Ukrainian children growing up in times of full-scale war have undergone profound changes that have formed two completely different types of reality. Some, despite their young age, support the army, volunteer, collect funds for the military, weave camouflage nets, write letters to soldiers and transfer their pocket money to drones. They grow up with an understanding of the price of freedom and responsibility to the country. Others, rejected by society or left to fend for themselves, grow up in despair, without upbringing and support, and sometimes commit terrible things that go beyond the limits of humanity.
When Ukraine buries its defenders every day, paying tribute to those who gave their lives for peace and freedom, it is hard to imagine that someone could deliberately desecrate these sacred places. But this is exactly what happened in the Bereziv district of the Odesa region, where two 13-year-old boys desecrated the graves of Ukrainian servicemen, damaging memorial portraits of the dead.
A cemetery that became the scene of a crime
As reported in the press service of the Main Directorate of the National Police in the Odesa region, two teenagers brawled at the local cemetery, and as a result of their actions, portraits of fallen soldiers were destroyed. This is not just an act of vandalism – it is an open mockery of the memory of those who died defending their country. It is known that the boys’ families are registered as having found themselves in difficult life circumstances. This may explain their behavior, but by no means excuses it.
Currently, law enforcement officers have entered information about this case into the Unified Register of Pretrial Investigations under Part 2 Art. 297 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine – desecration of graves, which is a serious offense. However, since the teenagers have not reached the age of criminal responsibility, they do not face prison. The court will consider the possibility of applying coercive measures of an educational nature. Their parents will also have to answer: according to Art. 184 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses, they may be fined from 850 to 1,700 hryvnias.
What is behind the vandalism
This case became only one of many in a chain of moral decay among a part of the youth who grow up in the conditions of war, but do not feel its significance. At a time when these boys’ peers carry boxes of humanitarian aid on their shoulders, collect funds for ammunition, create artistic initiatives to support the military, others neglect the very essence of memory and honor.
It is hard not to ask: who are these children? Why don’t they understand the price the country paid for them to be able to live freely? Their childhood cannot be called easy, but this does not give them the right to despise those who gave their lives for their future.
Social problems, poverty, lack of upbringing, indifference of adults – all this creates a generation for which the concepts of honor and respect become empty words. At the same time, this is not only a problem of these specific boys and their families – it is a mirror of the whole society, which sometimes does not want to notice children who are on the verge of moral decline.
What’s next?
The legal consequences for these teenagers may be minimal, because the law does not provide for severe punishment for children of this age. But the question remains open: will this incident change their attitude to reality, or will they continue to grow in indifference to the fate of their country?
At the same time, society should think about how to prevent the recurrence of similar cases. The war continues, and Ukraine proves every day that it is on the side of the civilized world, on the side of values and morality. But if you do not engage in the education of those who are just entering adulthood, then the risk of raising a generation for whom patriotism will be only a foreign word becomes too high.
When the children of the war find the strength to help the military, collect donations, support the country even in the smallest gestures – this shows the enormous potential of Ukrainian society. But when some of them do not understand even the basic principles of respect for the dead, this is an alarm signal. Ignoring it means turning a blind eye to future problems.
