Analytical report of the examined stereotypes about IDPs in Ukraine

“Have you seen the
Burattino?”
Analytical report based on the research results regarding
the emerging stereotypes towards the Internally Displaced
Persons in Ukraine
Literature group «STAN»
2015

Research on the emerging stereotypes towards the Internally
Displaced Persons in Ukraine was conducted within the
framework of the project:
«Promoting dialogue and reconciliation in the regions of
Ukraine»
Supported by
National Endowment for Democracy,
Embassy of the United States in Ukraine - the Democracy Grants Program
(Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the participants of the project and do not
necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. government)
Literature group «STAN» 2015

INTRODUCTION

Century of exile – historical aspect of the internal
displacement in Ukraine
During the WWI outlines have been made on forceful displacement of huge
numbers of people for political and military purposes, while nations have been
repressed
In the Russian Empire the theory of "military statistics“ has been developed
for ideological justification, which stipulates that an ideal place for conducting war or
fighting is where an ethnically homogeneous population that speaks one language.
This gave the state a green light to enforce “the right for deportation“
Simultaneously, the German military theoretics created the concept of
‘totalkrieg/ total war”, which in unrestricted terms sees nations collectively responsible
and subject for collective punishment. Such practices blossomed in 1930s-1950s, the
times of totalitarian regimes

«Often the emphasis was on the loss of tangible assets; to be deprived of one’s
sense of belonging clearly entailed a loss of one’s home (“heart”, “fireside” and
“nest” were common appellations for the abandoned home).Those who in
peaceful time had been economically secure were now threatened with
downward social mobility. Stripped of their property. “wealthy householders
have been turned into homeless vagrants.”»¹
Professor of Economic History, University of Manchester, Peter Gatrell
P. Gatrell. A Whole Empire Walking: Refugees in Russia during World War I.
Indiana University Press, 1999, p.198.

1914
- during the occupation of Galicia and Bukovina, Russian troop deported 2,000 people
(Greek Catholic clergy, including Metropolitan Andrij Sheptytsky, Ukrainian intelligentsia,
Jews)
1915
- 100 000 deported to disrupt the mobilization of the Austro-Hungarian army;
- 20 000 of Ukrainian citizens were repressed in Austrian camps, 3800 of which were
tortured
- 200 000 German colonists were sent from Volun to remote provinces
The beginning of1930s
- 300 000 people were deported to Siberia and far East on class grounds

1936-37
- liquidation of Polish and German districts
- 70 000 ethnic Germans were repressed and subsequently deported from the territory
of Ukraine
1940
- 90 000 Polish and German colonists from Galicia and Volyn were deported to Siberia
and Kazakhstan
1941
- 9000 people were deported to Siberia including prosperous Ukrainian peasants, priests
and non-communistic activists together with their families;
1944
- 36 000 non loyal Ukrainians to the regime were deported
- finalizing stage of the deportations on German and Polish colonists
- Greeks deported from the Ukrainian Black Sea coasts

1945-46
- 482 000 Ukrainian deported from Poland to Ukraine
- 1 400 000 Poles deported from Ukraine to Poland
- 140 000 of the Ukrainian Poles were forcefully deported to the so-called regained
territories under the Vistula operation
1947
- 25 000 families of the action UPA members were deported under operation “West”
До 1952
- 193 000 deported during fighting with Bandera partisans. Around 10% of whom died in
camps in Siberia and Kazakhstan
- Romanians deported from Bukovina and Odessa regions
- mass deportation of the Jehovah's Witnesses

«The era of modernism gave birth the concept of total war and bore the revival
of the principle of collective responsibility of nations, opening the way for
genocide, deportations and ethnic cleansing. European civilization have made an
incredible somersault from the era of scientific progress back to the times of the
king of Assyria, Sennacherib who loved to strap the walls of the defeated cities
with the skin of enemies» ²
Ukrainian writer and analyst, Konstantin Skorkin
The Century of exile: historical aspect of the internal displacement in Ukraine,
2015

Contemporary internal displacement in the world
By the end of 2014, total of 38 million of people in the entire world who were forced to
leave their homes due to armed conflicts and mass repressions are to be considered as
Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) within the boundaries of their own state
11 million people were internally displaced only in 2014. This equals to 30000 per
day. This number is the highest for the past decade
Most of the new internal displacement (60%) is due to crises in Iraq, South
Sudan, Democratic Republic of Congo and Nigeria
Ukraine has become the only country in the areas of Europe, Caucasus and
Central Asia where conflict has caused internal displacement of people. According to the
UNCHR, as for 14th of August 2015, the number of the internally displaced in Ukraine is
1 438 000 people

