Protecting the rights of Ukrainians in Germany: an important clarification for the Ministry of the Interior.

As I previously wrote, there has been an increase in the number of cases of Ukrainian citizens being wrongfully prosecuted in Germany recently, which is causing serious concern.

One striking example of this situation is the practice of unjustified confiscation of Ukrainian driver's licenses by German police. Such measures are often taken without first checking documents through official Ukrainian databases, leading to false accusations of document forgery and illegal driving.

In response to this problem, I sent a clarification to the Federal Ministry of the Interior.

In my appeal, I pointed out several critical aspects that require attention from German law enforcement agencies:

1. The need for online verification of Ukrainian driver's licenses. Ukraine has official government resources that allow for the prompt verification of driver's license authenticity. Using these tools would prevent many cases of unjustified confiscation.

2. Legitimacy of licenses issued after 2022. Due to the war in Ukraine, remote renewal and issuance of new driver's licenses was introduced. German police must be informed of the legitimacy of such documents and not automatically consider them counterfeit.

3. Differences in national driver's license standards. In Ukraine, many drivers traditionally obtain multiple license categories, especially those working in the transportation industry. In Germany, this often raises suspicions, leading to false accusations.

4. The problem of different transliterations of names. The difference in the spelling of names in passports and driver's licenses is due to changes in the transliteration rules of the Ukrainian alphabet. However, in Germany, this is often interpreted as a sign of document forgery.

In my letter to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, I proposed specific measures aimed at preventing such violations:

· Introducing mandatory verification of Ukrainian ID cards in official databases before their confiscation.

· Elimination of automatic confiscation of documents in case of differences in the spelling of names.

· Development and implementation of internal instructions for the police explaining the specifics of Ukrainian driver's licenses.

· Use of modern digital tools for document verification instead of subjective visual analysis.

The importance of this issue lies not only in protecting the rights of Ukrainian citizens, but also in upholding the principles of the rule of law, which excludes unfounded accusations and legal errors.

I hope that the German authorities will take these proposals into account and make the necessary changes to police practices.

I will continue to study the practice and provide clarifications in order to ensure a fair legal approach towards Ukrainians in Germany.