easa

EASA Statement on the Russian war against Ukraine

As the Ukraine war has worsened in all sorts of shocking ways, the Executive feel that our statement needs to be unequivocal in order to avoid ambiguity of any kind. A group of EASA members contacted us to say that there were some ambiguities in our initial statement and therefore we have amended it, to the below.

The Executive Committee of the European Association Social Anthropologists (EASA) condemns the Russian government’s illegal and unprovoked military invasion of Ukraine: an imperialist war that is leading to immeasurable suffering and losses for the Ukrainian people, whose dignity, well-being, and independence we wholeheartedly support.

As scholars we reject President Vladimir Putin’s distorted interpretations of Russian and Ukrainian history and the assault against and brutal denial of Ukraine's sovereignty that they seek to justify.

As humans, we declare our full support to all those in Ukraine who are suffering and will continue to suffer because of this invasion, and solidarity with the Ukrainian people who oppose it. We also support the people in Russia who have stood up at risk of police violence and imprisonment against their government's military aggression, and who will also suffer its consequences.

As an Association we continue to closely observe the situation in Ukraine and at the borders, and will do everything in our power to encourage our members and their institutions to use programmes such as Scholars at Risk and more permanent solutions to extend support and solidarity to those Ukrainian colleagues and citizens who are already fleeing their country. We resent, however, some European governments' attempts to present Ukrainians as 'better' migrants than all other people who have fled devastating wars, colonialism and neocolonial economic plunder, environmental disaster, and oppressive regimes to make it into our continent.

We strongly urge for the termination of military action, rapid negotiation talks and a solution to the crisis that will not affect those most economically vulnerable inside and outside the emerging war zone, but will restore peace and justice in a continent and a world severely damaged and barely initiating a thorny and long road to recovery from a global pandemic.

Mariya Ivancheva, President
President, EASA
On behalf of EASA's Executive Committee