Internal displacement in the world: numbers³

Internal displacement in Ukraine: numbers⁴

RESEARCHING STEREOTYPES

Researching stereotypes towards the internally
displaced persons (IDPs) in Ukraine
Within the framework of the project «Promoting dialogue and reconciliation in
the regions of Ukraine» research has been conducted on assessing the attitude
towards the internally displaced persons in eight big Ukrainian cities, and two cities
that are close to the frontline in the East, bordering the areas that are under control
of the pro-Russian separatists
Research activities have been conducted in the following Ukrainian cities:
Vinnitsya, Dnipropetrovsk, Ivano-Frankivsk, Kyiv, Kremenchuk, Lutsk, Kharkiv,
Chernigiv, Melitopol and Izmail
In addition, mass media monitoring has been conducted in six regional administrative
centers of Ukraine and one big city focusing on the availability of stereotyping,
prejudice and stigmatization towards the internally displaced

Map of the research activities

Our methodology
Monitoring mass media conducted in seven regional administrative
centers of Ukraine on the availability of stereotyping, prejudice and
stigmatization towards the internally displaced from Donetsk, Lugansk
and Crimea regions
Guided small discussion groups, participants of which include the
internally displaced persons, activists from civil and volunteer
organizations, managers of culture, educators, students and journalists,
bloggers and local bureaucrats and deputies
Interviews with regional experts from central, western and eastern
Ukraine on intercultural tension rising in the society, stereotypes
towards the internally displaced persons and effective methods
debunking such stereotypes

Mass media monitoring: monitoring the availability of stereotypes,
bias, prejudice and stigmatization towards the internally displaced people
Research period: 1 July– 31 December 2014
Analyzed: 28 mass media sources of six regional centers of Ukraine (Vinnytsia,
Dnipropetrovsk, Ivano-Frankivsk, Lutsk, Kharkiv, Chernigiv) and the city of Kremenchuk
In each of the above mentioned cities 4 publications have been monitored, both online
and paper ones, as well as TV
(in the case of the latter, online versions have been taken for monitoring)

Based on our monitoring of four publications in Kremenchuk:
The number of materials that touch the theme of the IDPs is 2 % (182 materials), 5% of which
(9 materials) had clear signs of bias
Main stereotypes that were present in the monitored media of
Kremenchuk are the following:
 IDPs are dangerous (they are referred to as saboteurs or terrorists) or at least suspicious, are
not ‘the good citizens’ (similar statements are mostly heard from D. Zakharchenko, who is the
head of the city board of the Kremenchuk police, in the news his statements are often not cited
which results in the media basically translating with his point of view)
 IDPs do not wish to take part in the development of the country and wish to flee abroad
 there are also existing stereotypes that all IDPs live in highly poor conditions, which is often not
the case. Examples of positive discrimination were not found

Kremenchuk
(Central Ukraine)
“…the surge of crime in Kremenchuk, the local
police is ties to the big influx of refugees from
the depressed Donbas districts. ..” ⁵
“…they flee from the East, like mice, and can
settle in our regions…” ⁶
“…They do not wish to participate in the
elections, no wish to influence the future of
Ukraine…” ⁷
“…they settle and prepare themselves for a long-
term war with us...” ⁸
“…we live like refugees from Sloviansk, or even
worse …”⁹
Analyzed the following 4
media:
1. 05366.com.ua
2. Telegraf
3. Visnuk
Kremenchuha
4. Kremenchuk
Hromadske
telebachennya

Based on our monitoring of the four publications in Chernigiv:
The number of materials that touch the theme of the IDPs is 1 % (126 materials), 12% of which
Chernigiv are the following:
 Typical spiteful wording in titles that relate to the topic of internally displaced persons, simply
referring to IDPs as “those from Donetsk“ or "aliens”
 hate speech was clearly detected in comparisons such as: “nomadic Mongolian yoke” or
“Serpent near the heart”
 Yet in general, there is not much attention devoted to the IDPs in the media of Chernigiv and
there are very few publications which would include the voice of the people themselves
 Nonetheless, in materials that are about social protection, celebrations or mobilization, the IDPs
are always mentioned in additional wording e.g. “and also the IDPs…”

Chernigiv
(Central Ukraine)
“…Refugees from Lugansk are like the nomadic Mongolian
yoke…”¹⁰
“…IDPs from the East do not wish to live in dormitories…” ¹¹
“…the relocated «Kremlin wad» with fists defended the
honor of the occupant…” ¹²
“…Ungrateful IDPs…” ¹³
“… those who pretend to be «peaceful» IDPs, yet have the
sign of both obvious or hidden hostility…” ¹⁴
“…the demographic statistics of Chernigiv region are
heighten due to the IDPs families…” ¹⁵
“… She sheltered a serpent near the heart…” ¹⁶
1. Gorod.cn.ua
2. Pik.cn.ua
3. Vysokij Val
4. Chernigivska
ODTRK
media:

