The Germans understand why this war happened and why they should help us - artist Alexander Doroshenko

Honored artist of Ukraine Oleksandr Doroshenko, together with his wife, had to endure the hellish days of occupation in the village of Mikhailivka-Rubezhivka, near Kiev. The constant shelling, the killings of the neighbors, the existence between life and death - this is etched in memory for life. Catching a moment of the "green corridor", the man was still able to evacuate - of course, not without difficulty, because Alexander moves on a cart for many years.

The artist was given shelter familiar in Germany. It would seem that you can finally exhale quietly and wait for the inevitable defeat of Russia in a cozy European country. However, the man did not agree to such a fate and decided to return to Ukraine in the midst of the Great War. Alexander Doroshenko told about the motives of such an act, his creativity and peculiarities of life in Germany for people with disabilities.

- Alexander, after the start of a full -scale war and almost two weeks spent in the occupation, you and your wife were evacuated to the EU. Tell us how you were accepted there? Initially, we got to the Czech Republic and spent two weeks in our good acquaintance.

The Czechs were treated very well: in fact, they were not small reasons to help us, because we did not register as displaced persons because we did not plan to stay in the Czech Republic, but we were still provided with a grocery card in a local village store. With this card, his wife went to the store, and then the local city hall was calculated for it. After that, we got to our acquaintances in Hamburg, where we lived with our wife from March 30 to September 2.

A friend prescribed us, then we registered at the City Hall, the Migration Service and after this registration we immediately started paying 330 euros per person per month. The Germans are actively trying to adapt the displaced persons to life in Germany: it is necessary to register at the Job Center and go for German courses. This is a five -day training, almost like a job, and if you stop going there, you will be stopped.

- Did you confirm your person's status with disabilities in Germany? How complicated is it at all? In fact, it is necessary. For example, I was moving on my own car, on which it was evacuated, and in Hamburg there is a big problem with parking in the city, in addition, it is quite expensive. And people who have disabilities are eligible for free parking.

Disability status also provides extra financial assistance because it is believed that a disabled person needs more than an ordinary healthy person. They should also be offered a home that is available for a disabled person. But! It is difficult to confirm the disability. The problem is that it is difficult for a doctor in Germany. You must first enroll and get the "term" online and it is quite difficult. You can sit at your computer all day to find this term somewhere.

And in order to confirm the disability, you need to go through something like our MSEC. I tried to do this, but everything is very difficult and almost unrealistic. I left this idea, and I was going to return. - You have to travel Europe, escaping from war. Could you compare what is the attitude towards people with disabilities? Is it better than in Ukraine, or is there no difference? What struck me in Germany is that there are so many people with disabilities on the streets.

All buses without exception are equipped with a special ramp for people on a trolley, which can withstand 350 kilograms. Each bus has one, or even two places for wheelchairs, which are equipped with special buttons. If you need to go out, before the stop you press on this button, the driver should go out, discard you this ramp and, if you need, then help leave the bus. One driver even explained that he must come out, because suddenly what happens, he will be responsible for it.

The subway is the same: there are special elevators that you can go down to the right line. A person with a disability can go to any store. If the store has several floors, then there is a lift. That is, everything is adapted. In Ukraine, people began to be more sensitive to people with disabilities, because now the war, many people have received disabilities on the front, and this causes some sense of respect, compassion.

However, our country is far from adapted for people with disabilities, you can still say at the initial level. Do not go to the minibuses, trams, trolleybuses are not equipped with ramps, and the Germans are still fixed as a status quo: if necessary, then it will be. - The Germans understand why we have a war in our country, what is this war? Understand. Even on every bus it is written "Stop War".

The attitude towards Ukrainians is very decent, they understand why refugees in Germany understand that Germany should help them. Every Saturday in the city center there were crowded rallies against Russian aggression. There are three flags on the Central Hamburg Square on the City Hall: Germany, the EU and Ukraine. And there are also flags of Ukraine in other cities of Germany, we met a lot of them.

But yes, there are people who fled from Russia, because they were bad for them to live there, and using all the privileges of life in the free world continue to love Putin and Russia. They do not understand that Putin and Russia can come to them only on tanks. One day, an organized car race with Russian symbols under the sauce of the struggle of the Russians for their rights was organized. This car race was thrown by eggs, and when they stopped at night, some of these cars were burned.

There were no more such runs. - Have you been opportunities for painting abroad? In two weeks in the Czech Republic I wrote 6 works: three gave, one bought, and two more I took with me. During the time spent in Germany, I wrote about 70 paintings, participated in local programs of volunteers and diaspora, there was an exhibition "Anxious Valizka" and there participants even gave another 100 euros for paints.

- And in general, how is it - to paint in the midst of war? There is enough moral forces? Is there any powerful motivation on the contrary? It is very difficult for artists now. It is so difficult that I do not understand at all how they make ends meet. The paintings are practically not purchased. People have other problems. In addition, salaries have fallen, the number of people in the country has decreased, business, production closed.

And if people have extra money, then they are given to the Armed Forces or volunteering. And even those artists who felt quite well, had their clients, is very difficult now. But the most problematic is to keep the workshop. People work in workshops without heating, because there is nothing to pay. - Why didn't they stay in peaceful Germany, but decided to return to Ukraine? We had to return to support our country, because we pay some taxes, and all this money went to the budget of Ukraine.

And yet we feel Ukrainian. In addition, there are things that are much more progressive in Ukraine than in Europe. For example, obtaining a bank card. We can just go to the bank and get it in half an hour. It takes two weeks in Germany. Or for example fishing. To catch fish, in Germany you need to take three -month courses, take exams: how to catch it, how to kill it humanely, you cannot catch a cuttings. And a lot of like. Everything is too regulated.

- When you returned home, what did you see there? In what condition was your home? What did the invaders do there? The roof and the gate were fragments, the windows were shot down, Russian invaders, a team composition lived in the house. Usually the house was aligned. The door to the terrace, the door to the garage. They liked our preservation, they ate almost all reserves. Things, such as fishing rods and seven paintings, were usually gone.

Moreover, what surprised me, the Russians snatched paintings of purely Ukrainian subjects: a portrait of Cossack, Kobzar with a bandura, several landscapes. The neighbor saw how he was taken, but what he could do, because we would have shot more than 25 people in the village. And now I am very concerned about a new offensive from Belarus. I would not like to survive all this horror again.