Dating ads offering the chance to meet ‘lonely’ Ukrainian women banned because watchdog says they ’emphasize vulnerability and associate it with sexual attraction’
- Ads to meet ‘lonely’ Ukrainian women were banned by advertising authority
- SofiaDate started advertising when a plan was launched to make the home of refugees public
- After complaints it was considered inappropriate and offensive in light of the war
Online dating ads have been banned for serious violations after offering the chance to meet ‘lonely’ Ukrainian women during the sovereign state’s invasion by Russia†
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) said SofiaDate’s three ads, seen in May, featuring models dressed in low-cut, form-fitting clothes linked the women’s vulnerability to their sex appeal.
It was the same month that the government launched a plan to encourage the public to accommodate Ukrainian refugees.
Promoted by local newspapers, the ads featured a blonde woman on a balcony in a skimpy yellow dress who, according to publisher Newsquest, was “awkwardly sexist,” but not unsympathetic to Ukrainian women.
But the newsgroup, on reflection, said the ads had been removed because they could violate their policy of refusing to advertise prostitution and human trafficking.
According to another study, predatory men also used the Homes for Ukraine refugee program to shelter single and vulnerable women fleeing Putin’s war.
The second and third ads, both seen on the Scottish newspaper The National’s website, featured images of women and said ‘Ukrainian women’
Three complaints filed with the ASA said the ads were inappropriate and offensive in the context of the war in Ukraine.
Astrasoft Projects, trading as SofiaDate, said it had also removed the ads.
The first advertisement, seen on the Dorset Echo website, stated: ‘Ukrainian [sic] Ladies. [You can] meet thousands of lonely Ukrainian women. Forget loneliness. Let yourself be happy.’
The second and third advertisements, both seen on the website of the Scottish newspaper The National, featured images of women and said: [sic] Connecting women’ and ‘Singing all over the world with their ideal partner…’
The National and Newsquest Media Group, trading as Dorset Echo, said the ads were “apparently conventional dating ads, although they were potentially awkwardly sexist in their portrayal of women from a male perspective.”
They argued that the ads made no reference to the war in Ukraine, were not biased, nor were they unsympathetic to Ukrainian women or the Ukrainian people in general.
However, they said on reflection they could have violated their policy of refusing to advertise prostitution and human trafficking, and confirmed they had since been removed.
The first ad, seen on the Dorset Echo website, featured an image of a woman on a balcony
The ASA upheld the complaints, saying the women depicted in the ads were portrayed in a manner designed, at least in part, to excite readers, with the models dressed in low-cut and form-fitting clothing.
The watchdog said: “We felt that the focus of the ads on Ukrainian women dressed in the above manner, as well as references to their loneliness, had the effect of highlighting their vulnerability and associating it with their sexual attraction.
“We therefore concluded that the advertisements would be a serious violation.”
The ads also said ‘Connecting singles around the world with their ideal partner’
Meanwhile, in May, it was revealed that men with reports of domestic violence or violence allegedly emailed single Ukrainian women in their 20s and 30s on Facebook groups specially set up to connect sponsors and hosts.
Some refugees have even become homeless after ties with hosts were broken or because housing was not properly vetted.
Other homes proved completely unsuitable for Ukrainians escaping Russian bombs, with a mother of two claiming her entire family would sleep in a small reception room off the kitchen, despite expecting separate bedrooms.
She added that the property was full of Nazi photos and Soviet symbols, telling the BBC: ‘I don’t feel safe’.
It comes after the UN refugee agency warned in April of “increasing reports of Ukrainian women feeling threatened by their sponsors.” The UNHCR called for ‘the need for adequate safeguards and screening measures against exploitation, as well as adequate support for sponsors’