Local initiatives, creation of associations or Facebook pages, collection of foodstuffs or medical equipment, appeals for donations… For the past few days, actions have multiplied in France to come to the aid of Ukrainian refugees, who are fleeing by the hundreds of thousands Russian attacks on their territory. An impressive mobilization, deemed “necessary” for the associations interviewed by L’Express – several of them are already alarmed by the scale of the humanitarian crisis that is causing the invasion launched by Vladimir Putin in Ukraine on February 24. While the Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) listed more than one million refugees on Thursday 3 March, the European Commissioner responsible for humanitarian aid estimates that more than seven million Ukrainians could be moved in the coming weeks.
“For the past few days, the situation has taken on a whole new dimension. We have to deal with a humanitarian emergency which continues to intensify and has spread very quickly to neighboring countries”, warns the Red Cross in a press release published on Monday. February 28, referring to “colossal humanitarian needs” to deal with the difficulties on the ground. “The situation is serious, we need to mobilize teams while the Ukrainians are finding it more and more difficult to have access to aid”, added the deputy director general of Unicef in Europe, Philippe Cori, during of a press conference on Thursday 3 March. His organization puts the “most immediate” needs in the face of the humanitarian crisis at 400 million euros, recalling that “more than half” of the million Ukrainians escaping the war are children.
“We are in a huge crisis, the extent of which we do not even know yet. We cannot leave room for improvisation”, he confides, aware that the needs to come will also be “huge “. “Women continue to give birth during this invasion, children continue to need care and education, the sick need medical support more than ever… The link cannot be broken, and for that , you need money”, he summarizes, visibly worried. But among all the initiatives offered locally and the dozens of calls for donations, how do you find your way around? Where do the checks and transfers sent by the French land? And above all, how to avoid the scams that abound on the Internet, imitating the official sites of certain associations or the e-mails of large humanitarian organizations? The Express takes stock.
“Exceptional mobilization”
“If donors need to be reassured about one thing, it is that the money sent to our organization is then redistributed via networks that we know, to reliable and verified organizations”, begins by answering Corinne Makowski, secretary National Secours Populaire. For the past week, the volunteer has admitted to being “impressed” by the multiplication of local initiatives encouraging donations and by the amount already collected – more than 500,000 euros in one week. “And it’s only increasing: I’m sure that when I speak to you, there are 100,000 euros coming in,” she says, delighted with the involvement of citizens, businesses or communities. territorial. “There is an exceptional mobilization, which reminds us of the surges of solidarity that we experienced after the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, for example.”
These transfers, which come from all over France, are then redistributed to the various points where Secours Populaire is established: the local federations of reception committees, which will be responsible for welcoming Ukrainian refugees who wish to seek asylum in France from In a few days, the association’s partner organizations in the countries bordering Ukraine – in particular Poland and Moldova, where there are currently thousands of refugees -, and the entire network of associations in Ukraine. “This money is used for basic necessities, but also for the training of emergency physicians, the maintenance of education, the long-term reception of refugees…”, illustrates Corinne Makowski.
Same record on the side of UNICEF. According to Philippe Cori, the sums collected – the amount still unknown to date – will ensure the continuity of the programs already established in Ukraine for several years by the organization. “We ensure the quality of children’s education, nutrition, health… These aid programs already existed, but will have to be intensified during and after the crisis”, he explains, determined not to not abandon the Ukrainian people.
“Our office of 150 people had to be moved from Kiev to Lviv, but we will continue to work through our partner networks. We were there before the conflict, we will be there during and after the attacks”, assures the deputy director of the Unicef for Eastern Europe. The 400 million euros in hoped-for donations will also be used to finance the famous “blue dots” of the association, set up on the roads most frequented by Ukrainians and at the borders, in particular in Poland, Hungary, Slovakia or in the Czech Republic. “These points make it possible to provide hygiene products such as diapers, intimate protection or soap, but also foodstuffs or access to drinking water”, he recalls.
Single platform
Other organizations, such as the Rennes organization “All Behind Ukraine“, the association “Plastic”or the collective “France-Ukraine medical & charitable aid” propose to directly collect food aid, medical equipment or blankets, to be sent to the borders to help the refugees. Some town halls have also taken the initiative to organize collection points and the Ukrainian embassy in France itself collects certain donations.
To take stock of these dozens of initiatives, Camille Cocaud, a 33-year-old digital consultant, had the idea of creating a unique platform, soberly titled “We Ukraine”. On this site, founded in a few days with the help of various volunteers recruited on LinkedIn, the young woman lists all the local initiatives and national and international associations for which to make donations, send equipment or become a volunteer. “Everything happened very quickly: in a few days, I had more than 150,000 views on my post”, says Camille Cocaud, surprised by the popularity of her approach.
After several media interventions, the result is “impressive”: Wednesday March 2, 8,000 visitors had consulted its platform, against 2,000 the day before. To avoid associating with “shady” organizations or unscrupulous “false volunteers”, Camille Cocaud would like to point out that each initiative relayed on its site is verified by a team of investigators. “We do not relay the proposals of anyone: all the bank account numbers sent to us without specific context and all the pseudo-associations which claim funds in cryptocurrency are directly rejected”, she assures. “We also refuse all requests for donations for the benefit of an armed group or a military action, because it is not our role”, is it also specified.
Scams and phishing
The 30-year-old has every reason to be wary: as in every humanitarian crisis, some scammers intend to take advantage of the generosity of donors to defraud them. On the evening of February 24, the first day of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the cybersecurity company Bitdefender indicated that it had identified thousands of fraudulent e-mails sent to potential victims across Europe, Asia and the United States. In this email, a woman who allegedly lives in the city of Lviv, Ukraine, asks her recipients for simple advice for “urgent resettlement from Ukraine”. “But the crooks behind this despicable attack will no doubt play with your emotions and ask you to send money that will enable them to provide safe passage out of the country,” Bitdefender warns in a press release published on Sunday February 27.
On social networks, too, scams are raging. Several suspicious accounts have thus been spotted on TikTok, broadcasting supposed “lives” of attacks on Ukrainian soil, videos of desperate victims stuck in a bus station or fake bomb alert sirens, all claiming live “gifts” – which take the form of micro-donations on the social network. Some hackers have also deployed various techniques on social networks, for example hijacking the accounts of real users by asking those around them to quickly send money to a bank account. Others publish false links copying in every way the graphic charter of sites of international associations, or redirecting directly to online payment systems.
“We must be wary of this type of link, and, when in doubt, always go through the official website of the association in question”, advises Céline Schmitt, spokesperson for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. “Unfortunately, this kind of drama makes the bed of the usual phishing techniques on the Internet”, deplores Corinne Malowski. “As soon as there are spelling mistakes, strange domain names or convoluted turns of phrase, avoid and go directly to the official Secours Populaire website,” she advises.