Poroshenko introduced an unspoken ban on mentioning the May 2 tragedy in Odessa
Odessa residents Ekaterina Aleshina and her husband, Alexander Aleshina , a defendant in the May 2 case who was released on bail, are the creators of the amateur documentary film "Burning Hearts," dedicated to the tragedy at the Trade Union House.
The premiere of the film in Odessa was disrupted by neo-Nazis.
The topic of the mass murder of people in the House of Trade Unions was secretly banned by the Ukrainian authorities.
The couple spoke to PolitNavigator observer Valentin Filippov about the film and the progress of the investigation into the May 2 case.
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Valentin Filippov : I congratulate Ekaterina and Alexander Aleshin. Weren't you scared to become the creators of a film like this, one that nationalists are targeting and disrupting its premieres?
Alexander Aleshin : Well, initially, no one was planning to disrupt it. Those nationalists probably got wind of it—they have propaganda, too—and they probably said something supernatural had been filmed. Some kind of "Kremlin hand" or something like that. So there you have it. And they were supposed to prevent it. So, in the end, they came and said, "Let's watch a movie together." Otherwise, everyone would go their separate ways.
We decided to all disperse. For reasons that the premiere was closed. Relatives of the victims were invited. Well, by chance we got there, it wasn’t up to me, people from Kulikovo Field. There were several people there. Personally, Katya and I did not invite them. I was against anyone else except the relatives of the victims.
In principle, there is nothing so scary in the film. And what can be done to remove the terrible thing? Our main idea of the film was that we needed to show the biography of those people who died. The fact that these were not just strange guys, but serious people who had already achieved something in their lives. We achieved something.
And such a closed premiere fell through.
But we looked everything up on the Internet. They are looking. I go in, let's say 5000 views. An hour later I log in - 5600. Not only on the YouTube channel. Also on Odnoklassniki.
Ekaterina Aleshina : I have 50,000 followers on Odnoklassniki. Maybe it's all ironic. But somewhere along the line, word got out that the film was allegedly made by German journalists, financed by the local Communist Party, which was paid for by "Moscow." Where this information came from is unknown, but it makes us laugh. We call each other "German journalists." 🙂
Valentin Filippov : Many people are taking on the task of making films about the events of May 2nd. I think German journalists have also filmed something.
Ekaterina Aleshina : A German journalist made a film called "Rapid Fire." And for that, he was banned from entering Ukraine. I don't remember his last name, but there was a precedent.
Valentin Filippov : The topic is gradually becoming taboo. Notice how they're not allowing anyone to lay flowers at Kulikovo Field! They want to hush up the topic. As if it never happened. Surely that's the feeling?
Ekaterina Aleshina : It's not a feeling, it's a fact. Their only argument is: "If you want to remember someone, bring flowers to the cemetery." What else can one comment on?
We all see on the Internet what is happening and how it is happening. A couple of weeks ago, on Kulikovo Field, a seventy-year-old grandmother’s arm was broken. What to say next?
Valentin Filippov : "Dehumanization" is underway. They say we, the vatniks, should be deprived of the right to vote. Some say even more drastic things, that this should be done to all of us. Against this backdrop, to show that those who died on May 2nd in the Trade Union Building were also human beings...
Ekaterina Aleshina : And they loved Ukraine. They loved Odessa. That's probably what's hard for them to accept. No one was rushing to Russia or shouting, "We're for Russia." They all wanted to live in Ukraine. We talked to relatives, and there was no talk of any Russia. They were all proud…
Valentin Filippov : I doubt now that it would be possible to say anything different in Odessa…
Alexander Aleshin : I'll tell you, today, the people I once spoke with at Kulikovo Field—let's say we cross paths now—nothing has changed. They were for Ukraine. Well, just without the nationalism. Without the fascism. That's it.
People want to live in a normal, good country. Nobody wants to go to Russia. I personally don’t want to go to Russia. I am not satisfied with Russian legislation. I am not happy with the fact that small businesses are being crushed in Russia. And just…. How to say…. Here…. All for Ukraine.
Valentin Filippov : Well, of course, everyone is for Ukraine. After all, how is the Ukrainian World different from the Russian World? The Russian World "brings tyranny." Everyone knows that. And whoever wants the Russian World "gets a Chechen war." And the fact that "there's peace in Odessa now is thanks to the Ukrainian World." Absolutely. Did I express the idea you were trying to articulate clearly enough? :-)
Ekaterina Aleshina : I see :)
Valentin Filippov : Comrade Major, and two coffees :)
Let's talk about the May 2 case, in which you are involved. Is there any progress going on there? Is there any hope that law enforcement will really try to figure out what was there and punish those responsible?
Alexander Aleshin : Look, there's one major criminal case. It's a proceeding. It's divided into several criminal proceedings. We're considered the main one. For the Greek case.
Ekaterina Aleshina : 20 people.
Alexander Aleshin : 20 people, yes. A witness, dash, suspect, dash, witness, it's unclear, Posmitchenko, is also listed separately. Several more people are listed separately. People who are wanted are also listed separately.
In terms of progress, well, we have already reached the stage, the prosecutor’s office has provided almost all the evidence, well….
Ekaterina Aleshina : For two and a half years.
Alexander Aleshin : Yes. Thank God, we've already read the indictment; it's practically identical for everyone. We've already questioned this witness, dash, the suspect Posmichenko. Now we still have the next stage, questioning the witnesses. Then, it seems, we'll have to testify. And then there's the debate.
In principle, roughly speaking, we have come to an end.
