The Leaders
Ukrainian mayors, guiding their citizens through air raids and sieges. Polish mayors, opening their cities to refugees. Local officials turned into refugee coordinators. EU Parliamentarians, returning to their roots as humanitarian activists. THE LEADERS are the pillars supporting their people through the darkest times Europe has faced since World War II. They’ve become wartime leaders, against their brightest hopes for the future. They’re no longer politicians or administrators, but bulwarks against the existential threat from Russia. They have risen to the occasion.
“My Disability Gave Me Power.”
A Conversation with Humanitarian Legend and Member of E.U. Parliament, Janina Ochojska
Janina Ochojska - MP in EU Parliament, Founder of PAH, Astronomer and Humanitarian
My disability gave me power. I knew that I had to do more than others to live normally, to have an interesting life. In the center for disabled people where I spent my teenage years, our teachers told us, ‘you have more than others. You have been given something, not had something taken away.’ I was taught to use my disability as a gift. So I finished my studies, created an organization that introduced Poland to the world of humanitarian aid, helped over ten million people over thirty years and am now an MP in the European Parliament.It’s a little bit strange, you know?”It is only strange if you don’t know Janina Ochojska.
To call Janina a force of nature is not accurate. Forces of nature are chaotic and unpredictable. Janina, perhaps, could be better as a force of the best in human nature.
In her 67 years, Janina has beaten polio, become an astronomer, been voted Woman of Europe, founded Poland’s leading NGO and reduced the suffering of untold millions. She led the first Polish humanitarian convoy to Sarajevo in 1991 and went on to found PAH, or Polish Humanitarian Action. In the past decades, Janina and PAH have worked in conflict zones the world over: providing relief, digging wells and supporting the displaced.
We spoke to Janina from our hotel room in Mokotów, Warsaw. She logged on to speak with us from her home in the Polish countryside. Incredibly, Janina’s thousand-kilowatt brilliance and charisma shone straight through the tired filter of a Zoom screen. In our wide ranging conversation, Janina discussed the unique brutality of the war in Ukraine, the difficulties of conflict activism and the changing character of Poland.
“I never thought I would be a politician. And to be honest, I don’t feel like a politician. I am a social activist who is now in the European Parliament. That’s how I think of myself. When I was asked to stand for election, I thought that with my experience I could do more for migration politics and the politics towards disabled people.
I studied astronomy. During my period of study, I was always involved in something that I supposed would serve others because I wanted…I needed to be needed. I was involved in democratic opposition under Solidarity and encountered the humanitarian aid that reached Poland.
This was how I met people from the Equilibre Foundation, a French organization. I went with them to Sarajevo in October of ‘92. When we visited the refugee camps there, I made a decision to send another convoy from Poland. Because in 1992, we were a free country. Not very rich--but we could share with others. So this convoy, consisting of twelve trucks and a bus full of journalists, left Poland on December 26th in 92. When I was in my small car with twelve trucks and a bus behind me in the first convoy, at that moment I felt I could do whatever was needed. That’s how it all started.
After sending this first convoy, I wanted to return to astronomy and keep working at the Polish Academy of Science. My whole life was arranged, but I saw how much work was needed. Each convoy after our first mission--to Chechnya, in Kosovo, in different countries--gave me more power, more possibilities, more support.
So this is what I have done for the past thirty years: help victims of wars and natural disasters.
And you know?
I ask myself if this war in Ukraine is exceptional. If it’s like what we saw in Afghanistan or Syria or Iraq. And I don’t know. But I think whether it is exceptional depends on the evolution of this war. This war is very cruel. I spent a lot of time in Chechnya and Afghanistan and I really didn’t see destruction as big as the destruction in Ukraine.
In the case of Bosnia, help reached besieged Sarajevo. Sometimes it was dangerous, but even a small organization like mine was able to provide real help. But today, riding a convoy is too dangerous. Humanitarian corridors are under fire and the Russians are crueler.
Now, we ship everything to our warehouses in Lviv. From there we use Ukrainian cars to take the goods to various places. Ukrainian drivers know the roads better and how to avoid the Russian checkpoints.
Another difference is that for the first time, so many refugees have come to our country. As I remember, only about 1000 refugees came to Poland from Bosnia.