Based on our monitoring of the four publications in Vinnytsia:
The number of materials that touch the theme of the IDPs is 2 % (126 materials), 2 % of
which (3 materials) had clear signs of bias
Vinnytsia are the following:
 In general, the media in Vinnytsia that we have analyzed are appropriately covering the
theme of IDPs, yet the number of such publications is very small
 In general the media in Vinnytsia do not produce the common stereotypes like their
‘dangerousness’ or ‘negative moral standards’. Nonetheless, media in Vinnytsia do allow
themselves to talk about the ‘indecency’ of the IDPs
 No examples of positive discrimination were found

Vinnytsia
(Central Ukraine)
“…war in the sandbox: will the children of the IDPs
make friends with the local children…” ¹⁷
“…together with the families of IDPs to Vinnytsia
also came the problem of aggressive attitude
towards the peers…” ¹⁸
“…Only 352 refugees are looking of a job. While the
total number of working age migrants is 2529…” ¹⁹
“…September 1st is approaching, the first school bell
and the beginning of the new academic year. Our
children will get to know 197 internally displaced
children, and who knows whether our children will
come back home happy and exited after their new
encounter or come back with red eyes and sand in
their heads and without their bicycles…” ²⁰
1. 20 khvilin
2. My Vinnitsa
3. Misto
4. Vinnytska ODTRK
media:

Based on our monitoring of the four publications in Ivano-Frankivsk:
The number of materials that touch the theme of the IDPs is 1 % (254 materials), 4 % of which
Main stereotypes that were present in the monitored media of Ivano-
Frankivsk are the following:
 problematics and conflictedness of the IDPs is put in contrast to the hospitality of the local
Ivano-Frankisvk residents
 IDPs do not wish to participate in defending the East, only wish to live on the cost of the
Precarpathian residents
 IDPs are being linked to criminals and bad manners
 Morals of the IDPs are said to be lower then those of the Ivano-Frankivsk’s residents

Ivano-Frankivsk
(Western Ukraine)
“…The kids from the East and Crimea are taken into
kindergartens without any queue…” ²¹
“…are resting in Transcarpathia and Yaremche…” ²²
“…[local resident] is giving them shelter, but hears in
response unjustified complaints and accusations...” ²³
“…In the pre-Carpathian region the IDPs refuse to register
themselves at the local military commissariats…” ²⁴
“…not all, who come here have clear conscience and good
intentions…” ²⁵
“…the first wave of migrants left a bad reputation and now
the locals do not have any trust towards them...” ²⁶
“…they often lie…” ²⁷
1. Kurs.if.ua
2. Reporter
3. Galician
correspondent
4. ODTRK
«Karpaty»
media:

Based on our monitoring of the four publications in Lutsk:
Main stereotypes that were present in the monitored media of Volyn
are the following:
 they suspect IPDs in criminal offences (most horrific ones), and produce publications which hint
that IDPs can cause street violence (e.g. beatings on the street)
 Another problem that is present yet highly exaggerated in the media, is the reluctance of the
IDPs to live in any kind of conditions like the villages of Volyn. Such materials display immigrants as
too picky and capricious as opposed to the allegedly ascetic "natives"
 Simultaneously, none of the media did offer any real analysis of the conditions that are being
offered to the IDPs in the local villages, and fail to acknowledge and explain the basic fact that
those people who have never lived in villages actually can have problems with adjusting to the rural
conditions
 Moreover, Volyn’s media actively disseminate the conviction that man from Donbas do not defend
the East of Ukraine, but on the contrary ‘hide’ behind their IDP status. Also the tone of the media in
Lutsk when they write about IDPs has a scornfully ironic character

Lutsk
(Western Ukraine)
“…due to IDPs from Donbas the situation with HIV /
Aids deteriorated…” ²⁸
“…while he with comrades is defending the Lugansk
region, the internally displaced man are hiding from
the war in Volyn…”²⁹
“…[police] also check, whether the IDPs from the
East could have any links to the murder…”³⁰
“…community…will strive so that man from Donbas
who came to Volyn region to ‘sit out’ the war here,
would immediately go back to their homes…”³¹
“…foreign nationals and demanding IDPs…”³²
“… in Volyn there are fears of terroristic attacks
which could come from suspicious IDPs...”³³
“…there are suggestions in Lutsk to form a labor
army for IDPs…”³⁴
media:
1. Hromadske.
Volyn
2. Volynpost
3. Volynska
gazeta
4. Volynski
novuny

