Mobilization can't rely on repression alone, expert warns
Andriy Andriyenko/Press Service of the 65th Separate Mechanized Brigade/Handout via REUTERS
Effective mobilization cannot be carried out solely through repressive
methods, without tangible incentives, political scientist Ihor Reiterovych
told NV Radio on April 27.
Reiterovych warned that if police begin mass forced escorts of men to recruitment centers, it will further fuel social tensions.
“I can already imagine the slogans: ‘You police are protected, you don’t serve in the army, and you want to mobilize us,” he said.
“Those narratives are already appearing and will be eagerly amplified by Russian propaganda. Certainly, that approach is unlikely to produce a normal mobilization. You can’t do it purely by coercion.”
He added that mobilization is inherently coercive in any country because few people are willing to immediately leave everything and go to fight.
“For many, it’s a serious life change. There’s a portion of people who are very afraid and don’t want this. Relying only on force, in my view, isn’t right. There should be some element of incentives,” Reiterovych said.
The Defense Ministry recently stated that about 1.6 million
people could be added to the armed forces. The government is looking for “ways
to properly communicate with the portion of society that has withdrawn from
Ukraine’s defense.”
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