Russian citizens are conscripted from their workplace, from universities and even during protests, whereas propagandists who urge people to fight and bragged on national television about wanting to fight in the war are now trying to doge military service, the Russian independent media writes after Vladimir Putin ordered a partial mobilization.
MEDUZA: They want to draft 1.2 million people. As many as 16 thousand will be conscripted in Moscow.
Russian authorities intend to draft 1.2 million people into the army as part of the “partial mobilization”, a source close to the Kremlin has told Meduza.
At the same time, in Moscow, the plan is to conscript some 16 thousand people, another source close to the Moscow leadership claims. The information has been confirmed by people inside one of the federal ministries. In Saint Petersburg, the authorities want to mobilize 3.2 thousand men, according to a source close to the representative of the Northwestern Federal District.
In the case of regional centers, “the recommendation was for mobilization to be kept to a minimum”, the federal ministry source also claimed, adding that “they focus on rural areas where there is no press, no opposition, and support (for the war) is higher”.
The Russian Defense Minister, Sergey Shoigu, said on September 21, shortly after Putin’s call for mobilization, that 300,000 reservists will be called up to support the campaign in Ukraine.
The number of people is mentioned under paragraph seven in the Russian president’s order, the specifics of which are classified.
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ISTORIES: Russian citizens are conscripted from workplaces, universities and even protest actions
The authorities claim the mobilization is “partial”, but call-up orders are also being sent to students and employees of strategic enterprises and pensioners, even to people who’ve protested against the war, Istories writes.
From the rally to the enlistment office
“They started rounding up the guys. One of them [after being detained at a rally] told me, white and trembling: “They served me an enlistment subpoena…”, says Alina, a participant in the September 21 rally in Moscow.
Over a 1,300 people were detained that day all over Russia, 500 of whom in Moscow alone, according to OVD-Info. Apart from the police report, those who were arrested were also handed the summons to the military enlistment office. It’s what happened in police stations in Moscow, but also in other cities, for instance in Voronezh. Human rights militant Elena Florinskaya says that in Krasnodar, one activist was summoned to the police station to give a statement regarding his participation in a rally, where in fact he was handed the call-up order. “Had he refused to sign, they threatened to launch a criminal investigation”.
According to Alina, she witnessed the police handing “six-seven summons to young boys”. “They threatened them, so they all signed. Only one guy, who was a 28-year-old traumatologist, refused to sign. They tried to scare him, but he kept his composure, maybe because he was a doctor, and said ‘I won’t sign anything you give me’, so they left him be”.
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In Ulan-Ude, a student with the Buryat State University says young men were taken “during class”. Similarly, in Buryatia, they tried to enlist a father-of-five. […] A 63-year-old pensioner with diabetes and cerebral ischemia from the region of Volgograd also received his summons.
Employees of defense enterprises are not exempted from conscription either. A worker with the Mikron plant in Zelenograd, an enterprise manufacturing microelectronics for the defense complex, was told by a close friend working at the enlistment office that his name had been added to the mobilization list.
The mobilization is best organized with the help of employers. “The other day, our organization published the first lists of workers to be sent to Volzhsky, and from there to DNR”, an interlocutor close to the “Gazprom Pererabotka” enterprise has told Istories. He added that, after one of his co-workers was announced over the telephone to immediately report to the enlistment office with his things packed, he decided to leave the country and is now looking for a way to apply for asylum”.
The management of a branch of the Kuzbass Coal Company received a letter from the Kemerovo regional commissariat ordering to dispatch 50 workers, one of the local workers told Istories. “They were all rounded up in the festivities hall, and were subsequently transferred to the enlistment office, where they were handed the mobilization orders for September 26. On that day, they were supposed to report to the commissariat, and from there to be sent to Novosibirsk for training. They were all unhappy, but no one dared protest. I thought they would tell them [the officials] where to shove their subpoenas. But no, that didn’t happen”. According to Istories, similar letters were submitted to the management of every branch of the Kuzbass coal company.
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MEDIAZONA: “It’s terrifying that, along with our diploma, we will also get our recruitment orders”. Medical students comment on the mobilization
The deputy chairman of the State Duma Healthcare Committee, Badma Bashankaev, says no more than three thousand doctors and medical workers will be mobilized across Russia, including graduates of military medical institutions, as well as surgeons, anesthesiologists and traumatologists from civilian medical units. Doctors are already receiving summons to report to enlistment offices. Mediazona writes what students and graduates of medical universities have to say about the mobilization.