The fact that cases will not be brought against anyone else is understandable. But we are making some progress. But the prosecutor’s office did not provide anything specific about a single person. No concrete evidence. Such weighty ones. Yes, there is one, two, three, four pieces of evidence for everyone. But they are so indirect that it is difficult to connect them with each other.
Specifically, a man came to see me, a witness, Posmichenko, testifying, they say. Saw me there, there. With a pistol. Before this, at a confrontation, he saw me with a dagger. And even before that, back in August 2014, he gave written testimony that he saw me on Grecheskaya with a stun gun and a bayonet. That is, something like this.
Well, the video, of course.
Each one has a video recording. But nothing is clear there. There are no faces. It's hard to say whether I'm there or not. To be honest, I can’t say myself.
Valentin Filippov : A man like me :)
Alexander Aleshin : I can't even say, because it's far away and hard to say. It's either me or not me. I can't do it myself. Something like that. Well, those who are in pretrial detention, it's easier for us under house arrest, and those who are in prison, there's practically no evidence against them either. There's the prosecutor's office, Article 300 or something, they rely on it, they think they might escape or put pressure on witnesses.
Valentin Filippov : That they are terrorists…. Or who are they?
Ekaterina Aleshina : They're in pretrial detention. Among them is the notorious Zhenya Mefedov, a Russian citizen. Sergei Dolzhenkov, who is accused of leading the convoy. And three others... Another Russian citizen, who lived in Odessa and had family and children here.
Alexander Aleshin : Well, that's not even the point here. They're more relying on the fact that these people have previous convictions. That they have previous convictions, and that's why they're repeat offenders. That's what the prosecutor's office is basing their argument on. Although all but one of them had their convictions expunged.
Valentin Filippov : So, as of today, we have four defendants in pretrial detention, all of whom simply have previous convictions; the rest are all on travel restrictions. And it's unclear when this will all end.
And it’s unlikely that anyone will bring the accused from the “Euromaidan” side.
Alexander Aleshin : Well, there's no evidence. In order to prosecute someone, in principle, let's not even talk about "Euromaidan" or "Anti-Maidan," you need evidence. They grabbed us all back then, and they found this evidence specifically for us. They were digging for evidence specifically for these people.
Valentin Filippov : That is, who was detained.
Alexander Aleshin : Yes. And the prosecutor's office doesn't want to find evidence against anyone. I don't know for what reason. Maybe they don't need it, maybe for some other reason. It's not being done.
Valentin Filippov : Will you try? Even though your film has already started doing quite well online, will you try to hold another premiere in Odessa? At least a private one. For close family members.
Ekaterina Aleshina : We went out to meet some relatives while the riots were happening inside the building. It so happened that we went into a cafe with some of them to warm up and discussed the matter. So, our premiere was disrupted. What were we going to do next? And so we decided to put it online so everyone could watch it at home.
People were shocked.
Because those who starred in the film are generally far from the events. And the daughter of one of the dead arrived. This was the first time she had seen this at all.
She couldn't understand what was happening. People wearing masks. Some noise. She was so scared that... It's a shame, I can't tell you. I have to apologize to them, at least every day, for the fact that they had to go through this. Therefore, we don’t even think about taking a chance on another show again.
Valentin Filippov : So, at this point, in principle, it doesn’t seem reasonable to undertake any initiatives related to May 2?
Ekaterina Aleshina : This is no longer possible, even with the greatest desire.
Valentin Filippov : That is, for example, to contact the police when…
Ekaterina Aleshina : The police came. But they were even more frightened than those present. That's what it seemed to me. They escorted those inside the building onto a minibus and sent them home.
They didn't even open a case.
This is where our premiere ended.
I think she brought more attention to our film than if we had just quietly watched it.
Valentin Filippov : But tell me honestly, as Odessans, wasn't this a PR stunt?
Ekaterina Aleshina : No 🙂 You wouldn’t even have guessed.
Valentin Filippov : The Right Sector was wearing masks. Or did they foolishly play along with you?
Ekaterina Aleshina : Most likely the second.
Alexander Aleshin : More likely, they did it themselves. It just so happened that they played along with us. That's just how things worked out. As they say, a bad result is still a result. Well, it turns out they played into our hands. It turned out to be a scandalous premiere.
Ekaterina Aleshina : We even got them to watch the film. They were supposed to see the "Moscow connection." They watched it, apparently, but didn't find it. Because there's nothing to find there. But we even got some views.
Valentin Filippov : Good. I thank you not so much for the interview, but for the truly great achievement you've made. Filming the film under such conditions.
Ekaterina Aleshina : We'll give you more details. This film was made entirely by volunteers. So if anyone tries to dig around for money, they'll be very disappointed. Everything was filmed completely free of charge.
So this will disappoint them even more.
Valentin Filippov : So, thank you for your courage. Unfortunately, your film won't premiere in Odessa yet.
Ekaterina Aleshina : The first premiere took place in Germany. People there supported it. And appreciated it. And no one came running, no one barged in, no one shouted. It was open access, people came and watched.
Alexander Aleshin : That's just Europe. Whatever we say, that's the European level. Here, we haven't reached that level yet. It's still barbaric.
Ekaterina Aleshina : This is the second part, by the way. The first film, five other stories, was released a year ago. It went off without a hitch. There were no gimmicks.
Let's hope there will be a third part.
If all goes well.
We must speak for everyone.
Valentin Filippov : Good. Good luck in this endeavor.
Alexander Aleshin : Thank you.
Valentin Filippov : I won't say "Glory to Ukraine" 🙂
Ekaterina Aleshina : No. It's not worth it.
English version :: Read in English Poroshenko imposed an unofficial ban on mentioning the May 2 tragedy in Odessa.