Based on our monitoring of the four publications in Kharkiv:
Main stereotypes that were present in the monitored media of Kharkiv are the
following:
 IDPs are presented as the cause of problems, while the cause is deeper and people in question
are mainly the victims
 lack of knowledge of the Ukrainian language halts the full integration of the IDPs into the
community
 IDPs are better not to be trusted (for flat rental, taxi service) – subjective perception of one
person is extrapolated onto the whole group of IDPs
 there is a problem of shedding light on the Roma question and Roma IDPs in particular. In sum
we can conclude that media in Kharkiv is not the main source of stereotypes towards the IDPs

Kharkiv
(Eastern Ukraine)
“…cases are known, when Kharkov residents after
calling a taxi service ask to not send them internally
displaced taxi drivers. Among the complaints: lack of
knowledge of the city and unusual manner of
driving…”³⁵
“…IDPs are in need of Russian-Ukrainian
dictionaries… due to the change of language even
the best students lag behind in schools…”³⁶
“…And today there are already problems related to
the fact that internally displaced tenants are running
out of money, do not have enough to cover their
bills, yet not wish to move out since they do not
have any other places to go to...”³⁷
1. dozor.kharkov.ua
2. Mediaport
3. Vecherniy
Kharkov
4. Kharkivske
oblasne
telebachennya
media:

Based on our monitoring of the four publications in Dnipropetrovsk:
Dnipropetrovsk are the following:
 Media in Dnipropetrovsk are actively emphasizing on the aid for IDPs and on the difficult
situation they found themselves in
 Main stereotypes that are present in the media of Dnipropetrovsk are the following: IDPs are
dangerous or at least suspicious, even though such attitudes are rather on the instinctive level.
Also they are portrayed as potential delinquents and have a specifically negative “Donetsk
mentality”

Dnipropetrovsk
(Eastern Ukraine)
“…Employment agencies are filled. There is
twice as much work for the police…”³⁸
“…It is clear that not all employers will be
willing to hire them…” ³⁹
“…Part of the IDPs – are relatively wealthy.
They are racing through the city in their
luxurious cars, do not follow any traffic code,
demonstrating by this their typical rude,
Donetsk’s way of behaving on the road …”⁴⁰
“…illegal IDP is seemingly dangerous…” ⁴¹
1. 056.ua
2. Gorod.dp.ua
3. Dnepr Vecherniy
4. telekanal 34.ua
media:

«Main problem with the media in Vinnytsia, Dnipropetrovsk, Ivano-Frankivsk,
Kremenchuk, Lutsk, Kharkiv and Chernigiv during the period of July- December
2014 is not the clear fact of present stereotypes or bias but mainly the very small
number of publications which would cover the theme of internal displacement,
especially those that would cover it from the perception of the internally displaced
themselves. Also the lack of analytical materials on this theme is very small.
Based on our observations, which were not covered by this research, during the
next winter-spring period the number of publications focusing of the integration
question of the IDPs, their problems and success significantly increased»
Svitlana Oslavska, journalist, press-coordinator of the project
“Promoting dialogue and reconciliation in the regions of Ukraine”

Vinnytsia
126
Ivano-Frankivsk
254
Dnipropetrovsk
252
Kremenchuk
182
Lutsk
130
Chernigiv
126
Kharkiv
264
2%
4%
1%
5%
10%
2%
2%
Number of publications covering the
theme of internal displacement per
monitored city
Percentage of publications
that had the signs of bias and
stereotypes towards the IDPs
in the monitored media
Research period: 1 July -31 December 2014

Our recommendations for the media:
1. Publications must rely more on the voices/views of the IDPs themselves;
2. More attempts have to be made to report and uncover the problems, successes and
ordinary life of the IDPs;
3. Focus more analytical reports and materials;
4. Data base of heroes has to be constantly held up to date and increased accordingly,
so that in the final publications more perceptions can be portrayed;
5. More publications have to appear covering good practices from the lives of the IDPs;
6. Special trainings for editors have to be conducted focusing on avoidance of hate
speech, stereotypes transmission and stigmatization in the media

Guided small discussion groups, participants of which include the internally displaced
persons, activists from civil and volunteer organizations, managers of culture, educators,
students, journalists, bloggers, local bureaucrats and deputies
Research period: 20 December 2014 – 30 April 2015
This research method was conducted ten cities (Kremenchuk, Chernigiv, Vinnytsia, Kyiv,
Ivano-Frankivsk, Lutsk, Dnipropetrovsk, Kharkiv,
Izmail and Melitopol) with groups between 25 -50 people during which the participants had
to anonymously formulate questions towards to IDPs so that we could detect the potential
presence of hidden stereotypes
After this, participants were encouraged to form small groups of 5 to 10 people each and
discuss the freshly formulated questions which were randomly chosen on spot. In each of
such groups at least one IDP had to be present

