We are publishing the first part of an interview with a man who fled war and is now trying to help others threatened by war and bureaucratic obstacles.
1) You have started a new project. Can you introduce it? Can you also explain what you want to achieve with your activities?
Hello. Thank you for your interest in our project. The project originally existed since August 27, 2025, in a private group on Telegram with the aim of preventing the Ukrainian Supreme Council (Verkhovna Rada) from passing a law that would criminalize fleeing Ukraine. However, since many people are afraid to use it, we decided to transform it into a full-fledged web resource based on noblogs.org and set up a domain there – https://orden.noblogs.org/
Since we managed to achieve our goal and stop the enforcement of the aforementioned law, we decided to expand the scope of the project and transform it into a fully-fledged online media outlet. To this end, I registered as an independent journalist in Bavaria and also became a member of the German Association of Independent Journalists (bdfj). Now that the project has official media status, I am temporarily serving as its editor-in-chief and will step down from this position once we have assembled a permanent team of journalists to create content for this resource.
We present ourselves as a non-profit project whose goal is to inform vulnerable groups of the population about their rights and to conduct journalistic investigations into abuses of power by representatives of the state, the police, the public prosecutor’s office, the courts, etc. However, the main goal of the project is to provide information and legal assistance to political refugees from countries where they are in danger because of their different opinions. We strive to document all illegal actions by state officials and take all measures within our power to eliminate the violations we find.
2) You said that the law establishing criminal liability for fleeing Ukraine has been suspended. That is good news. What steps did you take to achieve its suspension? How did the Ukrainian population, and specifically the working class, react to this law? Was there significant social resistance to this law?
The Order of Resistance project was created precisely for this purpose. Together with European groups—the Czech magazine Dezertér, the AMI collective, and other organizations—we organized active resistance against the adoption of the law. We held a series of discussions and informed the Ukrainian and European populations about the imminent danger. Among other things, on September 21, 2025, we spoke at Peace Day in Prague, where we called for a boycott of the law and for Ukrainian embassies and consulates in the EU to be bombarded with protest letters. We also worked to organize preliminary protests in front of Ukrainian embassies and consulates in the EU. This yielded good results. One of the opposition members of the Ukrainian Verkhovna Rada contacted me and, on condition of anonymity, told me that European leaders do not share the Ukrainian authorities’ view on this bill and have recommended that it not be adopted. The Ukrainian authorities have temporarily frozen the bill, and it is now awaiting consideration by the relevant committee. Something tells me that it will remain there for a long time, gathering dust. However, if the Ukrainian authorities ultimately decide to put the bill to a vote, we will organize protests across the EU. I hope that radical left-wing groups in the EU will provide us with the necessary support in such a case.
The Ukrainian population and working class reacted very negatively to the submission of this bill to the Ukrainian parliament. However, apart from information attacks and criticism from activists and bloggers on social networks, Ukrainian society was unable to show active resistance, so we had to take matters into our own hands.
3) On your blog, you provide practical information to people who have fled Ukraine and want to improve their chances of a dignified life in other European countries. The question is whether people have access to this information and can use it in practice to minimize risks. What effective tools can they use to spread this practical advice without putting themselves or others at risk?
My Instagram account is fairly well indexed in search engines, and there is a link to the project website in the profile header. According to website analytics, more than 2,500 unique users viewed it during the first week after its creation. Given that the project’s Telegram channel did not generate much interest among users, with the maximum number of views for a single post not exceeding 50, we consider the analytics data to be an excellent result. In addition, we plan to launch a massive PR campaign after the New Year to draw attention to the project. We also had the idea to shoot a feature film based on the events of 2022–2024 related to my escape from Ukraine. Currently, the plot and main idea are ready. However, due to the high costs, this project cannot be implemented as quickly as we would like. We are currently looking for sponsors so that we can start shooting. I am convinced that after the fall of the current Ukrainian regime and the end of the war between Ukraine and the Russian Federation, it could become a blockbuster.
4) What do you think are the most common mistakes people make when fleeing the war in Ukraine and seeking a better life elsewhere?
