Prison for illegal border crossing: Svyrydenko submits draft law to Rada
Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko has submitted draft law No. 13673 to the Verkhovna Rada, which proposes to increase the liability for illegal crossing of the state border during martial law.
This was reported by Censor.NET.
"The implementation of the draft law will contribute to ensuring legal regulation of the liability of persons for crossing the state border of Ukraine with the aim of evading conscription during mobilisation, establishing grounds for exemption from this liability during martial law, improve the legal basis for ensuring law and order in Ukraine's border areas, and have a positive impact on the effectiveness of the state's security and defence forces," the explanatory note says.
What will the punishment be?
Currently, illegal crossing of the state border is subject only to administrative liability and fines.
The draft law proposes punishing attempts to illegally cross the border outside checkpoints or with forged documents with a fine of 51,000 to 170,000 hryvnias or imprisonment for up to three years.
It also separately provides for liability for intentional damage to border infrastructure. This will be punishable by restriction of liberty or imprisonment for up to three years.
Liability for persons liable for military service
Violations by conscripts, military personnel or reservists of the terms of stay abroad during martial law will be punishable by a fine of 3,400 to 5,100 hryvnia or imprisonment for 3-5 years.
At the same time, the draft law offers a chance to avoid punishment.
"A person shall be exempt from criminal liability for committing a criminal offence under part four of this article if, within three months of crossing the state border of Ukraine, they returned to the territory of Ukraine and, before being notified of their suspicion of committing this criminal offence, voluntarily reported what had happened to the law enforcement agency," the draft law states.
