The annual pilgrimage by Jews to the gravesite of Rebbe Nachman of Breslov in Uman, Ukraine, has grabbed the headlines this year because of misconduct by the revelers.
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First, it was reported that some were involved in a car crash that resulted in one Ukrainian woman killed; then Ukrainian social media was inundated by the photos showing the massive amounts of trash left on buses and in the city itself; and now Israel Hayom can report that Ukraine's Ministry of Internal Affairs has recorded 16 cases of possession of hard drugs such as heroin, seven instances of disorderly conduct and four cases of traffic violations.
Video: The siren is heard in Uman, Ukraine.
The data also shows the death of one participant (a Hassidic Jew who collapsed and died) and nine cases of lost documentation, along with 43 other citations.
The information that Israel Hayom exclusively obtained shows that the Ukrainian authorities have opened 18 criminal cases, including 16 for illicit possession or trafficking of drugs.
The data shows that 35,312 Jews made the pilgrimage to Uman this year – a surge from a year ago, when only 22,000 arrived because this was the first year of the Ukraine war. As of Monday, 7,654 had already left the city.
The authorities in Kyiv have allotted a force of some 1,300 people from across the country – the police, the National Guard, and other agencies – to ensure the peaceful pilgrimage. Israel has sent 14 uniformed officers, even though Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu discussed having Israel send about 100 officers.
Ukrainian authorities have been grappling with the massive amount of trash left by the visitors. Each participant in the pilgrimage has to pay a $40 tourist tax (or $27 if paid in advance), which is meant to go toward the cleanup operation– among other things. However, this year Ukrainian authorities have noticed WhatsApp communications in which the visitors have been sharing tips on how to evade this levy. In Ukrainian media, some of the Hassids have also been complaining that there are not enough trash bins in the epicenter of the celebrations, on what is known as Tourist Street (formerly Pushkin Street).
Chaim Chazin, who owns a hotel in Uman, told the Ukrainian site Hromadske, "Why can't they use the money generated by the tourist tax toward having a trash bin on every corner?"
The Ukrainian ambassador to Israel, Yevgen Korniychuk, told Israel Hayom the following: "Despite the great difficulties facing our government during the war, the president decided to have Uman open for visitors and to let the Hassids [observe their traditions]. Our president has a huge heart when it comes to Israel."
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