Residents of the Dzhankoy district in annexed Crimea say they are being required to register for military service in order to receive compensation for power and water outages. Novaya Gazeta Europe reported this after finding about a dozen such complaints in comments under a post by Sergey Aksyonov, the Russian-appointed head of the peninsula, and in local community groups.
According to local residents, the issue concerns a payment of 15,000 rubles for people left without electricity and water for more than 48 hours after shelling. Applicants say that when filing for the payment, men are asked to show a passport stamp confirming military registration.
One local woman asked Aksyonov in Telegram comments whether the requirement was lawful and whether it applied across Crimea. He did not respond.
The community group Crimea Operative, citing the administration of the Azovskoye rural settlement, said the military registration mark is required only for people with medical professions. Under that explanation, such people, both men and women, are considered liable for military service and must be registered.
At the same time, the Crimean authorities have not officially stated that a military enlistment office mark is required to obtain compensation. Residents also complain about the application process itself: they say they are being forced to submit documents in person at rural settlement administrations, although the compensation had reportedly been promised through Gosuslugi.
The situation is further complicated by fuel shortages: residents say they are often unable even to leave their villages because of the lack of gasoline. Against the backdrop of Ukrainian strikes, the publication says, the peninsula has been facing a growing energy, logistics, and fuel crisis.