4 steps algorithm for the guided small discussion groups
• Activation of the audience through a video clip (in English) on examples of the cultural
diversity, aimed to reduce stereotypes in the society
• Data collection through a game: our main method was based on the principle of
collection anonymous questions which the participants were encouraged to formulate
towards the IDPs that reside in their local communities. The following starting
formulations were proposed: “Why…” and/or “Is it true that…”
• Systematization of acquired information: participants were joined in small groups of
5-10 people and were encouraged to discuss the randomly chosen questions that were
collected minutes earlier
• Debunking the stereotypes: participants who were present and were internally
displaced had the opportunity to refute the information that was present in the
formulated questions, but also answer the questions on spot and subjectively explain
from where such questions/ stereotypes emerge

Testing the research method
The methodology for researching stereotypes towards the ethnic and social minorities in
Ukraine in small guided discussion groups was developed by the Literature group «STAN»
aiming to collect, systematize and debunk the existing stereotypes
 Approbation of the methods was piloted during an intercultural discussion “the Power of
Diversity in Kremenchuk’’ on the 22nd of December 2014
 This pilot research event was conducted within the framework of the project “Incubator of
Trust”
 During this pilot research stereotypes were collected and systematized towards the IDPs,
the Jewish, Muslim and the Armenian communities of Kremenchuk
 Final results of this event are published in an analytical report⁴²

RESULTS:
Central Ukraine

Kremenchuk (22.12.2014)
An excerpt from the questions that contain hidden stereotypes towards the IDPs:
Is it true that husbands of the internally displaced women “fight at home against the
‘UKRop’ people”?
Is it true that the internally displaced people from Donbas support Putin even despite
their residence in Ukraine?
Is it true that the internally displaced people believe that the state owes them
something?
Why is that that in Lugansk the so-called ‘UKRop’ people are not liked?
Is it true that IDPs from the East do not wish to learn Ukrainian language?
In total there where 58 questions formulated in Kremenchuk which contain hidden
stereotypes towards the minority groups, 6 out them where addressed to IDPs

Pilot event aiming to research to the stereotypes in Kremenchuk

Чернігів (24.03.2015)
An excerpt from the questions that contain hidden stereotypes towards the
IDPs:
Why do you think that we all owe you something?
Why is that you do not rush to find jobs in our place?
Is it true that it is impossible to evict an internally displaced person from a
rented apartment?
Why did you come to us and did not stay instead to protect your own lands?
Is it true that Ukrainian language for a resident from the East is worse than
Chinese?
In total there where 33 questions formulated in Chernigiv which contain
hidden stereotypes towards the IDPs

Guided small discussion event researching stereotypes in Chernigiv

Vinnytsia (05.03.2015)
IDPs:
Is it true that residents from Donetsk are different from the residents of
Vinnytsia?
Why did you flee and did not protect Donbas?
Why is that the internally displaced persons have aggressive attitudes
towards the local residents?
Why do people in the Eastern regions do not respect Ukrainian language?
Why do the residents from Donbas do not consider themselves Ukrainian?
In total there where 41 questions formulated in Vinnytsia which contain

Guided small discussion event researching stereotypes in Vinnytsia

Kyiv (25.03.2015)
IDPs:
Is it true that men from the East are afraid to protect their own land?
Why do you all look so good?
Why do you distinguish yourselves from the others?
Why are you so unmannered?
Is it true that you do not understand Ukrainian language?
Is it true that above your rooftops Russian flags were hanging?
In total there where 100 questions formulated in Kyiv which contain

RESULTS:
Western Ukraine

Ivano-Frankivsk (23.02.2015)
IDPs:
Is it true that you had history classes in school?
Is it true that you despise us?
Why did you not stand for the independence of Ukraine in your city?
Is it true that participation in elections for you always was just a formality?
Why did you not go to Russia, which is so ‘rich and fair’?
In total there where 96 questions formulated in Ivano-Frankivsk which
contain hidden stereotypes towards the IDPs

Guided small discussion event researching stereotypes in Ivano-Frankivsk

Lutsk(06.04.2015)
IDPs:
Why do you believe so much in everything that is given by the media?
Is it true that many people in the East do not understand Ukrainian
language?
Is it true that many residents from Donbas do not consider themselves to be
Ukrainian?
Why do you hate Western Ukrainians so much?
Why do you not wish to protect your city?
In total there where 37 questions formulated in Lutsk which contain

