Ukraine

About 20,000 prisoners can join the ranks of the Armed Forces

Almost 350 prisoners in Ukraine have already received parole, having volunteered to join the ranks of the Ukrainian army. Another 4,300 applications from prisoners and those under investigation are pending consideration. Parole in exchange for service in the Armed Forces became possible thanks to the adoption of a new law. The government notes that such a step was forced, given the extremely slow pace of mobilization.

“The shortage of soldiers, difficulties with the conscription of ordinary citizens – these are the main reasons for the adoption of the law”, – said the Minister of Justice of Ukraine Denys Malyuska in a comment to the publication The New York Times.

According to the minister’s forecasts, thanks to the new law, about 20,000 ex-prisoners may join the ranks of the armed forces. However, not all convicts will be able to be released for military service. Those who have committed particularly serious crimes (deliberate murder of two or more people, terrorism, particularly serious corruption crimes, etc.) are not entitled to parole.

Earlier, several Ukrainian parliamentarians stated that people convicted of intentional homicide would also not have the right to be released. But at the end of the week, Denys Malyuska clarified that a person convicted of a single murder can be released if the crime was not committed with aggravating circumstances, such as sexual violence, etc. Consideration of applications and decisions on early release of each prisoner are made by the court.

This week, immediately after the law came into effect, a court in the city of Khmelnytskyi released more than 50 prisoners. Most of the people who applied for exemptions to join the army were young people convicted of theft. Many of them have relatives and friends who died in the war. However, the judges say that there is currently no significant agitation among the prisoners.

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