Kherson was the only major city managed to be occupied by the Russians from the beginning of the fighting. But they were not accepted as liberators, as they might have hoped. The Russians faced regular protests from the population.
The whole region was cut off from Ukraine. Rare photos are secret. To find out what is happening in Kherson, you need to talk to people who have escaped from it. They recount the repression and hunting of Ukrainian nationalists the Nazis. We talked to them both. Both native speak Russian, but Ukrainian.
Demonstrations against the presence of Russia
In his monologues, comedian Slava Boo laughs at Putin and Russian soldiers in a way that is difficult to translate, and he obviously gets the attention of the Russian military. So he chose to leave, but it was not easy.
You need to find a means of transportation when there is little transportation, cross identity checkpoints (we are looking for the Nazis), possibly bribing the guard, passing through combat zones around Mikolaiv, a city constantly bombed by the Russians, describes Slava.
” At first there were daily demonstrations, but the army was replaced by militia and the repression became violent. The militia uses gas and guns. But every day there is a small demonstration somewhere in a park. “
I started speaking Ukrainian
Anastasia left, as Russian authorities began to question her about her political views. He was able to flee to Odessa by taking advantage of a pharmacist’s car at dawn. The latter had the right to obtain supplies in Ukraine regularly and, at the end of his travels, he decided to deliver people.
I felt intense oppression. At the beginning of the war, I even changed, I started speaking Ukrainian because before I spoke Russian, but when they came to my house, I was scared.he said in good French. I started speaking Russian again because it’s really dangerous, you never know what’s going on in their head.
After the interrogations, the losses
It is true that many activists, politicians, journalists have disappeared in Kherson and we do not know. [ce qui leur est arrivé]. Either they were exiled or they were interrogated in some prison or even killedsaid Anastasia.
Kherson was the important bridge of the Russians to the Black Sea coast, in the south, to launch their offensive for the capture of Odessa. But for that they had to seize Mikolaiv where the Ukrainians were fiercely resisting. When I saw the fight in Mikolaiv and here in Odessa, I felt I was safe in Odessa [en] comparison with Khersonsaid Anastasia.
Odessa is the gem and the economic lung that Ukraine absolutely cannot lose.
Source: Radio-Canada