Yurchyshyn: Over 580 of the men who had permits to travel abroad received them from the MCSC

One in every 15 men eligible for the draft who received support from any Ministry to travel abroad in 2024 did not come back. More than 580 of these men received permits from the Ministry of Culture and Strategic Communications. These figures were reported on Hromadske Radio by Yaroslav Yurchyshyn, chair of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Freedom of Speech, who cited the State Border Guard Service.

“Indeed, there are objective reasons for concern regarding the system that is currently in place, because, according to the State Border Guard Service, one in every 15 of the men who received support from any Ministry to travel abroad did not come back. We are talking about those who have mobilization obligations. Essentially, one in every 15 of those who were allowed to travel abroad in 2024 abused their permission,” Yurchyshyn said.

He noted that the biggest problem is that over 580 of them received permission from the Ministry of Culture and Strategic Communications.

“The figure is impressive. Of course, the Ministry must take certain steps. How many of these people are media workers is a highly debatable question. After all, the Ministry says that this number is impossible to determine. On the other hand, according to data by the IMI, received based on analysis and communications with the MCSC, as I understand it, the figure is less than 10. So we see that according to the IMI, these are exceptions rather than the rule. But for the Ministry, the figure is a problem,” said Yurchyshyn.

Previously

The Ministry of Culture and Strategic Communications (MCSC) will stop issuing letters to the State Border Service (SBS) assisting artists and media workers eligible for the draft to travel abroad. The decision will be in effect starting March 3.

The Director of the Institute of Mass Information, Oksana Romaniuk, believes that the Ministry of Culture and Strategic Communications (MCSC) suspending the issue of permits to travel abroad to media professionals risks to stigmatize the entire media community. According to the IMI, less than ten journalists left and did not come back over the past year.

The Media Movement demands MCSC revoke the decision to suspend the issuance of letters for traveling abroad to journalists.