It is a huge challenge to such a large number of refugees. The government does almost nothing and yet we are dealing with people. Each person has a story. And each person must start a new life here.
So...it is not known how long Poland’s enthusiasm will last. I am an optimist, but you know it’s very difficult when you build only on the enthusiasm of people. Of course, I can see that bonds are being formed between Polish families and refugees from Ukraine, but I am more concerned about those who are in the great halls, because it is impossible to live like this for a long time. Although--I remember Bosnians who lived in the gyms for four years.
But there is also another challenge that is very important for me and a group of activists: what is happening on the Polish/Belarussian border with refugees from Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq. The refugees are caught in the woods and taken back to the border by the border guards. Belarussians don’t want to let them in and the Polish border guards are pushing them out. Twenty-one people died in Polish forests and swamps. These are young people who only wanted to live in a safe country.
On the Ukrainian border, the Geneva Convention applies, organizations have access to the border and border guards are very helpful. But on the Belarussian border: human rights do not apply, people are tortured, activists are criminalized and persecuted so it is a disgrace to Poland. Or rather to the Polish government.
I have a feeling that…it’s difficult to say this, but I hope you will understand: this war gives us, the Poles, the chance to become better people. People are more open to the problems of different countries and of refugees. I hope we will understand what it means to be a refugee, that a refugee is not a danger.
But of course it is difficult for me to say this because I don't want this war. I would like it to finish as quickly as possible, but the war is here. Another difference with this war is the fact that: with one accident, this war can come to Poland. A deputy from the Duma in Russia said that there are Nazis in countries like Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Poland, Georgia and of course Ukraine…and that it is Russia’s mission to destroy these Nazis.
There is something in the air causing us to think a third World War is possible. And preventing this depends on our solidarity and real assistance for Ukraine. The most important thing, however, is the extent to which we Europeans are able to give up at least a little bit of prosperity. To what extent are we ready to limit ourselves a little?
That is very important because it is not possible to live in the same world in which we lived before the war. Living in this way we can destroy peace in Europe. So yeah. It is a very big responsibility. Of course, Ukrainians will get bombs and military equipment…but it depends also on sanctions and how we will accept the fact that we have to cut gas and other raw materials from Russia. So, a lot depends on us.
And for now, who is doing the most? The Ukrainians. Mr. Zelensky.
“Putin Equals Hitler.”
A Conversation With The Mayor of Lviv, Andriy Sadovy
Andriy Sadovy - Mayor of Lviv, Ukraine
“We Ukrainians will change the future. Because it is not only our future: it is the future of Europe and the future of the world. Two huge systems are fighting. The totalitarian system versus the democratic system. David and Goliath. I believe in our David.”Lviv is a dreamt-seeming city. Left intact through the World Wars, it is defined by absolute storybook elegance: spires and domes, snaking cobblestone streets and cafe-lined alleyways. Yellow streetcars run back and forth through the old city. The palatial mayor’s office sits in the center of a magnificent town square.
Only now, the city’s Renaissance era statues are wrapped in protective sheet metal. Camouflage emplacements fill the city parks. Medieval churches are lined with sandbags, their cellars now air-raid shelters. Sirens fill the air multiple times each day.
Like the rest of Ukraine, Lviv is a place at war.
Situated on the western edge of Ukraine’s rolling plains, with the Carpathian Mountains just over the horizon, the history of modern Europe is written in the city’s architecture. Lviv was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire until World War I. The city’s old world ornamentation--written in concrete, spires and cozily winding lanes--contrast against the Sputnik austerity of Soviet architecture and brutalist apartment blocks and warehouses built after the Second World War.
This city is famously a crossroads between Eastern and Western Europe. And, in the view of Mayor Andriy Sadovy, past and future. As he explained, “Lviv is the capital of culture in Ukraine. The capital of IT, chocolate and coffee.”
In short: Lviv is a city that points towards the future Ukraine is fighting to reclaim.
Mayor Sadovy is a living legend. As a four term mayor of Lviv, Sadovy has shifted his elegantly tenacious city onto wartime footing with foresight and precision. Wearing olive greens, patched up with symbols of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Mayor Andriy Sadovy met us in his offices in downtown Lviv. He spoke with a wry wisdom and a sharp charisma in our conversation about Lviv’s status as a refugee hub, his faith in the bravery of the Ukrainian people and the compassion of his citizens. It has been edited and condensed below.