“I was afraid I would be called up even from the start of the military conflict. The day when they announced it, I cried all evening. It’s terrifying. My kid is two years old, it was hard for us to conceive him and there’s nothing more terrifying for me right now than the thought of losing him. I believe it is unfair what is happening right now, nothing can justify people dying. On September 21, at 15:00 hours, the military commissariat sent me the mobilization order: “Report to the commissariat with all the necessary documentation first thing tomorrow”. I see no way out of this, my whole family works in law enforcement”.
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This mobilization might not be partial and they could send us to the frontline, but I don’t want them to. I don’t want to die for someone else’s convictions, for the beliefs of some politicians who don’t see eye to eye. Partial mobilization does not concern me, but my time may very well come one day. After graduation, we will again be eligible for mandatory military service. My university refused to comment on the situation. On February 24, they released an informal statement, advising us to refrain from attending unsanctioned rallies. The teaching staff prefer not to discuss politics”.
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“We know what our ‘beloved’ state stands for, we know that at any moment in time, if they are short of soldiers, they will search every hole. Right now, people with certificates of military service enlisted in commissariats across the country are forbidden to leave Russia, regardless of rank”.
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“On the morning of September 21 we couldn’t attended classes, we simply couldn’t leave the house, because we were unsure if it was safe for us outside. A sense of sheer panic had gripped the whole country. I phoned my friends who completed the military service and are about to be conscripted, they sounded terrified. It’s unfair to send people who did not militate for a war, who never wanted this war, to fight instead of those who endorsed it”.
Novaya Gazeta. Europe: Propagandists exempted from military service. Only TV viewers will be sent to the front
“I’ve had the happiest day! I’ve been praying and begging for this day to come for weeks. We’ve all seen how necessary partial mobilization is – it really is! All these young men, who wanted to go to war… Each and every one of us is now indispensable to the country – me, you, our parents and brothers. “Mobilization” might seem a strong word. But it’s not. I, for one, have asked to be sent to the frontline three times. I am 47 and I know I can barely shoot or aim… But if I can make myself useful to the country, then take me. Here I am! I beseech everyone watching right now, all who trust me, who believe in our victory, to consider their strengths and possibilities… Our victory now depends on each of us. God is with us. Believe in him. He will guide us!”
This “sermon” (it’s how he describes his monologues) was addressed by Anton Krasovsky to his “flock” on Russia Today on September 21. Krasovsky is a fierce warrior fighting the propaganda war. That’s so unfair! This guy asks to be sent to the front and is denied three times. Because he can’t shoot, or aim, because he’s 47. He is legally “exempted”. Why is that, I wonder? Are his hands shaking? Is his eyesight blurry? Even so, he could be drafted as a political adviser.
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For now, we don’t see any reports about the enthusiasm of “our fathers and brothers” who are taking enlistment offices by storm. They may have a different opinion about their strengths and possibilities, or maybe they don’t trust people on TV who’ve been instilling military patriotism in them for months. It’s one thing to see a virtual tour of military operations on TV, from the comfort of your couch, to applaud the “actors” and shout “hurray, march on!”, and it’s a completely different thing to take a plunge into the hard reality and go to war yourself. The terrifying reality cannot be changed by the press of a button on your remote control. The time has come, sound the alarm.
With every show, Vladimir Soloviov swears on his life: if the Fatherland calls, we will all answer “Yes!” We will all take up arms and go to the frontline, to uproot the “Nazi scourge”. Now, just like Krasovsky, he keeps complaining: they won’t send me to the front due to my age. And why is that, I wonder? He is only 58. He is in good health, he boxes. He claims he doesn’t drink. He’s brave – he’s been to Donbas, wearing a bulletproof vest and a helmet, posing alongside locals who couldn’t believe their eyes – CELEBRITIES with an armed guard.
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It seems, however, that they might have overestimated their influence over the opinions and preferences of Russian citizens. It’s equally possible their fiery call-to-arms urging citizens to give their lives freely for the fatherland, for victory, may have the same effect [of repulsion]. Only through personal example can they convince their audiences… ‘I'll register, but I'm dammed if I'm going to fight,' answered Sharikov nonchalantly, straightening his tie.” [quote from “The Heart of a Dog” by M. Bulgakov].
