Some participants of the resistance movement in occupied Kherson region, after being released from Russian captivity, cannot prove their activities in favor of Ukraine and obtain the status of civilian prisoner.
This was said in an interview with Ukrainska Pravda by former captive and resistance movement member Roman Baklazhov.
According to him, many people who took part in pro‑Ukrainian actions or carried out tasks in occupied territories have faced indifference from state authorities.
“Because the commission operating under the Ministry of Infrastructure does not want to recognize that they acted in the interests of Ukraine on occupied territory, and the security services do not confirm this status, because the entire resistance movement was often decentralized and sometimes it was not even clear who was giving you orders. And even when these partisans turn to law enforcement agencies for a certificate of cooperation, they are simply refused, leaving the feeling that the state used them and threw them away”, – Baklazhov says.
In 2025 the government allowed granting the status of participant in combat operations to former civilian prisoners who took part in the resistance movement and carried out tasks for the Special Operations Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
However, according to Baklazhov, this decision did not solve the problem for all members of the underground.
“It turns out that people who performed extremely dangerous tasks for the police or the SBU, for example making explosives, ended up left out”, – he says.
At present, human rights defenders are negotiating with the SBU about possible confirmation of such people’s participation in the resistance movement so that they can receive the status of participant in combat operations (UBD). However, there have been no real advances on this issue yet.
Recall that, according to official data from the Kherson Regional State Administration, in Russian captivity 588 civilian residents are being held of the Kherson region, but the number of captives may be higher, since many cases of abductions are not confirmed.
Earlier it was reported that KhMVA promises to pay a one‑time material assistance to captured servicemen.