Where did the men go: a photo report on the second day after the adoption of the new law on mobilization

Sunday, May 19, 11 am. Usually at this time the streets and markets of Kharkiv are very busy: people are walking, shopping, for many of them this day is traditional for spending time with family, walking with children and shopping for the week.

From time immemorial, the market is not just a place of trade, but also a kind of cultural tradition, color, and folklore. It is a unique “face of the city” with its regular buyers and sellers, as well as local “celebrities”. It is enough to mention the eastern markets, Gogol’s Sorochyn fair, Odessa “Pryvoz” sung by writers, etc. Kharkiv is no exception.
As a rule, the market operates on certain days of the week, so there is even a term “market day”. Sunday is always the peak of trade, when it is visited by many Kharkiv residents who want to buy fresh vegetables, fruits, livestock products and other goods.

Journalists of IA “FACT” decided to see how crowded public places and markets in Kharkiv have become after the new mobilization law came into effect. When we visited the KhTZ market, we saw empty counters and shopping rows, playgrounds and shops, as well as streets and parking lots located near the market. Among the buyers and sellers were mostly women and elderly people. To our questions “where did the buyers go?” and “why such a relatively small assortment of goods” all sellers gave the same answer:

“After the visit of the TCC employees, all the men ran away to the market, and now they have started bringing in less goods, because the drivers do not want to end up at the TCC roadblocks.”