Working on the front line in increasingly battered Ukraine is no joke - yet still people joke. It might just be with a wry smile, though. Mike Seawright, founder and executive director of New Zealand-based ReliefAid, remembers a Ukrainian man he met in Bucha, whom he asked, "Were any Russian troops in your home?"
"No, the vodka was still there, so I knew they hadn't visited," the man replied with a grin.
Seawright has been home in Auckland for a stint, trying to recover from battle fatigue - the emotional fallout from working in war and disaster zones. He admits the aid sector could manage its "casualties" better, including himself. Yet he has just said goodbye to his partner, Joanne, and two teenage daughters to return to Ukraine.
He set up ReliefAid nine years ago as an aid provider specialising in helping people who live near war-zone front lines. Today, Ukraine is its biggest operation. Funded by donors, it has 13 full-time expat staff (including Kiwis) and 40 local volunteers, mostly near the front line. The agency operates in Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria, which has been hit by both civil war and natural disasters.
Seawright has been shocked by what he has seen in Ukraine. He believes the worst atrocities - rapes, mass murder, torture - are committed mostly by secondline troops who follow the main Russian force. The UN Commissioner for Human Rights has documented unlawful killings, including summary executions, of at least 73 civilians in Bucha, a front-line town where ReliefAid operates just 35 minutes northwest of Kyiv.
American defence specialists estimate more than 20,000 Russian soldiers have been killed in Ukraine, many of them mercenaries working for the private Wagner Group army. International media estimate a similar number of Ukrainian soldiers have died.
Denne historien er fra July 15 - 21 2023-utgaven av New Zealand Listener.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra July 15 - 21 2023-utgaven av New Zealand Listener.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
First-world problem
Harrowing tales of migrants attempting to enter the US highlight the political failure to fully tackle the problem.
Applying intelligence to AI
I call it the 'Terminator Effect', based on the premise that thinking machines took over the world.
Nazism rears its head
Smirky Höcke, with his penchant for waving with a suspiciously straight elbow and an open palm, won't get to be boss of either state.
Staying ahead of the game
Will the brave new world of bipartisanship that seems to be on offer with an Infrastructure Commission come to fruition?
Grasping the nettle
Broccoli is horrible. It smells, when being cooked, like cat pee.
Hangry? Eat breakfast
People who don't break their fast first thing in the morning report the least life satisfaction.
Chemical reaction
Nitrates in processed meats are well known to cause harm, but consumed from plant sources, their effect is quite different.
Me and my guitar
Australian guitarist Karin Schaupp sticks to the familiar for her Dunedin concerts.
Time is on my side
Age does not weary some of our much-loved musicians but what keeps them on the road?
The kids are not alright
Nuanced account details how China's blessed generation has been replaced by one consumed by fear and hopelessness.
