Russian soldiers had orders to kill everyone who was not in the basement – a student eyewitness from Mariupol say

In Mariupol, the Russian soldiers were ordered to kill everyone who was not sitting in the basement. This is what Taras Ulyanchenko, a victim of the forced deportation, and a student of Mariupol State University, told the sidelines of the III Additional meeting on the human dimension of the OSCE during the side event “Movement of Ukrainian citizens as a result of Russian aggression: movement and deportation of adults and children“.

He left Mariupol, which had been destroyed by Russian troops, through the territory of the Russian Federation together with his sick grandmother. After passing through the filtration point, he managed to escape from the territory of the Russian Federation to Europe.

“At the filtration point, many men (Russian investigators who were engaged in “filtration” – ed.) were completely undressed, their tattoos were checked. If any tattoo was found on a man’s body, he was automatically considered “a member of the Azov nationalist battalion,” says Taras Ulyanchenko.

According to him, representatives of the official authorities of the Russian Federation did not choose words for Ukrainians, they called almost everyone was “Nazis”. Taras said that everyone who got to the filtration point was forced to fill out questionnaires. The questionnaires included questions about how the respondent feels about the Russian authorities, and how they can assess the so-called “Russia’s special operation” on the territory of Ukraine. Bullying, torture, and beatings against Ukrainian men at filtration points were widespread, the young man claims.

He also noted that some Russian military personnel felt remorse for the atrocities committed by their army.”Later, when I managed to communicate with ordinary Russian soldiers, I heard an apology from them. In response to the question ” Why are you doing this?” they answered: we were told that there were Nazis here (in Ukraine – Ed.) and we were ordered to kill everyone who did not sit in basements,” said Taras Ulyanchenko.

Residents of the city of Gostomel, Kyiv region, which was occupied by the Russian army, Elena Yuzvak and Oleg Gordiychuk, also spoke at the event. They survived ill-treatment and forced removal. Their son, Dmitry, is still being held hostage by the invaders, his whereabouts are still unknown.

“On March 20, Russian soldiers broke into our yard. First, they shot my husband twice in the legs… they began to interrogate him, demanding from my husband a confession that he was a fire spotter … the Russian soldiers were all inadequate … then they took us (me, my husband, my son) for questioning… they tied bags on our heads, tied our necks, hands with tape… then they took my husband away to the filtration center in Bryansk, then to the Kursk pre–trial detention center … only then, within the exchange of prisoners, he was released, a month later …”, – said Elena Yuzvak.

The special additional event discussed the forced relocation of children, illegal abduction and detention of civilians, in particular journalists, local authorities and activists.
The problem of forced movement of Ukrainian citizens to the territory of the Russian Federation or the territories occupied by it was also discussed.

“The activities of the OSCE are currently blocked by Russia and Belarus. And before the OSCE unblocks itself, we must look for and find mechanisms to use the desire and capabilities of the OSCE member states to stop Russian armed aggression and overcome its consequences”, – noted the coordinator of international cooperation of the CCL Oleksandra Drik.

“In particular, in matters of deportation and the absolutely illegal, inhumane, humiliating filtering through which Russia forces Ukrainian citizens to pass by force from the occupied territories. That is why the CCL together with partners from the “Tribunal for Putin” initiative helped several Ukrainians, who survived illegal deportation, illegal detention, and filtering, to come here. What Russia is doing to Ukrainians can only be compared to what the Nazis did during World War II,” – she added.

Oksana Filipishina, a representative of the Commissioner for Сhildren and Family Rights, noted that more than 2.5 million children in Ukraine have become internally displaced, and another 2 million children have moved abroad. The problem of forced movement of children to the territory of the Russian Federation is also large-scale.

“Russia (forcibly – ed.) transports (children – ed.) to the occupier’s territory, deprives the language, communication with relatives and the opportunity to return to Ukraine,” she said.

“According to the media of the Russian Federation, which refer to the government structures of the Russian Federation, the border of Ukraine with the Russian Federation (in particular, the borders with the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine and the Russian Federation) was crossed by more than 412 thousand children,” Oksana Filipishina also said.

Besides, she said that according to the Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation, among the children who were taken to Russia, 2,161 are orphans. At the same time, Russia does not provide any information about the identity of children, their state of health, or their place of stay.
“According to Ukraine’s data, we know about 5,658 deported children ” the representative of the commissioner added.

“The Commissioner received information from citizens of Ukraine and authorities, institutions and organizations about 83 children taken to the territory temporarily beyond the control of the Government of Ukraine and to the territory of the Russian Federation. Now we have managed to return 46 children,” Oksana Filipishina summed up.

Irina Badanova, an expert of the group for the release of prisoners of war and civilian hostages of the General Staff of the armed forces of Ukraine, also took the floor. Speaking about the situation in which Ukrainians deported by the Russians appear, she drew analogies with the so-called ostarbeiters of the Second World War.

“More than 2 million Ukrainians were taken to Germany for forced labor during World War II.
They were called “ostarbeiters”. This is exactly the fate that threatens today’s Ukrainian civilian hostages,” she stressed.

It should be noted that according to the Government of Ukraine, during Russia’s full-scale aggression against Ukraine, more than 1.2 million Ukrainians were deported to Russia, in particular, more than 230 thousand children were forcibly resettled in Russia.

After passing the so-called “filtration”, many displaced persons find themselves in the position of civilian hostages. They are held in so-called” filtration camps ” or pre-trial detention centers in Russian regions, where their relatives have no contact with them.

The situation with regard to civilian prisoners taken out of the territory of Ukraine during the retreat of Russian troops is also critical.

This situation undermines the rule of law and contributes to other forms of human rights violations, which worsen the consequences of the Russian Federation’s war against Ukraine, and therefore require close attention and an immediate response from the international community.