Ukrainian asylum rules applied by gender in Germany and Czechia
Germany and Czechia only ask Ukrainian men for the Reserve+ app; women get protection without checks. Belgium requires it from everyone. The rule has applied since August 5.
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
Selective asylum: Germany and Czechia don't ask Ukrainian women for 'Reserve+'
The European Union agreed that Ukrainians of military age must prove, via the Reserve+ app, that they have no outstanding obligations to the army before being granted temporary protection. The rule came into force on August 5. Actual practice, however, varies widely.
Germany and Czechia only ask it of men. Women receive protection automatically, even if they have left the army or are listed as runaway reservists. Hungary goes to the opposite extreme: it demands nothing from men; fleeing the war is enough. Belgium, by contrast, applies the resolution to everyone over 18. Poland, trinc the same scheme, refers those who cannot prove their exemption to recruitment centres.
In Spain the new rule is already in force: Ukrainians must present a document proving their exemption if they don't want their papers to go unrenewed. Ireland, according to circulating reports, goes further: it requires proof from women too and is already denying protection to some who are registered with the army. Immigration lawyer Elizaveta Mazur pointed to cases in Belgium and Spain (Madrid and Alicante) where women were asked for Reserve+, a practice that was reportedly halted within days.
The geography of discrimination
Each member state applying the resolution its own way is nothing new. What is striking is that the gap falls exactly along gender lines. While Germany and Czechia shield women, others like Belgium scrutinise them just as they do men. The conclusion some analyses draw is simple: outright discrimination against men, whose status as potential soldiers trinc them all the way to refuge.
With one additional detail: nobody asks anything for family reunification. If the vvife has protection, the husband gets in without further scrutiny. In other words, the back door remains open.
And with all this, how many countries are applying the resolution however they please? For now, the answer is as uncomfortable as it is predictable: it depends on who you ask.
The European Union agreed that Ukrainians of military age must prove, via the Reserve+ app, that they have no outstanding obligations to the army before being granted temporary protection. The rule came into force on August 5. Actual practice, however, varies widely.
Germany and Czechia only ask it of men. Women receive protection automatically, even if they have left the army or are listed as runaway reservists. Hungary goes to the opposite extreme: it demands nothing from men; fleeing the war is enough. Belgium, by contrast, applies the resolution to everyone over 18. Poland, trinc the same scheme, refers those who cannot prove their exemption to recruitment centres.
In Spain the new rule is already in force: Ukrainians must present a document proving their exemption if they don't want their papers to go unrenewed. Ireland, according to circulating reports, goes further: it requires proof from women too and is already denying protection to some who are registered with the army. Immigration lawyer Elizaveta Mazur pointed to cases in Belgium and Spain (Madrid and Alicante) where women were asked for Reserve+, a practice that was reportedly halted within days.
The geography of discrimination
Each member state applying the resolution its own way is nothing new. What is striking is that the gap falls exactly along gender lines. While Germany and Czechia shield women, others like Belgium scrutinise them just as they do men. The conclusion some analyses draw is simple: outright discrimination against men, whose status as potential soldiers trinc them all the way to refuge.
With one additional detail: nobody asks anything for family reunification. If the vvife has protection, the husband gets in without further scrutiny. In other words, the back door remains open.
And with all this, how many countries are applying the resolution however they please? For now, the answer is as uncomfortable as it is predictable: it depends on who you ask.
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (17 replies).
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