Guided small discussion event researching stereotypes in Lutsk

RESULTS:
Eastern Ukraine

Dnipropetrovsk (06.03.2015)
IDPs:
Why did you choose ‘Russian world’? Why did you not fight against?
Is it true that your people believe that we are fascists?
Why did you no protect your city from the pro-Russian bandits?
Is it really true that you are from Donbas? IT does not seems like that, since
you are just like me
In total there where 14 questions formulated in Dnipropetrovsk which

Guided small discussion event researching stereotypes in Dnipropetrovsk

Kharkiv (17.02.2015)
IDPs:
Is it true that many of you believe that ‘Maidan’ equals to nationalism?
Is it true that at your place people do not believe in St. Nicholas?
Is it true that you wanted to be in Russia? And why then did you come to
Ukraine?
Is it true that you are looking for excuses so that you do not have to work?
Is it true that you believe that Ukrainian language is not a real language but
is made up – just a dialect?
In total there where 40 questions formulated in Dnipropetrovsk which

Guided small discussion event researching stereotypes in Kharkiv

RESULTS:
Cities that are close to the territory which is
controlled by the pro-Russian separatists

Izmail (15.04.2015)
IDPs:
Why is that you let the war into your home?
Why those who sympathise with Russia are staying in the territory of
Ukraine?
Is it true that in Lugansk and Donetsk regions there are very few Ukrainian
patriots?
Is it true that the half of the Lugansk’s population do not understand the
Ukrainian language?
In total there where 27 questions formulated in Izmail which contain

Melitopol (16.02.2015)
IDPs:
Have you see the Burratino? Why did you allow such terror to happen?
Why did you not support the revolution of honour?
The majority of Donbas wants the ‘Russian world’? Why do you not love
Ukraine?
When everything ends will you return to your home or will you stay in
Ukraine?
Is it true that everyone at your place work in the coalmines?
In total there where 69 questions formulated in Melitopol which contain

Guided small discussion event researching stereotypes in Melitopol

CONCLUSIONS

Analysis and categorization of the stereotypes
towards the IDPs into blocks
“are alien by spirit and
have negative attitude
towards others ”
“are brainwashed, believe
in myths and are
influenced by the
propaganda”
“do not respect Ukrainian
language, culture,
values ”
“are the bearers of the
enemy’s values”
“are responsible for the
outbreak of war and refuse
to participate in the anti-
terroristic operation”
“morally and physically
support the enemy”
After careful analysis of the questions that were formulated by the participants of the
small guided discussion groups, we have clustered the stereotypes into 6 main blocks:

Block 1:
“are alien by spirit and have negative attitude towards others”
“are ‘alien by sprit’ to the cities that have accepted them”
“do not want to work”
“cannot integrate due to their different perceptions”
“have a negative (haughtily/aggressive) attitude towards the local residents”
“parasitize, believe that everyone owes them”
“are more wealthy then the rest of the population – are spoiled by the previous
regime”

“believe that Ukraine has been captured by fascists “
“believe in myths about the ‘frightful Bandera people’”
“believe the Russian TV and media”
“are convinced that the Ukrainian Armed Forces have been shooting their cities
down”
“are of conviction that people from the East are being hunted because of use of the
Russian language”
Block 2:
“are brainwashed, believe in myths and are influenced by the
propaganda”

“have negative attitude towards the Ukrainian language – symbol of national
identity”
“are not paying respect to the symbols of Ukrainian identity such as a passport
and the Ukrainian flag”
“are against the Ukrainian values: history, literature, Christian ethic and views”
“did not support the Revolution of Dignity”
“do not support the Ukrainian Armed Forces”
Block 3:
“do not respect Ukrainian language, culture, values”

“believe in ‘the Russian world’ and its values”
“want separation from Ukraine”
“wish for a unification with Russia”
“wish to get back to the USSR, have nostalgic feelings for Lenin and Stalin”
“are against the integration with the European Union ”
Block 4:
“are the bearers of the enemy’s values”

“are to blamed for the annexation of Crimea and the beginning of the armed conflict in
Donbas due to passiveness”
“did not wish to defend their cities”
“do not wish take part in the Anti Terroristic Operation”
“do not plan to go back to their homes”
Block 5:
“are responsible for the outbreak of war and refuse to participate in
the anti-terroristic operation”

“support Putin”
“support the self-proclaimed republics of Lugansk People’s Republic (LPR) and
Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR)”
“take part in the armed conflict on the side of the separatists ”
Block 6:
“morally and physically support the enemy”

Set of interviews with the regional experts from the Central, Western
and Eastern Ukraine about the intercultural tension within the society,
stereotypes towards the internally displaced people and the effective
methods on how to debunk the existing stereotypes
Research period: 1 February – 30 April 2015
Our interviewees were selected regional experts that directly work with IDPs on
the local levels in the Ukrainian regions
Interviews were focused on intercultural tension and stereotypes towards the
IDPs

