For Ukrainians in Canada, new conscription rules increase pressure to fight
Soldier on Ukrainian front lines laments those who have fled
Dmytro lives a simple life in Winnipeg — baking bread at a supermarket or playing volleyball with fellow Ukrainians.
Dmytro, who is non-binary and uses the pronoun they, says they feel safe in a country that accepts them as they are. But they know it's different in Ukraine.
"You're going to be looked upon as a person who is weak, a person who is afraid, the... moreFor Ukrainians in Canada, new conscription rules increase pressure to fight
Soldier on Ukrainian front lines laments those who have fled
Dmytro lives a simple life in Winnipeg — baking bread at a supermarket or playing volleyball with fellow Ukrainians.
Dmytro, who is non-binary and uses the pronoun they, says they feel safe in a country that accepts them as they are. But they know it's different in Ukraine.
"You're going to be looked upon as a person who is weak, a person who is afraid, the person who is working [for] their enemy," said Dmytro, a tall, slim 20-something with a mop of brown hair.
They didn't want their age or full name used, fearful of being targeted for fleeing the Russia-Ukraine war. In fact, no Ukrainian in Canada that CBC Radio spoke to for this story wanted their full name used.
The reason: Ukraine has recently dropped the conscription age from 27 to 25, increased fines for draft dodgers to half the average monthly wage and ordered embassies to stop renewing passports for Ukrainian men living abroad. All of this is part of an effort to get them to return home — and bolster the military's ranks as the war enters its third summer.
