When she fought Russian separatists in the Donbass region in 2014, Ukrainian Andriana Susak covered her head with a balaclava to hide her gender, as women were banned from fighting. Now an Army officer, she openly displays her camouflage uniform full of insignia on social media — and posts as a tribute photos of other female soldiers who are not afraid to show their faces.
Until 2016, the Armed Forces of Ukraine did not accept women in combat positions, as they were governed by Soviet-era laws, which prohibited them from performing roles that affected reproductive health. In the Donbass, Susak registered as a volunteer seamstress, but defied the commanders and went to the front lines. When she became pregnant in 2015, she remained in the trenches until five months into her pregnancy.
She is one of those portrayed in the documentary “Invisible Battalion” (2017), about six pioneer women who fought on the front as volunteers in eastern Ukraine, registering as cooks, secretaries and nurses. Directed by three women, the film was part of a broader campaign that helped Ukraine to allow, in 2016, the enlistment of women in 62 combat positions.
Today, they are at least 32,000, according to figures at the end of 2021, or 15% of the entire Ukrainian army — a seemingly greater proportion than Russian opponents; in May 2020, the Moscow Defense Minister said there were around 41,000 women enlisted, 4.2% of the total.
The profile of women in the Kiev Armed Forces is varied, according to Anastasiia Banit of the Institute for Gender Programs, the NGO responsible for the documentary “Invisible Battalion” and other initiatives on behalf of the Ukrainian military. “When Russia attacked Ukraine in 2014, our army was not ready, so it needed a lot of volunteers, as much as possible. That’s why a lot of ordinary people who had nothing to do with the military sphere, women too, joined,” it says.
“There were women young and old, with extraordinary professional experiences in times of peace or no experience at all, with children and without, married and single. We are here to support them all.”
According to her, in the last six years, the female contingent has doubled. Changes in legislation, driven by the veterans’ movements, have contributed to this.
In 2018, the government passed a law granting women equal rights with men in the Armed Forces. In 2019, they were able to study at military academies, where they are trained to be officers, and in the same year those who fought in eastern Ukraine in 2014 were recognized as veterans, with access to social benefits. In 2020, military uniforms will feature women’s underwear instead of the standard men’s underwear.
Today, some military bases have gender consultants, who work to convince more conservative officers to follow policies of equity in their battalions. But cases of discrimination persist: in August, the Defense Ministry wanted women to march in a parade in high heels instead of boots. Opposition parliamentarians and feminist groups protested.
“Heels have always been included in women’s military uniforms in Ukraine, but it’s only now that we’re seeing people begin to understand how unnecessary these stereotypical elements are,” says Banit. “Some posts are still banned. They face sexism from bosses and partners, sometimes from family and society. We’ve made progress, but getting rid of prejudice in such a masculine sphere is a long journey.”
According to her, until recently the NGO had been working to prevent sexual violence in the Army, with the creation, for example, of a virtual service for psychological support and a reporting channel for cases of harassment, violence or sexual abuse. Today, the team is dealing with more urgent needs, which arose after the Russian invasion at the end of February.
In late 2021, as Russia began deploying troops across the border, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry asked women ages 18 to 60 to enlist, and many received military training. Self-defense courses in eastern cities have also become more popular with women.
The Reuters news agency followed a 44-year-old mother, a construction company manager, and a 23-year-old law student who spent weekends learning shooting, martial arts and first aid at one of these courses in the city of Kharkiv. According to the instructor, a war veteran, the demand for the classes increased with each new sign of Russian aggression.
In a conflict marked by strong propaganda on social media from both sides, women have also been shown as heroines in posts. The Ukrainian first lady, Olena Zelenska, honored them with a photo of a military woman in a trench, on her account with 2.5 million followers on Instagram.
“Before the war, I wrote that Ukraine has 2 million more women than men. This statistic has now taken on a whole new meaning because it means that our opposition also has a female face,” he wrote. Another example is the video-selfie of an unidentified soldier that went viral on Twitter. Walking, with the sunlight in the background, she gets emotional and says: “I’m still alive, the sun is shining, the birds are singing. Everything will be fine. Long live Ukraine.”
The commotion also generated false news, such as that Miss Ukraine Anastasiia Lenna had joined the Army to fight the Russians. The rumor gained momentum when a photo she posted on social media holding a gun went viral. Later, she herself posted a video clarifying that the gun was airsoft, a hobby that had already been mentioned.
“I’m not a soldier. I’m just a woman, a normal human being,” she said, adding that the intention was “to inspire people” and “to show that Ukrainian women are strong, confident and powerful.”
For Anastasiia Banit, the best army is one “with professionals who really want to protect their country and know what they are doing”, regardless of gender. “Cutting women out of this field means decreasing the number of potentially skilled and valuable members. An Army that includes women is the only way an Army should be.”
