How a refugee from Azerbaijan found a second home in Ukraine and began to tell the truth about the war

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Being a refugee in a foreign country means building your life practically from scratch. The issue of employment is especially acute for such people. After all, it is often difficult for them to find an official job due to a lack of documents and bureaucratic procedures. Refugees and asylum seekers who came to Ukraine fleeing wars or persecution in their countries find themselves in such a situation.

Ilhar is among such people. He is from Azerbaijan. The man worked in the oil refining industry and built his life in his native country. However, due to the support of the opposition party, he was persecuted, so he was forced to leave. That’s how Ilhar ended up in Kharkiv, got a job in his specialty. However, the husband’s passport expired later and he lost his official job.

While his application for recognition as a refugee was being considered by the State Migration Service of Ukraine, a full-scale invasion began. But this did not become a reason for him to go. On the contrary, he began to support Ukrainians and volunteer. Ilhar is still waiting to be recognized as a refugee in Ukraine. And although life is very difficult for him without this status, the man managed to get a job.

Professional path in the homeland and moving to Ukraine

Ilgar from Azerbaijan. In his country, he had a job and was building a career – he worked in the oil refining industry. The man did not support the current government in his homeland and criticized it in social networks, wrote articles. Ilgar is a supporter of the opposition party. Because of this, not only he, but also members of his family received threats. In February 2014, the man left Azerbaijan and moved to Ukraine with his family.

Ilgar from Azerbaijan

Ilgar says that he chose our country because he had been here before on working visits. He settled in Kharkiv, got a job in the oil industry. At the same time, the man continued to criticize the authorities of Azerbaijan, because he was not indifferent to what was happening in his homeland.

“After I arrived here, I continued to write on social networks (critical posts – ed.). Then they began to put pressure on my relatives, bother them, threaten them. Even some of my brothers and sisters were forced to write statements that they were rejecting me “, – says the man.

In 2019, Ilhar lost his job due to the expiration of his passport, he could not renew it – he was afraid of contact with the authorities of his country due to persecution. Returning to Azerbaijan would mean detention or even imprisonment for him.

Often, for refugees, any communication with their country of origin can lead to persecution: the opening of a criminal case, illegal detention, imprisonment, torture, ill-treatment or the death penalty. They cannot even turn to the embassy of their homeland, because the rules and laws of their country of origin apply on its territory. So they can be detained there and turned back.

Ilgar could not go to his homeland and turned to human rights defenders on issues of international protection – BF “Right to Protection”. Then the appeals to the migration service, the courts and the struggle for their rights began.

Life in Kharkiv and the truth about the war in Ukraine

Ilhar did not leave Ukraine, even despite all the difficulties and the full-scale invasion. Since the beginning of hostilities, the man has remained in Kharkiv. In the most difficult times, he decided to help Ukrainians with everything he could.

“I criticize the dictator because it hinders the development of democracy in my country. Ukraine today is a global front of the struggle for democracy. Yes, I too could have gone abroad when the war started, but this is my struggle. Right? There in Europe there is democracy. And here there is a war for democracy. Abroad, I would be asked the question: “Why did you come here? You fought for democracy, but the front is there.” – says Ilhar.

The man says that in February 2022, he immediately began to act: he collected aid for the wounded in hospitals, volunteered. Ilgar says that over the years of his life he found many friends in different parts of our country. Many of them are fighting, so he helps them as much as he can.

“I live in Kharkiv. I didn’t leave the city, I’ve been here since the first day of the war. I didn’t leave and even signed up as a volunteer. But I didn’t come because of my age. The guys who worked for me as managers are now fighting. They are constantly in contact with me, I support them. For example, friends from abroad sent clothes for the soldiers or something else, I gave them all to the front. That is, I helped in whatever way I could,” – says the man.

In addition, Ilgar decided to tell the truth about the war in Ukraine and to Azerbaijanis. Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, he has been making videos talking about what is really happening in our country.

“You know, the ‘fifth column’, which is spoken in Russia, is also developed in Azerbaijan. Russian propaganda had a strong impact on Azerbaijan as well. The opinion of the people there was also different, they believed that Russia said that there were “Banderivites”, “fascists”. And it was necessary to break this propaganda. I started making YouTube videos. Opposition journalists, who are now in different parts of the world, interviewed me. After all, I am in Kharkiv, and the Russians said that Kharkiv was captured. “Zombified” television is also in Azerbaijan, and I began to tell the truth,” – says Ilgar.

Difficulties on the way to the realization of the dream

Ilgar is currently a protection seeker and has a certificate of application for protection in Ukraine, which confirms his legal stay here. However, according to the senior lawyer of the BF “Right to Defense” Olena Richkothe presence of these documents does not make his life too easy, as it is for other such people in Ukraine.

“In practice, asylum seekers often face difficulties. Among them, the absence access to medical care, banking services, education, employment, etc. The document used to document asylum seekers in Ukraine does not confirm identity. And the passport is kept in the migration service. It is also very often that the protection seeker does not have it at all, or it has lost its validity. In order to receive a service officially, people need to go through the “seven circles of hell” to prove that they are really who they say they are. And also to explain the essence of their legal status,” – tells senior lawyer BF “Right to protection”.

Ilhar personally experienced how difficult it is for a protection seeker to gain access to employment. After his passport expired, he lost his official job. Even despite extensive experience in the oil refining industry – about 29 years – and the need for his expertise in Ukraine. The man says that many companies wanted to cooperate with him, but bureaucratic procedures regarding his status stood in the way every time.

In addition, Ilhar cannot open a bank card without a valid passport. The lack of a bank account makes it difficult to pay for the work done. This is a problem for the employer and another reason not to cooperate with him.

As Olena Richko, a senior lawyer at the Right to Protection Foundation, explains, an asylum seeker in Ukraine has the right to official employment. However, this requires special permission.

“In order to employ a protection seeker, like a foreigner, the employer needs to obtain an ’employment permit’. This is a rather complicated and time-consuming procedure, so employers refuse such people. In addition, obtaining refugee status has its own terms, so the employer will have to obtain this permit again in in case of any changes and updates”, – she adds.

Lawyers of the BF “Right to Protection” do not lose hope and go through this difficult path together with protection seekers and refugees from the beginning to the end. Ilgar was one of the first in our country as a protection seeker to receive a work permit and can finally officially apply his knowledge and experience in practice.

Despite all the difficulties, Ilhar does not plan to leave Ukraine. The man says that he will continue to help everyone he can and believes in the victory of democracy. We would like to believe that his dream of being recognized as a refugee in Ukraine will also become a reality in the near future.

Svitlana Butenko, program manager for the provision of legal assistance to refugees and protection seekers of the BF “Right to Protection”, especially for UP. Life

Publications in the “View” section are not editorial articles and reflect exclusively the author’s point of view.

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