During occupation of Gorlovka in the spring of last year of only 15% of its inhabitants supported arrival of the Russian fighters. Thus 5% actively supported Ukraine, and other 80% were ready «to accept any option».
About it there is a speech in the story of the activist Olga living at that time in Gorlovka, published «Radio Freedom».
Olga got out of the occupied Gorlovka not so long ago therefore witnessed to everything about what tells. In the past the activist of the Maidan, she sufferred proximity of punishment from fighters. According to the woman, problems in Gorlovka began even before appearance of the leader of fighters Bezler ( «Demon» ). Practically along with events in the Crimea at the very end of February, 2014 about four thousand citizens of Russia got into the city.
- I don't know, whether there were members of spetsnaz there, but know precisely that among them there were criminals and the Russian fascists–I saw tattoos with a swastika. They were settled in working hostels and boarding houses in the country, and then taken out on all pro-Ukrainian meetings on Donbass where they arranged slaughters. For example, they staged a massacre in Donetsk. Bandits, as a rule, were armed only with knives and fittings, but it was enough to begin a fight,–Olga remembers.
Then on Donbass there was Girkin (Shooters), and together with it also Bezler came. To take under control of visitors and local criminals, «Demon» I managed to agree with local establishment, and even I appointed the local mayor, loyal to myself–former head of headquarters «Batkivshchyna». Thus it got even support of local officials. Following step «Demon» I attracted to control over «chavs» kadyrovets and Serbians.
Serbians generally were engaged «counterintelligence» , which combated as with so-called «agents «Right Sector» , and with the ungirdled criminals. Thus most of Serbians didn't even speak on - Russian therefore were engaged generally in arrests of suspects, their delivery, and also tortures and executions, and interrogations of detainees were carried out by investigators of the Russian FSB.Kadyrovtsev used generally in work of patrol services when it was necessary to frighten the population.
- At them it well turned out,–Olga tells.–Those from Serbians who spoke on - Russian, directly declared that continue here war which waged in Croatia.
During this period in Gorlovka the real lawlessness began. In - the first, Bezler and his team all minibuses and jeeps confiscated from the population. According to Olga, the conflicts arising on this soil were solved simply–bullet in a forehead. Thus many of the fighters who were at war in Gorlovka sincerely were convinced that are at war in Ukraine with Americans and NATO.
Soon after Bezler's arrival and creation its homebrew «power structures» in Gorlovka repressions began. Trying to avoid violence against ordinary inhabitants, «new power» nevertheless I began to finish actively with any manifestations of dissent. Beginning of repressions it is considered death of the deputy of Gorlovsky city council Vladimir Rybak. Then executions of those who didn't want to give property, requirements of repayment about large businessmen and arrests of activists began.
- Most often people simply disappeared, and then found their corpses–or didn't find in general. About these people it was officially said that they ran away to Ukraine, but all of us tried to keep in touch among themselves and knew that they didn't come to Ukraine. So completely at least 600 people even if after occupation they weren't active,–any more disappeared Olga remembers.
Thus Olga with regret remembers that a year ago, during active approach of the Ukrainian troops, the city quite could free. Banal blackmail prevented it. On the one hand, fighters started blowing up the railroads, bridges and reservoirs, with another–to threaten not only destruction of all infrastructure of the city, but also its full destruction together with inhabitants.
