Love amongst the ruins
There are always unintended consequences of war. But who knew the war in Ukraine would lead to an upturn in men looking for ‘a love match’. At least two countries are seeing men flock to dating sites looking for a match with Ukrainian women fleeing their war-torn countries. In Canada, Quebec-based dating sites have seen interest double or triple. China is also seeing a war-related deluge of online attention for Ukrainian women. Some speculate that these are men with saviour complex or men who simply want to help. But there is a dark side to this phenomenon. There have been reports of offensive on-line content, including videos such as “capturing Ukrainian beauties.” Amnesty International Canada expressed concern to CTV about vulnerable women putting their trust in the hands of men whom they really don’t know. Another bizarre turn is that some Russian soldiers are also promoting themselves to Ukrainian women on dating apps. Let’s hope that traumatized women escaping war find enough economic and emotional support from aid volunteers and others that they aren’t tempted to go this dubious route.
AK