They also lie that he will be sent to some specific unit far from the front line. That is also a lie, because as soon as he signs the contract, he becomes a serviceman and can be sent anywhere.

What should people do if they find themselves in this situation?

The human rights advocate says there is only one way out here: hold out during the pressure and remember clearly that a contract is signed voluntarily.

But to be ready for this, you need to read the instructions in advance, understand in advance that this could suddenly happen to you, issue a power of attorney to relatives just in case, and carry a basic phone, because smartphones are taken away.

Relatives must be prepared that if a person suddenly disappears, this may mean that he has been seized and is at the military enlistment office, and then they need to contact the prosecutor’s office, the police, the media, and make noise.

Human rights defenders from “Call to Conscience” have detailed recommendations on what needs to be done and how to prepare for such cases, first of all psychologically.

If a person signs the contract, he is sent to the troops, and that’s it. There is practically no chance of returning.

Don’t want to go into the army? Open the guide. A partnership project by Dozhd and “Call to Conscience.”