“If you haven’t returned to Ukraine in three years, you are no longer politically Ukrainian”: “Servant of the People” Oleh Dunda (video)

In Ukraine, the problem of the return of Ukrainian refugees who left the country after the start of a full-scale war is increasingly being discussed. This issue is becoming increasingly acute, because the long-term absence of millions of citizens threatens serious demographic and economic consequences. The government is actively considering ways to bring Ukrainians home, creating support programs and developing economic strategies.

Against this background, the society was shaken by the statement of Oleg Dunda, a People’s Deputy from the “Servant of the People” party, which caused a wave of indignation in social networks. During the broadcast of the YouTube project “Superposition” Dunda stated:

“I’ll tell you: the one who left… I understand everything – someone got scared, someone decided to stay over. But if you haven’t returned to Ukraine in three years, you are no longer politically Ukrainian. From my point of view, ethically – not legally – you lost the opportunity to call yourself Ukrainian. Duty is always a right. And you can’t: this is what I want, I take, according to the Constitution, and this is what I don’t want and don’t take according to the Constitution. You can’t do that. You are ethically no longer Ukrainian. And if you haven’t returned in three years, it doesn’t matter for us, as for Ukraine, what you will do there.”

However, Dunda noted that it is too early to draw conclusions that these people will never return. In his opinion, history knows many examples when citizens returned to the Motherland even after 5-10 years. He expressed his belief that Ukrainians abroad will return when the country shows significant economic growth after the end of the war.

https://youtu.be/etaNl1Na4Zc?si=qKanrZoO9iYOfIxu

However, many Ukrainians living in Ukraine and abroad called Dunda’s statements “unethical” and “discrediting the dignity of Ukrainians who, despite difficult circumstances, continue to be part of their country” on social networks.

We will remind you that Oleg Dunda is a people’s deputy of the 9th convocation from the “Servant of the People” party. According to PolitHab, he was included in the list of absentee deputies of the Verkhovna Rada, having missed 35% of votes in the period from the beginning of 2022 to May 2023.