No authority for military recruiters to perform ID checks — ombudsman
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Employees of military recruitment centers (MRC) do not have the right to demand identification documents from Ukrainian citizens, to apprehend or forcibly detain them, Ukrainian Parliament's Commissioner for Human Rights, Dmytro Lubinets, said in an interview with NV on Jan. 17.
In the interview, Lubinets noted that the public is dissatisfied with MRC employees clearly exceeding their legal mandate during martial law.
He reminded that only the representatives of the National Guard, the National Police, and the State Border Service have the right to ID checks during general mobilization. MRC employees, and the military in general, do not have such powers.
Lubinets expressed his dismay over incidents where MRC representatives used force against citizens. According to him, criminal cases have been opened for all such documented incidents.
“When such information about MRC staff abusing their rights is confirmed, I raise the issue at the management level, so that disciplinary proceedings are initiated, and the higher-ups decide on the punishment for their subordinates," he said.
In December 2023, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced during a press conference that Ukraine's military leadership requested the mobilization of an additional 450,000 to 500,000 personnel, which would cost UAH 500 billion ($13.2 billion).
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