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A group of women who fled Russia’s invasion of Ukraine wait inside a train station in Zahony, Hungary, March 7, 2022.
It’s a global day to celebrate women, but many fleeing Ukraine feel only the stress of finding a new life for their children as husbands, brothers and fathers stay behind to defend their country from Russia’s invasion.
The number of refugees fleeing Ukraine reached 2 million on Tuesday, according to the United Nations, the fastest exodus Europe has seen since World War II. One million of them are children, UNICEF spokesman James Elder tweeted, calling it “a dark historical first.”
Polina Shulga tried to ease the journey for her 3-year-old daughter by hiding the truth.
“Of course it’s hard to travel with a child, but I explained to her that we’re going on vacation and that we’ll definitely come home one day when the war is over,” Shulga said.
She didn’t know what would come next after arriving in Hungary from Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, but believed the experience would make her stronger. “I feel like I’m responsible for my child, so it was easier for me to take this step and leave,” she said, as her little girl tugged at the hem of her coat.
Nataliya Levchenko, from Donetsk in eastern Ukraine, felt much the same.
“I’m generally in some kind of a terrible dream which keeps going on,” the retired teacher said. “I would be in some kind of abstraction if it wasn’t for my daughter. I wouldn’t be able to come to my senses.”
A decree by Ukraine’s government that prohibits men aged 18 to 60 from leaving the country means that most of those fleeing Ukraine are women and children. The policy is meant to encourage men to sign up to fight against Russia’s invasion or to keep them available for military conscription.
That has led to heartbreaking scenes of separation, and growing worry as some encircled, battered parts of Ukraine slip out of reach. (VOA)