Olga Kadysheva: activist of the voluntary organization “Station
Kharkiv”, psychologist, coordinates an anonymous hot line
“People who are consumers of someone's mercy for a long time, cause
irritation...
There is a need to re-establish social ties but also to seek shelter, work, get
children back to education and to create new social contacts. This all takes up a lot of
time. Here we have to take into account the forced nature for migration, people did not
prepare for relocation and have lost a lot back home...
A lot of people were faced with discrimination following the origin principle
‘Where are you from?’. Many have been refused service just because of the simple fact
that they come from Donbas.
But the main view is that Kharkiv has the most tolerant atmosphere and
psychologically it is better to stay here since there is not disrespectful treatment” ⁴³

Lesya Aronets:
coordinator of the regional office for IDPs in Ivano-Frankivsk
“If in our regions prevails small entrepreneurship and self-employment, in the East
prevail large enterprises. Such specialities like metallurgy or miner are simply not in demand
on the territory of our region.
Some people have well-developed communication qualities and it will take them
just one day to have friends around, but some people need half a year for this step, to for
instance say ‘hello’ to the neighbours. Some lock themselves up with their own pain, and go
around mourning that everyone owes them something. We must move away from clichés and
seek an individual approach to everyone while look for ways to reduce stress and help people
to socialize.
We had many activities aiming to expose the residents of the East to our
traditions. So they would understand our mentality and start to fall in love with our region
just like we love it” ⁴⁴

Maryna Konovalchuk:
Psychologist, Director of Institute for gifted children in Chernihiv
“Adolescents have a tendency to copy behaviour which also include stereotypes and
aggression. I have been working with children who have been called names in classrooms like
"separatists" ... for instance a girl, who had played a game “Those who do not jump – are
Muscovites”.
I have heard from internally displaced persons that their relatives advised them not to
move here – since allegedly they would be diminished here. Part of people that had negative
attitudes still remain having them. There are phrases to be heard “So what, they could always flee
back”. In contrast to this, there is a part that has a very tolerant attitude. The rest is somehow in-
between the two. This is a unstable and vulnerable group which are hence very sensitive towards
the messages in the media.
Good adaptation it seems to be for people who say “I came to my home place, this is
my country”. Best adaptation practices show those who are open to the rest of people and are
willing to help the others as well” ⁴⁵

PROJECT
“Promoting dialogue and reconciliation in the Ukrainian
regions”
This project is aiming to develop intercultural dialogue and promote
reconciliation on the regional levels. Research practices were combined with practical
debunking of the emerging stereotypes concerning the internally displaced people in
Ukraine
This project was realized by Literature group STAN (Lugansk), together with
social initiative “Cultural Dialogue” (Kremenchuk) supported by the National Endowment
for Democracy and the Embassy of the United States in Ukraine trough the Democracy
Grants Program
(Opinions or points of view expressed are those of the participants of the project and do not
necessarily reflect the official position or policies of the U.S. government)

Research team
Yaroslav
Minkin
-
project
coordinator
Anna
Ostafiychuk
-
researcher
Svitlana
Oslavska
-
media
monitor
Konstantin
Skorkin
-
analyst

Our regional partners
Center of humanitarian technologies «AKHALAR» (Chernigiv)
Central city library named after Michailo Kotsubinky (Chernigiv)
NGO «Kultura Medialna» (Dnipropetrovsk)
NGO «Young Enlightenment» (Ivano-Frankivsk)
Internet portal «UFRA» (Ivano-Frankivsk)
Center for culture and arts (Kharkiv)
Department of tourist and city promotion and the department of cultural of the Lutsk
city council (Lutsk)
Lesya Ukrainka Eastern European national university of the (Lutsk)
Intercultural Karaim museum«Cale» (Melitopol)
Bogdan Khmelnisky state pedagogical university (Melitopol)
Department of Cultural of the Vinnitsya city council (Vinnitsya)

CONTACT US
You can contact the authors of this research via
stan.art.group@gmail.com
Or find us on Facebook
www.facebook.com/lgstan
Літературне угруповання «СТАН» 2015

