russia is deceptively recruiting young african women to a factory for the collection of "shahed" in tatarstan - AР investigation
Kyiv • UNN
Under the guise of hotel internships, russia lures young women from Africa to a drone factory. The workers are subjected to exploitation, working without proper protection and under constant surveillance.
russia tricks young African women into working at a drone factory and uses them as cheap labor. Women work under constant video surveillance and do not have proper protection when working with chemicals. This is stated in the material of the Associated Press, UNN writes.
Details
The journalists found out that russia distributes tempting advertisements in poor African countries, inviting women aged 18-22 to study under internship programs in areas such as hotel and restaurant business or catering. Instead, the women who sign the papers end up in tatarstan to work at a factory that produces Iranian attack drones.
Similar advertisements have been recorded in Uganda, Rwanda, Kenya, South Sudan, Sierra Leone, Nigeria, and the South Asian country of Sri Lanka. The movement is also spreading to other countries in Asia and Latin America. According to reports in the Telegram channel "alabuga", officials tried to recruit staff in orphanages in Uganda. russian officials also visited more than 26 embassies in moscow to promote the program.
According to an AP investigation, russia has already recruited about 200 African women. They work alongside russian vocational school students aged 16 and older at a factory in the Alabuga Special Economic Zone in tatarstan. They are working on the creation of drones, in particular, parts that do not require special qualifications.
According to experts and an AP investigation, alabuga is the only russian manufacturing company that hires women from Africa, Asia and South America to make weapons. One of the leaked documents shows that the assembly lines are segregated and uses a derogatory term for African workers.
According to the woman who assembles the drones, foreign workers take buses from their living quarters to the factory, passing through numerous checkpoints after scanning their license plates, while other vehicles are stopped for more stringent checks.
They share dormitories and kitchens, which are "guarded around the clock," according to social media posts. Entry is controlled by facial recognition, and recruits are monitored by surveillance cameras. Pets, alcohol and drugs are not allowed.
Upon arrival, foreigners receive local SIM cards for their phones, but they are not allowed to bring them into the plant, which is considered a secret military facility.
One woman said she could only speak to an AP reporter with permission from her supervisor, another said her "messages are monitored," a third said employees are not allowed to talk to outsiders about their work, and a fourth said supervisors encourage them to report on coworkers.
A drone manufacturing worker told AP that recruits are taught how to assemble drones and cover them with a caustic substance with the consistency of yogurt. She said many workers do not have protective gear, and added that the chemicals made her feel as if her face was being pierced with small needles and that "little holes" appeared on her cheeks, making them very itchy. A video provided by the AP shows another woman dressed in an "alabuga" uniform with a similarly affected face.
Initially, the program promised recruits $700 per month, but later reports appeared on social media that the amount was "over $500." One of the workers said that her salary was deducted from her accommodation, airfare, medical care, and russian language lessons, and that she tried to pay for the most basic necessities, such as bus fare, with the remaining money.
Recall
As reported by intelligence sources, Ukrainian attack drones reached strategically important industrial facilities in kazan and nizhnekamsk (russia), causing explosions and evacuating people. In May, drones attacked a plant in tatarstan.
