Kiev -

On Independence Square in the center of the Ukrainian capital (Kiev), young Oleksandr and Svetlana celebrated their wedding symbolically, without the presence of a large number of relatives and friends, most of whom sought refuge in neighboring countries, or migrated to other cities.

The celebration was dominated by the nature of the ongoing war with Russia, through the dress of the newlyweds who serve in the ranks of the army and the "regional defense" forces as a soldier and volunteer, after they received a leave and "blessed" from the leadership for this purpose, according to what they mentioned to Al Jazeera Net.

Soldiers Anastasia and Vyacheslav celebrate their marriage according to the rules of martial law in Kyiv (European)

Online marriage promotion

The procedures for the marriage of Oleksandr and Svetlana took place online, bypassing all the barriers of transactions and bureaucratic procedures that Ukrainians know well, as well as the rituals that were followed before the war in the premises of the marriage contract (Zachs), after the authorities passed a law allowing “online” marriage, to encourage it.

Encouragement aimed at raising the numbers of those who are going to get married, especially among soldiers and volunteers, after the first weeks of the war stopped this matter completely in some regions, including the capital, Kyiv, before the law contributed to raising the numbers again.

It seems that this amendment had a positive and satisfactory result for the local authorities, which publish from time to time figures for the number of married couples and newborns, noting at other times that they are relatively larger than they were before the war.

Nastya Gracheva (nurse) and Anton Sokolov (doctor) in the courtyard of a ruined shopping complex in central Kharkiv (French)

For example, on the ninth of this June, the Kyiv municipality published what looks like "the good news", announcing the marriage of 5,147 couples in the city alone, and the birth of 3,145 children, out of about 48,000 born in the rest of the country since the beginning of the war.

In a related context, several social organizations published a petition on the Ukrainian presidential website, calling on President Volodymyr Zelensky to enact a strict law criminalizing abortion and punishing it severely.

Two Ukrainian Regional Defense fighters Valeryev Besar Lesya during their wedding ceremony at a location near Kyiv (European)

A social crisis is on the horizon

But the matter, although it seems positive and "pink", reflects the fact that the country is suffering from a major social crisis, and a more serious one looming on the horizon with the continuation of the war and waves of asylum and displacement.

Director of the Institute of "Demography and Social Research" Ella Libanova spoke about this matter, saying that "the war entails an increase in the death rate, a decrease in the birth rate, and a general deterioration in health, especially due to physical and psychological stress, and the lack of access to quality health care." right on time".

However, Libanova believes that "these losses are not catastrophic, and are measured - despite their importance - in the thousands, not in the millions, and health and psychological care centers deal with them."

According to the expert Libanova, "the most dangerous thing lies in the absence of millions of refugee women and children, the possibility of their settlement abroad, and the establishment of a new life that distances them from the idea of ​​returning to Ukraine."

According to government statistics, the number of Ukrainians who sought refuge in the European neighborhood and other countries exceeded 7 million, 90% of whom are women and children;

Men between the ages of 18 and 60 were prevented from leaving due to a declared "state of war".

Oleksandr and Svetlana's marriage procedures took place online, bypassing all the barriers of bureaucratic procedures (Al-Jazeera)

A loss of 10 million people

Here, a pessimistic picture is formed in front of the Ukrainian society, which included about 41.2 million people in December 2021, as it may lose, according to experts, millions of its citizens due to the war.

"At the current pace, the population of Ukraine will decline by 2030, at best to 35 million people, and at worst to 30 million," said Ila Libanova, director of the Institute of Demography and Social Research.

"If the war continues for a long time, or another 6 months, for example, the women who did not intend to emigrate at first will find stable work abroad, and they will stay there," she added.

And she continues, "In light of our study, the number of these will rise from 600,000 currently to 5 million, including a large proportion of husbands who will join women and children in asylum countries if they are allowed to leave, and if they have opportunities to work."

Also, with a pessimistic view, Libanova believes that the state’s measures will not succeed in filling this gap, saying, “The authorities will not force the nationals to return, and we will not witness a baby boom in Ukraine after the war, as was the case after the Second World War, due to the development of contraceptive methods in the 21st century, And giving priority to the material aspects over the family, which restricts the number of children within the family to about one to two children only, and this is not enough for our society today,” she said.