A group of angry women tried to stop military recruiters in the Berehove district of Transcarpathia, claiming Ukrainian mobilization procedures to be unfair. The Hungarian minority is substantial across the region and amounted to close to 50 percent of the population in Berehove per a 2001 census.
The women even tried to overturn the vehicle used to transport recruits, reports Kiszo.net.
Hanna Dan, the spokesperson of the Transcarpathian police, said that the police have received notifications of two such cases in the last four days. On both occasions, women attacked the recruiters, hindering military mobilization. The authorities have initiated proceedings in both cases and are investigating the incidents for hooliganism and obstruction of official proceedings.
The perpetrators involved in both cases have been identified.
One blogger from Uzhhorod also reported on his Telegram channel that the women were protesting against what they claimed to be unjust mobilization procedures.
This is not the first time that a conflict has erupted in Transcarpathia due to the presence of recruiters. In March, in Rakoshyno and Chynadiiovo, near Mukachevo, women blocked the road to protest what they said was forced recruitment on the part of Ukrainian authorities.
Local communities are increasingly outraged by the mobilization methods, which may result in the further escalation of tensions.
Although the question of forced recruitment applies to all Ukrainians, not just to the Hungarian or other minority groups in the country, tensions have been high with Hungarians due to the continued repression of language and other cultural rights. The Hungarian minority was already being curtailed long before the Russian invasion of the country, with Ukrainian nationalists often targeting the population, which numbers approximately 150,000 in the Transcarpathia region.
A new draft bill would ban Hungarians from speaking Hungarian in schools, even on breaks between classes and with fellow students. The move is surprising given Ukraine had said it would comply with the minority-rights protection mechanisms required to become a member of the EU.