REFERENCES

1. P. Gatrell. A Whole Empire Walking: Refugees in Russia during World War I. Indiana
University Press, 1999
2. K. Skorkin. Age of exile, forced migration: historical perspective in Ukraine, 2015
3. IDMC. The Global Overview 2015: internally displaced people by conflict and
violence in 2014
4. UNHCR. Internal Displacement Statistics in Ukraine, 14.08.2015
5. Online publications 05366.com.ua. "Police of Kremenchug is planning to locate
each unregistered immigrant from Donbas" 08/19/2014
6. Newspaper "Journal of Kremenchug." "The police will check Kremenchuk citizens
from the East" 08/19/2014
7. Online edition 05366.com.ua. "Only 10% IDPs, residing in Poltava are willing to
vote" 10/22/2014
8. "Telegraph". "Large stir: police check in Kremenchug unregistered citizens from
Donbas" 08/19/2014
9. Public Television Kremenchug. "Communal trash: apartment block on Tolstoy
street, 36 "07/19/2014
10. Newspaper "High Val." "Lugansk refugees as nomadic Mongol yoke" 12/12/2014
11. Online edition Gorod.cn.ua. "IDPs with the East do not live in communal houses"
02/07/2014
12. Online edition Gorod.cn.ua. Election games "as a lustration" is turning into yet
another “Military pot" - only from the rear"09/09/2014
13. Online edition Gorod.cn.ua. "apartment owners in Chernigov are refusing to rent
out the flats to Donetsk’s people" 07/31/2014

14. Newspaper "High Val" "She sheltered a serpent near the heart" 09/30/2014
15. Chernigiv ODTRK. "Demographic Statistics in Chernihiv are supported by the
relatives of the IDPs from Lugansk and Donetsk regions"
16. Newspaper "High Val" "She sheltered a serpent near the heart" 09/30/2014
17. Online edition "20 minutes." "The war in the sandbox: will IDPs’ children make
friends with the local residents" 08/19/2014
18. Online edition "20 minutes" "The war in the sandbox: will IDPs’ children make
19. Online edition "20 minutes" "Vinnytsia region has registered 5265 refugees from
the ATO zone " 10/30/2014
20. Online edition "20 minutes." "The war in the sandbox: will IDPs’ children make
21. ODTRK "Carpathians". "Children from the East will be taken into kindergartens
without any queue" 07/17/2014
22. Online edition Kurs.if.ua. 07/23/2014
23. ODTRK "Carpathians" "Ruslana Lyzhychko: we have to understand the
atmosphere between the IDPs and those who take them up" 07/21/2014
24. Online edition Kurs.if.ua. "In the Pre- Carpathian region IDPs are refusing to
register at the local military commissariats" 07/24/2014
25. Newspaper "Galician correspondent" "Pre-Carpathians do not understand why
male immigrants from the east do not mobilize " 01/08/2014
26. Newspaper "Galician correspondent" "His home among strangers" in December
2014
27. Newspaper "Galician correspondent" "For peace in the inner world" 10/31/201

28. The publication "Volynpost" "Due to immigrants from Donbas the situation with
HIV / AIDS is deteriorated." 11/21/2014
29. Publication of "Public. Volyn". "In war - better than at home." 05/09/2014
30. Publication of "Public. Volyn". "Law enforcement officers told about the details of
beheading in Lutsk: such has not been seen since the 90's." 08/12/2014
31. The publication "Volynpost" "Volyn writer said, who beated him." 02/08/2014
32. "Volyn Newspaper". "In the classroom – just as at a minefield." n.d.
33. news "Volyn news." "In Volyn fear of terror attacks by suspicious settlers."
05/08/2014
34. news "Volyn news." "In Lutsk offer to form a work army out of IDPs." 08/18/2014
35. Dozor.kharkov.ua. "IDPs from the ATO zone taking up jobs as taxi drivers"
08/12/2014
36. The newspaper "Evening Kharkov". "IDPs are in need of Russian-Ukrainian
dictionaries." 10/11/2014
37. The newspaper "Evening Kharkov". "What do the Kharkiv institutions need for
IDPs" 01/09/2014
37. The newspaper "Evening Kharkov". "What do the Kharkov’s territorial institution
need for immigrants." 01/09/2014
38. Online edition 056.ua. "Temporarily or permanently? How and where to are the
Ukrainians forced to leave their homes"11/16/2014
39. Channel 34.ua. Program "Look." 11/20/2014
40. Online edition 056.ua. "Under the escort." 08/17/2014
41. Gorod.dp.ua. "To Dnepropetrovsk together with IDPs also come crooks."
07/18/2014

42. http://www.slideshare.net/ssuserb54f54/intercultural-discussion-in-kremenchuk-
analitical-report
43. The Internet portal «UFRA». "In Kharkov, a huge wave of sympathy and aid"
03/12/2015
44. The Internet portal «UFRA». "You cannot live by clichés" 02/02/2015
45. The Internet portal «UFRA». "The best feel those who help others" 04/27/2015
 All photos in this presentation are made by Yaroslav Minkin
 The pictures from slides 3 and 13 are made by Anastasia Rozhkova

Analytical report of the examined stereotypes about IDPs in Ukraine

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