Half of Donbas Veterans Face Discrimination Upon Return - Survey

24 January 2020 19:20

The International Organization for Migration has conducted a survey into the socioeconomic status of veterans of the war in the Donbas. One of their findings was that half of the surveyed veterans, who were in the Donbas, experienced discrimination after returning from the war.

The respondents described some instances of discrimination in their daily life. According to the IOM’s research, 49% of surveyed people have had problems with exercising their right to free rides on public transport, which they are entitled to by law, as well as receiving some medical and administrative services or when registering for benefits for veterans and their families.

The graphic is remade by Hromadske using the data released by the United Nations' International Organization for Migration and Ukraine's Ministry of Veterans Affairs, Temporarily Occupied Territories and Internally Displaced Persons of Ukraine

The IOM’s survey highlighted that “veterans feel excluded from society and have a strong sense of self-identification with their reference group.”

The survey goes on to say that “...most of the veterans’ partners confirmed the statement that citizens do not understand that the country is going through an armed conflict (72%).” The survey results indicate that veterans often feel excluded. “Thirty-one percent (31%) of the respondents confirmed this with the statement that “I feel that my partner is detached from society (excluded from society).”

Veterans often say that it is difficult to find a job after returning to civilian life because of reasons such as “career progression, or which enabled them to self-develop, or with a decent salary,” along with “limited employment opportunities due to poor health and chronic diseases.”

The survey had been lasting for three months and surveyed 2,530 respondents from Kyiv, the Kyiv region, the Dnipropetrovsk region and the Lviv region.

/By Sasha Lytvyn