“My sixteen year term as the mayor of Lviv has been a very special time. But my life is divided: before the 24th of February, 2022 and afterwards.
Now, three, four, five times a day we have a siren and we go to the shelters. Before the pandemic, Lviv hosted 2.5 million guests per year. Today, Lviv hosts 200,000 refugees. In the first weeks after the invasion on the 24th of February, the Lviv rail station received 60,000 people per day. Today, 10,000. Today, I think we are the number one refugee hub in the world. We rebuilt our city--our schools, theaters, gyms--for refugees. I am proud. People host refugees in their homes, free of charge. They make lunches and dinners for the refugees. They collect anything the refugees need.
We can see who is who during this time of war.
People show the best of themselves.
We are a huge family in solidarity.
In the last month, 400,000 Ukrainian men came back to Ukraine from different countries. They are ready to protect Ukraine. I am fascinated by the bravery of the Ukrainian people. It gives me huge energy and motivates my job and thinking.
My first responsibility is to give the Ukrainian Army maximum support. My next responsibility is to the refugees. A whole city has arrived in Lviv and it’s putting a great pressure on us. Next: our citizens I must spend time for my citizens and the infrastructure: water, electricity, public transportation, gas. We built our Territorial Defense, which is very important.
But I don’t know what the next target is for Russian missiles.
Russia wants to grab our land and our future. Russia cannot be as powerful economically like China or America or the EU, but it wants to be a country that influences traffic and logistic systems. Ninety percent of products are transported by sea. Russia needs to control the Baltic and the Black Seas to have a future. That is why Ukraine has always been the enemy for Russia.
You must understand our problem: Russia was, is and always will be a source of threat to Ukraine. You saw photographs from Bucha. In Mariupol, the Russian aggressor killed 5, 6 thousand civilians.
They killed one hundred and fifty six Ukrainian children. Our children are our angels. They are the ones closing our skies. We ask NATO and the EU please close the sky..but NATO says “no no no.”
We need help. We need new military equipment. We need fighter jets. We need anti-missile systems. We need new planes, new tanks, new weapons. We need bullet proof vests. More military equipment means less refugees.
The world will never be the same after this war. Something is coming. This war shows, for Europe and for democratic countries, who is who. I think in the last 20, 30 years, Russia totally corrupted the European political system. They corrupted a lot of expert media. But this war is opening up the truth and a lot of politicians now see the reality of the situation. I think that political elites will change in different countries. Every country will be very serious about their security. They will trust the agreements they signed less. And believe more in military capabilities and their armies. Because any country could have a crazy leader. Eighty-five percent of Russian people support this war.
Russia is a Nazi country. They are the new Nazis. Putin equals Hitler. Ukraine today is stopping the big problem that is coming to the world.
“We Brought Flowers and Gave Them Out, Rose By Rose”
A Conversation with Wojciech Bakun, the Outspoken Mayor of Przemyśl, Poland
Wojciech Bakun - Mayor of the Polish border city, Przemyśl
It was like a marathon with a huge group of runners. You can’t stop or you will be stepped upon. So you keep running. You can’t do something different than your friend on the right side or left side of you. If the group turns, you have to turn as well. You can’t do it differently, or you have no chance. It was the very same here. In the flesh and in the headlines, Wojciech Bakun cuts an imposing figure. Not long after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the mayor of Przemyśl, Poland swapped out his customary blue suit for an olive-drab flight suit then made headlines for calling out the Italian politician Matteo Salvini for his ties with Putin. Since then, the IT manager turned mayor has masterfully shifted his border-city onto the kind of quasi-war footing
Situated at the foot of the Carpathians, just over thirty kilometers from the Ukrainian border, Przemyśl is a gorgeous old Galician city that’s received millions of displaced Ukrainias since Putin’s invasion began on February 24th. A little over a month later, we met Mayor Bakun at a refugee center on the border-side of town. Housed in a converted shopping mall, the center was split into three areas: a common area, filled with information flyers and tea stalls, where children played soccer as their distraught parents drank tea, wept, made phone calls and embraced one another. The interior of the mall had been converted into a gigantic bunkroom, a silent space rowed with simple cots and dotted with clumps of personal belongings.
