Valentina Maznenko Podgurska
January 28, 2014

Translated by Olia Knight
Source: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10202825763384588&set=a.1231034135426.2036177.1216313048&type=1&theater

Today, I was present during a conversation of one of the officers of the interior forces about his “dangerous and difficult service.” He is a nephew of one of my acquaintances. The point of the conversation was not that he listened to his opponents. He talked himself. But I could not ask any questions because he was not talking to me. He is a member of Omega subdivision (special division of interior forces at the Interior Ministry of Ukraine which employs paratroopers, military rescue swimmers, and mountain training specialists) that wear the same uniform as the Berkut [riot] police (or maybe I don’t know the difference).

What I heard shocked me. The order to shoot to kill comes directly from Yanukovych as their Commander-in-Chief (or so they are told). The first shot is under the belt. If a person gets up, then that person needs to be finished (no matter where). The man is 30 years old, but he is scared like a child and says that there are many like him among the troops. They asked their commander: “Why should we shoot at people?” and he responded: “This is the order, dare not to shoot!” He says that if they do not shoot, then their Commanders will shoot them.

They subbed at the Cabinet of Ministers, Ministry of Justice, on Hrushevskoho Street fully armed, and then they were moved somewhere else. They were armed when everybody said that the interior forces were unarmed. They were afraid they had to shoot. Also, there were others among them who sincerely hated all people, just show them the enemy and they would not ask twice.

He said that they forgot to feed the troops, and when they did remember to do it, the food was awful. They had to go to the store to buy some groceries, and people treated them with aggression.

It seemed to me that his man was telling half-truths since he respected his uncle and did not want the uncle to think badly of him. I met the nephew by accident and my questions were mostly ignored. I asked him what types of weapons they had, but he answered quietly to his uncle. I also asked where the Anti-Maidan activists were and if they were alive. He said, “Our people did not do that.” I asked which subdivision killed people on January 22. Not surprisingly, I did not get an answer to my question.

At the end of conversation, he said if nobody takes care of Yanukovych, there would be war and their troops would be forced to kill not tens, but hundreds and thousands of people.

What was that about? A cry for help? “People, please help the troops from criminal orders!?”

I do not feel sorry for this man. Everybody has a choice: to follow criminal orders and kill their people, or resign and join the people that you gave an oath to protect…

P.S. This is not my picture, since I was not allowed to photograph him. I do not know his last name; I will not divulge his first name. It is irrelevant anyway.

——– [EDITOR’S NOTE: please reference Former Chief of Kiev Police statements that OMEGA fighters are responsible for Havrilyuk’s treatment in article posted earlier here: https://maidantranslations.wordpress.com/2014/01/27/former-chief-of-kiev-police-says-the-fighters-of-omega-are-responsible-for-m-havrilyuks-treatment/