Page 7 - Empowerment and Protection - Ukraine Chapter

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that urban disorder and vandalism contributed to increased rates of crime and anti-social behaviour, known better as the ‘broken window theory’,6 resonated with security perceptions expressed by many interviewees.
Lack of health care
Inadequate access to, or poor quality of health services was a concern expressed by health care workers and the middle aged and elderly. Tetiana,
a doctor in Kyiv, said, “As a medical doctor I would say that a very low level of public healthcare is a threat to the patient. The equipment is very bad, and the professional level of the doctors is low. That leads to wrong diagnosis and incorrect treatment. Our security is in our hands. Public healthcare doesn’t do its job.” Corruption also affects the health care system. Misha, in Simferopol, alleged that, “In the hospital, unless you pay ‘a voluntary contribution’, they won’t provide help.”
34 SToRIES of HUman SECURITY | Ukraine
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intoxicated owners of expensive vehicles killing people on bus stops and sidewalks and then easily escaping from justice. These reports caused strong public outrage. Petro, a 25-year-old car mechanic described Kyiv as unsafe for drivers: “I know lots of cases that resulted from basic traffic rule violations. Young partying rich girls don’t follow the rules.
On the roads of Kyiv, motorcyclists simply can’t survive! I know of many deadly cases over the last five years.”
Both street crime and traffic accidents were related
to an unsafe urban infrastructure. Interviewees
highlighted collapsing sidewalks, unlit streets, dim
subways and excessive snow and ice obstructing
traffic in winter, which reflect a lack of municipal
governance. Volodymyr recounted that, “most sick
leaves among workers are due to injuries they get at
night time – coming back home, at unlit bus stops
or deserted subways, from icy roads in winter. One
can be injured easily and there is no chance to get
Multiple sources of human insecurity
When comparing responses from Simferopol and Kyiv there were many commonalities, despite the fact that the two regions are usually seen as very distinct. For many interviewees, a combination
of security concerns increased their overall vulnerability and a sense of helplessness. Raya, a middle-aged domestic worker in Sviatoshyn, Kyiv exemplified this: “The state doesn’t provide for
our [young people], through work or anything
else. My one son is a drug addict. My other son
got into a car accident. He wasn’t guilty and now he’s disabled and no one needs him. They don’t even want to pay his insurance. This boss, the one who hit him with his car, is asking him not to go to court. [...] I have come to realise that no one needs us, the common people. That’s all.” Drug abuse is an example of a coping mechanism that is also a source of insecurity. It was mentioned by several of those interviewed directly affected as users, family members or health workers.
In addition to the issues presented above, civic unrest was noted as a source of insecurity, even before the Euromaidan crisis grew. Middle-aged residents also reported concern with infrastructure deficits that affect water, electricity and heating, whereas older respondents who remembered the Chernobyl disaster in the 1980s counted natural disasters and technological accidents as potential security threats.
Though respondents did not mention poverty as
a primary source of insecurity, social inequality was reflected in whether and how respondents
felt in a position to cope with the threats. It should also be noted that both Kyiv and Simferopol have better employment and income opportunities than other areas of the country. To assess the relevance of freedom from want as a human security factor in Ukraine, specific research would need to be conducted in other geographic areas with higher levels of poverty such as Ternopil, Rivne, Sumy regions, and northern Crimea.
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”I have come to realise
that no one needs us, the common people. That’s all.”
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HUMAN DEVELOPMENT
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