Cхід (Jun 2018)
Anti-mobilization activities of armed resistance movement (part 1)
Abstract
The article examines and analyzes the counteractions to the mobilization of Western Ukraine male citizens to Red Army by Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists and Ukrainian Insurgent Armyfrom 1944 to 1945. It was found out that to prevent military recruitment, underground and insurgent organizations conducted an anti-mobilization propaganda campaign, which included the production and distribution of corresponding leaflets (only anti-mobilization and the ones, containing anti-mobilization appeals), holding the anti-mobilizations meetings, and spreading gossip. As a mean of military recruitment opposition, insurgents were also destroying or stealing the mobilization documents (i.e., the lists of people liable for the call-up, notice papers, recruitment office orders), which were held in village Soviets. The fight against mobilization was held in an armed way as well. In practice, these were attacks of military commissars and soldiers, which carried out the actual recruitment to the Red Army, party functionaries and members of Soviet special services, which were fulfilling some mobilization duties, and soldiers of forces that sometimes helped to carry out recruitment. Eventually, the underground started to use force against people liable for the call-up and their relatives as well. Still, such cases were rare, and assaults were mostly made only after a warning. As a part of the armed struggle against recruitment, the insurgents attacked the groups of mobilized people, the number of which varied from tens to thousands. If the attack was successful, insurgents either disbanded the whole group or captured the part with themselves and let the rest return home. Otherwise, the group of mobilized people arrived at the destination. The insurgents also attacked recruitment offices which were located in district centers. In order to conduct recruitment counteractions, rebels reinforced their troops with newcomers. The positive result of such actions was the replenishment of existing departments of UIA and the creation of the new ones. The negative one was the defeat of most of them in fights with Soviet forces.
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