The biggest mistake is to succumb to the propaganda spread by the Ukrainian totalitarian regime that it has complete control over its internal borders. From my own experience, I can say that apart from drones, they have nothing in winter to counter refugees. All propaganda about complete border control is false. In fact, according to the border guards who checked me on the train when I was traveling to the starting point and then took me from the border crossing back home, the border is so porous that it is almost impossible to control. They only control the line itself, places accessible to ordinary people, and access to known starting points. If you plan your route correctly, you won’t even see the border guards, at most you’ll hear the drones. All other concerns exist only in your head. (1) Many people also go hiking without money. This is a big mistake that I myself made. Yes, at first, volunteers will help you with food and maybe even with temporary low-paid work. However, you have to rely only on yourself and your own strength. In my case, I was just lucky. Not everyone is lucky. Therefore, if a person is going to the EU with the aim of obtaining temporary protection, in my opinion, it is better to stay in Ukraine. It is almost impossible to find a decent job without knowing the language of the country you are coming to. If you have no means of support, asylum is the best option to get your bearings, learn the language, take a break from the events in Ukraine, and regain your strength.
5) Even if you claim that Ukraine’s borders are poorly guarded, there are consequences to consider if someone is caught crossing the border. What exactly do men who decide to avoid mobilization by fleeing Ukraine face? What happens if they are caught by border guards? And what are the risks of crossing the border for deserters?
The main thing is to get to the starting point correctly. Currently, border guards are removing all men they consider suitable for mobilization from buses and trains, and some even directly from their private cars. If a man is detained by border guards, the situation will unfold as follows: first, he will be taken to a border station, where a report will be written about his attempt to cross the border illegally. He will then be handed over to representatives of the military registration and conscription office. If he manages to get $5,000, he will be released without any guarantee that he will not be prosecuted further. If he does not have the money, he will be sent to a training center, from which he will have to escape on his own. In other words, the man has one chance to escape. After that, everything depends on his strength of spirit and ability to flee the training center in time.
6) Let’s return to your idea of making a film. Can you briefly summarize in a few points what this film should express and how it could benefit people who watch it?
The film aims to show that even in times of war, a modern state can become an instrument of systematic violence against its own citizens. This is not an abstract theory, but a concrete human experience: how bureaucracy, military registration offices, law enforcement agencies, and courts gradually lose their legitimacy and become mechanisms of oppression. The film captures this process from the inside—through the eyes of someone who survived it.
History shows that resistance is possible even when there seems to be no way out. This film will be about how a person deprived of rights, resources, and support remains a subject. Even a single individual can overcome a system that controls an entire country.
The film aims to reveal the destructive nature of the coercive mobilization apparatus. It shows how the authorities use war for internal control and violate fundamental freedoms and rights. This is an important political statement at a time when many are afraid to say out loud that the state has no right to engulf the population.
This film is about the dignity of “ordinary people,” those who don’t usually appear on screen. They are not generals, ministers, or party leaders, but ordinary people who are forced to fight for the chance to simply live. Their journey, their pain, their escape—that is what makes up the real history of a country, not official reports.
Finally, this film will serve as a testimony. It will transform private experience into collective memory so that such things never become the norm. It is not entertainment, but a political gesture: preserving the truth that state violence exists, that it is dangerous. That it must be seen, named, and overcome.
7) Such a film is undoubtedly a very important but also very complex project. Are you planning to organize a public campaign to raise funds to cover the costs? How much money do you need to raise?
Yes, this film truly goes beyond the scope of conventional film production. It requires not only an artistic approach, but also courage. We understand that traditional sources of funding—especially those associated with government agencies or corporate foundations—are not an option here. Yes, we are planning a public fundraising campaign.
But it’s not so much about the amount. What’s important is that the financing itself becomes a political gesture. That the people who support the film do so not for entertainment, but as an expression of solidarity with those who have experienced systemic violence.
We estimate the budget to be between €45,000 and €120,000, depending on whether the project is realized as a low-budget independent film or as a full-fledged hybrid of documentary and feature film with reconstructions of events in the mountains. However, it is not really about the exact amount, but about society’s willingness to finance the truth that official institutions are not prepared to accept.
8) However, it is clear that money alone is not enough to make a good film; you also need a team of talented creative people. Do you have such a team, or are you looking for help from others?
You are absolutely right: money is only a means to an end. You cannot make a film without a team. But the team for such a project is not just a group of specialists. They are people for whom freedom is more important than loyalty and who are not afraid to work on material that criticizes state violence, bureaucratic cruelty, and the cult of militarism.
We have a core group of people who have similar experiences, know what oppression is, and understand the political and human value of history. However, for full-fledged production, we will openly seek cameramen, sound engineers, editors, artists, and researchers who share these principles.
We are not looking for “order takers.” We are looking for those who are willing to work not for their careers, but for the truth. Those who understand that art can be a tool of liberation, not an appendage of the state.
The second part of the interview will be published soon.
(1) Editor’s note: The information provided should be considered the personal opinion of the author and not a general recommendation. His advice may be beneficial, but it may also be harmful, depending on many variable circumstances. Any practical application should be carefully considered, especially the risks involved.