Bulletproof vests and helmets, sturdy pants, water-resistant sleeping bags, freeze-dried food and medical aid kits: these are now in great demand in military specialty stores, dump shops and outdoor sports stores. All intended to be sent to Ukraine and to help the residents there in their fight against Russia. Some customers want to fight themselves.
‘There was a customer here on Monday who wants to go fight as a volunteer in Ukraine,’ says owner Jan Noorloos of Noorloos Specialist Equipment in Kaatsheuvel. According to him, this Dutchman told the store that he was going to call in sick to be able to fight against the Russians. ‘I told him what I tell everyone who calls me now: you have to order bulletproof vests and helmets. I have zero in stock.’ Clothing, boots, backpacks, rations and first aid supplies are readily available. ‘I mainly receive orders from Ukrainians and Dutch people who collect things and want to send them.’
When asked, the Ukrainian embassy says that ‘some Dutch people have reported to serve in the Ukrainian armed forces’. According to a diplomat, such requests came in before his president last Sunday called on foreigners to help fight in a yet-to-be-formed international brigade. According to the embassy, the number of registrations is secret. The diplomat, who is very grateful for all the help and expressions of support in the Netherlands, summarizes the motivation of the volunteers with: ‘To fight for Ukraine; for Europe; for democratic values.’
Violent Crimes
Serving in a foreign army is not prohibited for Dutch citizens, Defense Minister Kajsa Ollongren assured in the House of Representatives on Monday. Provided that the army is not at war with the Netherlands, because then the volunteer immediately loses his or her passport. However, the minister advises against participating in the battle. “The travel advice for Ukraine is red, which means that the urgent advice is not to travel.” The Public Prosecution Service (OM) emphasizes that according to the law of war, only soldiers may participate directly in the battle. ‘Civilians who participate in combat without joining a military force can be punished for committing violent crimes.’
According to Marten Zwanenburg (UvA) professor of military law, this rule is open to several interpretations. ‘In principle you commit murder if you as a citizen kill someone abroad. That’s right.’ According to him, soldiers enjoy the combatant privilege: the use of force – provided it is applied within the limits of the law of war – is not punishable. And they get special protection as prisoners of war. ‘However, the question is whether you have to be formally employed in order to be regarded as a combatant. Just putting on a bracelet will not be enough, but an unpaid member of a volunteer corps is also entitled to that status, if certain conditions are met.’
To illustrate how gray this area is, Zwanenburg mentions ex-soldier Jitske Akse. He fought in Syria six years ago with Kurdish peshmerga against IS. The Dutchman said in interviews that he had killed fighters. ‘The Public Prosecution Service prosecuted Akse as an ordinary citizen who falls under Dutch criminal law. The case was dropped for lack of evidence.’ According to the professor, Dutch people who fight with IS are punishable in any case – even if they have not killed anyone themselves – because of participation in a terrorist organization.
Of all time
The Dutch in foreign military service are of all times, says military historian Samuel Kruizinga (UvA). ‘VOC ships were mainly filled with foreigners. It wasn’t until around 1800 that states prohibited their subjects from fighting for anyone else.’ Nevertheless, thousands of Dutchmen left for Rome to relieve the Pope (1870), to help the Boers in South Africa (1899-1902), or to fight in the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939). The Netherlands reacted mildly to the volunteers in the Boer War, Kruizinga says, but took firm action against the volunteers in Spain. ‘They lost their passports and were kept under surveillance by the intelligence services for a long time. Probably for fear of the communists among them.’
Kruizinga can think of three reasons why Ukrainian President Zelenksi is setting up a foreign brigade. ‘Or you lack specific expertise – such as the Israeli army that in 1948 recruited pilots from all over the world. Or you are looking for extra manpower, such as the 35,000 foreign volunteers in the Spanish civil war.’ Although, according to him, they were by no means decisive in the battle. ‘They mainly served as a symbol of international solidarity.’ Finally, a volunteer brigade provides a lot of publicity pop. “You’re writing about it now too.”
For now, the volunteers are still looking for stuff. A tour shows that their search for bulletproof vests and helmets will probably be fruitless. ‘We explain that we only sell ballistic protective equipment to governments’, says Gearpoint in Amersfoort. “You don’t want that stuff falling into the wrong hands.” At Bieco Legerdump in Castricum, customers also ask for bulletproof vests, helmets, walkie-talkies, blankets and drones. The owner: ‘Two Ukrainian boys bought vests here without protective Kevlar plates. I suggested they might put a steel plate in there.’ The boys thought that was a good idea.