On October 12, the staff of the Security Service of Ukraine has made 9 searches of activists of the organization ‘Avtonomny opir’ (Autonomous resistance) in Lviv. After the searches 15 members of movement were actually detained, but at night they all were released.
About how searches were held and why Security Service became interested in the activities of the organization the activist of ‘Avtonomny opir’ (AO) Yaryna Voloshin told to Informator.media correspondent.
‘SBU staff lied to us that they are from Oblenergo (Regional electrics – ed.)’
‘When they come to me, first, they were lying that they’re from Oblenergo. I didn’t open the door. Then they confessed that they are from SBU, so I opened, got acquainted with a decision of the court and let them in after that’, Yaryna remembers.
There was about fact in the decision of the court, that on September 2016 the proceeding on p.2 art.110 was opened against few citizens, who, according to SBU data, carried out actions aimed at overthrowing the state system.
And since the special service had a suspicion, that ‘AO’ activists could be somehow connected with those in respect of whom the investigation is being carried out, they obtained permission from the court to carry out searches, seize equipment and access to correspondence in social networks.
‘I have had a search experience, so I didn’t allow to them to go out of ranks, described in the court decision. And when they finally said that we must go to the investigation department, so I asked: ‘Am I become detainee?’, ‘No’. ‘So, in this case I’ll come to you when it be convenient for me. But guys weren’t asked about anything. They come to them at the moment with ‘Alpha’ SWAT, broke the doors, burst, put everyone on the floor and handcuffed. And then pushed into the car and taken somewhere’, Yaryna told.
In time of searches, 6 to 9 hours long, SBU staff seized from activists computer hardware, storage media, bank cards and megaphones.
‘They stole protection ammunition, helmets, with which guys went to ATO, in fact. They were seized, but they didn’t describe this equipment in the search protocol’, Yaryna Voloshin said.
After the searches
During interrogations the ‘KGB methods’ were used, according to Yaryna’s words.
‘They told me that Sergei rated me, to Sergei they told that Anton rated us, to Anton that Dmitry did this and so on. They said: ‘We’ve already known about everything, we only need confirmation. So, tell us!’ But we were ready for it, we read in books about such ways of interrogation’, the girl is laughing.
Also she told that almost all activists have lost the access to their accounts in the social media.
‘How they do it, they unbind accounts from our phone numbers and e-mail addresses. But my account is now tied to two numbers – to mine and them. I can change my password all the time, but they change it right away. Because when my phone receives SMS with a code to change the password, then it comes to their phone. But we will return access to accounts through social network support services’, Yaryna told.
Populism, developers and Mikhalchishin
According to an activist opinion, no real criminal proceedings against ‘Avtonomny opir’ won’t be, because one of the reasons of searches was that SBU wanted to show how it exposed a group of provocateurs on the eve of the Day of the Defender of Ukraine.
But there is also an information in the organization that searches were initiated by Jury Mikhalchishin – earlier MP from ‘Svoboda’ party (ultra-right – ed.) – and now SBU worker.
‘Mikhalchishin works in the profile department, which analyzes and monitors activities of political; groups. And four different, don’t connected one with other sources, called exactly this surname. It’s not a wonder, considering that he disrupted our UPA march in 2013. He gave an order to ‘Berkut’ to arrest 60 activists from the scene’, Yaryna confirms and also notes that struggle of ‘AO’ against illegal development is not in favor for power of Lviv.
‘AO’ plans: suits to the Security Service and the UPA march
‘In spite of all this situation, we will make a rally, as it was announced – October 14 at 6 pm near Chernovol monument, – an activist promised. – But. we really have very limited resources, because SBU staff took away all banners, flags, megaphones, all pages in social networks, blocked our site’.
She also told that ‘AO’ is going to a claim for the protection of honor, dignity and business reputation, a statement about the theft of its ammunition.
Otherwise, activists, against whom SBU officers carried out illegal actions, will write complaints and, possibly, sue.
Ivan Bukhtiyarov for Informator.media