In the industrial back end of the building, hundreds of tons of medical equipment, food, blankets, clothing and various other aid supplies were overflowing from giant cardboard cartons. Volunteers hustled more supplies up the long concrete loading docks as Mayor Bakun led us to a makeshift back-office. Standing at nearly six and a half feet tall, with bespectacled eyes and a firm, contemplative demeanor, Bakun talked with us about the paradox of Russian relief workers, the logistical challenges of handling this massive migration, and the power of roses.
His words have been condensed and edited below.
“From the very beginning, we knew there would be a huge amount of refugees coming through our city because we have three border crossings very close to us. Our first response in Przemyśl was to help out. The people organized very quickly and well at the beginning. After that, a lot of people from Poland who saw the situation came to Przemyśl to help. They wanted to be part of this huge project. After that, a lot of people from different E.U. countries--not only from Europe but from Canada and the US and Mexico and Japan--people from all around the world came here for a week or two to become a part of this big helping family.
You know, we have some bad history with Ukraine from 78 years ago. A lot of people still remember that, but when our neighbors need help? We don’t think about the past. We just think about how we can help our neighbors the most.
When the situation started on the 24th of February, we took in 2,000 refugees on the first day. After it was 5,000, so we reorganized just a little. The next day, it was 10,00, so we had to reorganize again. After that, it was 20,000.
It was like a marathon with a huge group of runners. You can’t stop or you will be stepped upon. So you keep running. You can’t do something different than your friend on the right side or left side of you. If the group turns, you have to turn as well. You can’t do it differently, or you have no chance. It was the very same here.
Is it the three-year old girl, the two-year old boy or that crying woman?
There are a lot of situations like that. We move people--kids--from train to train at the railway station, but the smaller things are also heartbreaking.
Some organization gave us 1,000 roses in different colors and said the roses would be for the women. It seemed like a stupid idea: that woman is running from her country because of a war and we are giving them flowers? I wasn’t sure if it was a good idea or not but I said, ‘yeah, we can try.’ After that, we brought the flowers and gave them out, rose by rose. There were a lot of smiles, the women were very happy.
I thought that maybe it wasn’t such a bad idea, because they need a piece of normal life. And these very young guys, maybe ten or 10 or 11 years old, come and ask, ‘can I get a rose for my mom?’ And then another guy asks and another guy.
It was like: oh Jesus, that was a great idea, because that’s exactly what these people need. In this crazy situation, in this disaster, we see that normal people just want to give something nice to their mothers. So I ordered another 2,000 roses.
There are a lot of situations like that.
We play football with volunteers versus refugees. Or we organize things for little kids like face painting. It always gives them a smile and they feel ok. Sometimes these are only little things, but they are huge changes.”
In the very beginning-, we were working at the refugee center nearly 20 hours a day. But in that portion of time, we supported about 700 to 8000 thousand people, so that’s a huge operation for us.
It’s not possible to work 20 hours a day, but I worked like that for the first three weeks. I slept here, did everything here, but we had no time for making changes. You just worked. You have no time to think about how you can organize it better. If you stop, it will slow things at the border and that will be a disaster. So we just work like hell and no one asks how much time you spent at the center or the railway station.
Now, we have a better situation. There are less refugees coming to the border, so we can take a rest and reorganize so we are ready for the next wave. Hopefully not, but we have to be prepared for that.
You know I met some Russians here?
They were trying to give help. I said ‘okay, you can help us,’ and after that we started talking about the situation and Putin. They said, ‘you have to know that Putin is our hero.’
They still think like that.
And they are here.
I said, ‘you know, what you’re doing here?’ They said ‘ah, we know a lot of people need help, we know these aren’t the nationalists.’
You know, I heard a lot of opinions: ‘why do you help all the Ukrainian nationalists?’
Well.
But now, we’re reorganizing. We have a volunteer registration process and we can do this better, better, better, and prepare for the worst thing. People are testing our humanity. But I know that all of the people from Przemyśl and Poland and different EU countries are staying on the right side of the situation.
I couldn’t imagine what would happen if China attacked Russia now: they're alone.
It’s a terrible situation because I know not every Russian is bad. There are still a lot of people complaining about Putin and that government…but also a lot of them think the other way.
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