Two years in the hell of captivity: families of the marines — defenders of Mariupol ask to get the soldiers out of captivity
On Saturday, April 13, relatives of marines, medics, and all those who have been defending Mariupol for 86 days gathered on Independence Square in Kyiv. Wives, mothers, and children came to a peaceful rally in the center of the capital to remind them that more than 1,500 Mariupol defenders had been in captivity for two years.
More than a hundred people came to the action performance to support prisoners of war and missing persons. Near the inscription “Mariupol,” black bags symbolize the Ukrainians killed and tortured by Russia.
Young children are wrapped in flags, holding posters with the words “Bring back my dad” instead of toys. All these people have been living in anticipation for two years. Such actions are one of the few public opportunities to remind them of their relatives who are being held captive by Russia in inhumane conditions.
Mariia Chernikina is a sister of Oleh Nechaev, a soldier of the 501st Marine Battalion. He is one of more than 270 marines who were taken prisoner on April 4, 2022, by order of the battalion commander and one of the senior officers.
— The only thing I know about my brother for these two long years is that he is alive and that the International Committee of the Red Cross has confirmed his captivity twice,” says Mariia. Such events are significant to us. We go out every week in different cities to remind people of those who defended Mariupol to the last. It is essential to remember them and fight with all our might, just as they fought for us.
Mariia Chernikina, sister of Oleh Nechaev, a soldier with the 501st Marine Battalion (center)
Mariia adds that she wants all the defenders of Mariupol to be returned from captivity. The woman hopes that Oleh will be exchanged soon, as he has a very sick wife and two young children, whom she has taken custody of.
Kateryna Hnydash is also waiting for her brother’s return. Her brother Oleksii Shevchenko served as a medic in the 501st Marine Battalion:
— Our family is looking forward to his return. We want our battalion to receive attention, they have been in this hell for two years now, and there have been cases of our soldiers dying in captivity.
Kateryna says that Oleksii has asthma and is held captive without medical care, constantly abused, and tortured.
Mariia Barkova also came to the peaceful action for the sake of her brother Petro, who serves in the 501st Marine Battalion:
— I have been attending such events since June 2023. It was then that I realized that few people knew about the defenders of Mariupol who held the line at the Ilyich plant. People thought that Mariupol was only about Azovstal, and my goal was to remind them that there were others, in particular, to tell them about the feat of the 501st Battalion, where my brother serves.
Mariia Barkova, sister of a soldier from the 501st Marine Battalion
The woman says that after each such action, her relatives hope they will be heard, and their loved ones will be exchanged. However, in two years in captivity, only 20 soldiers from the 501st Battalion have been returned home, and more than 250 remain in captivity.
— Unfortunately, in the 15 months since the last exchange of our guys, one man was returned alive and four tortured. That is why we need to remind the world about our loved ones. In my opinion, if the world knows about Ukrainian prisoners, there will be more chances that they will return home alive,” adds Mariia.
Olena Turas, a senior combat medic with the 36th Marine Brigade named after Rear Admiral Bilinsky, knows what Russian captivity is like from her own experience. Until April 12, 2022, Olena and her comrades defended the Ilyich plant. During her time in captivity, she visited four places of detention, first in abandoned hangars in the village of Sartana, then in the Olenivska colony, she was taken to Taganrog Detention Center No. 2, and finally to a model prisoner of war camp in Sevastopol. Olena Turas came to the rally for the sake of her POW husband, Andrii:
— My husband has been in captivity for two years now, and the whole brigade is with him. They are my family because the Marines are a brotherhood where we all stand up for each other. I have been in the Marines for six years, so they are all like family.
During Andrii’s entire time in captivity, there was no communication with him. Only from exchanged soldiers was it possible to find out some information. Andrii still does not know that Olena was captured pregnant and later gave birth to a son.
— It’s hard to describe what it’s like to be in captivity. Perhaps there are no words to convey to people how bad it is there. It is complete isolation, torture, uncertainty. You are always depressed,” says Olena. “I think that all these people who came today for the sake of those who are in captivity or missing, they feel it, and it hurts them a lot. I hope many people care, and together, we will do everything to free our soldiers because they rely on us.
Olena Belyachkova, coordinator of the families of POWs and missing persons groups at the Media Initiative for Human Rights, expressed her support for the families of prisoners of war:
— “We at the Media Initiative for Human Rights have always supported and will continue to support the families of the prisoners. We fight together with them for the return of our defenders back home. We know the conditions in which prisoners are held and the inhumane treatment they are subjected to daily. As a human rights organization, we record and document Russia’s war crimes. Therefore, until all the prisoners are returned, the MIHR will help and support the families.
Olena Belyachkova, coordinator of the families of POWs and missing persons groups at the Media Initiative for Human Rights
In the end, the participants remembered all the soldiers who gave their lives defending Ukraine by releasing a dozen black balloons into the sky.
Photo: Viktor Kovalchuk
