Kupyansk — this is a town in the Kharkiv region, 5 kilometers from the Russian border, where about thirty thousand inhabitants live. Enemy equipment entered Kupyansk on the 4th day of a full-scale invasion. The local mayor, Gennadiy Matsegora, is perhaps the only head of a settlement in Ukraine who officially agreed to cooperate with the occupiers. But the residents of Kupyansk did not put up with this, they repeatedly went to pro-Ukrainian rallies, demanded the resolvers to liberate the city and release the patriots from captivity. Read about how the city lives under temporary occupation in the ICTV Facts article.
Kupyansk speaks predominantly Russian, almost every family has relatives or friends in the Russian Federation, and a large number of local residents, despite the fact that Russia's war in Ukraine has lasted for eight years, did not consider the neighboring country an enemy.< /p>
“They were worried about simple everyday issues, and it seemed that it didn’t matter which country’s flag hangs over the city council,” said one of the residents of the town.
However, over the past few years, a powerful pro-Ukrainian movement has emerged in Kupyansk, local residents fought against illegal deforestation, sought quality food in schools and kindergartens, exposed corrupt officials, and demanded that the authorities report on budget expenditures. People staged pickets, blocked roads and demanded that they be reckoned with. It was these people who on March 1, 2022, when the invaders entered the city, went to the action & # 8220; Kupyansk & # 8212; this is Ukraine” to show the invaders the way through the Russian ship.
I have decided to participate in the negotiations. There will be order in the city: the head of Kupyansk surrendered the city to the occupiers
On March 1, 2022, hundreds of residents of Kupyansk, who did not want to live under the occupiers, came out to protest. After all, a few days before that, on February 27, Kupyansky mayor Gennady Matsegora published a video message in which he stated that he had surrendered the city to the enemy.
The Kharkiv regional prosecutor's office informed Matsegora about suspicion of encroachment on the territorial integrity and inviolability of Ukraine and high treason (part 2 of article 110, part 1 of article 111 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine). However, he continues to be in the occupied Kupyansk and cooperate with the invaders. Several weeks of life under the occupiers showed that there would be no promised order. On condition of anonymity, we publish information provided by one of the residents of Kupyansk:
There is no police, and if someone robs, then a person has to rely on himself, and these moose do not protect anyone, on the contrary! In Kupyansk-Uzlov and Kovsharovka, the guys self-organized, they are on duty, and in Kupyansk a man shot people in a supermarket, looting flourishes, despite the fact that Matsegora the traitor promised order, there is none
ReadThe Russians do not understand what to do with occupied territories: Denisenko on kidnapping
A traitor mayor sells Polish humanitarian aid through his stores
Kindergartens and schools do not work. The price of gasoline is UAH 100 per liter, but it is unrealistic to buy it, only from outbids. You can cash out money only by giving 15-20%. There are empty shelves in the stores, if something appears, the prices are exorbitant… Sausages for 315 UAH per kilogram, chicken fillet for 290 UAH per kilo! Our traitorous mayor is selling Polish humanitarian aid through his stores. Or they hand out Russian humanitarian aid on the square, and then we see the same one appearing in stores. There are hryvnias, and rubles, and dollars. There is a big shortage of drugs, insulin, antibiotics, people pay any money, they sell used drugs.
Already on March 11, 2022, Matsegora himself wrote down another appeal, where he said that Oschadbank operates in the city, the Pension Fund works remotely, utilities have enough fuel for three days, there are not enough medical supplies, there are not enough products.
“Working” according to the lists
Occupiers came home with searches to many who were at the rally, armed soldiers surrounded the yard, broke down the doors. It happened that he would come to the activists' homes in armored personnel carriers. People are hiding, by some miracle they managed to escape from the occupied city.
— They are looking for people according to some kind of list, I ran away and ran through the woods for a day, — one of the activists told ICTV Facts on condition of anonymity.
Another of the residents of Kupyansk said that Nikolai Masliy — local deputy, ATO veteran:
– As of March 6, there were 10 people in the basements, I don’t know how many now, they don’t say, but some were released. People conducted searches in houses, took away equipment, cars, looted. There is still no connection with Kolya.
Nikolay Masliy
He works with — occupiers about the captive Nikolai Masliya, who has not been out of touch since March 1
Per share “Kupyansk — this is Ukraine” On March 1, hundreds of citizens came out, Nikolai Masliy was ahead of the column & # 8212; Deputy of the Kupensky Council, ATO veteran. He could not come to terms with the fact that the occupier wanted to capture his hometown, on the second day of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and wrote down an appeal to the residents of Kupyansk:
During the Masliy rally for chanting townspeople “Kupyansk is Ukraine!” raised the national flag over the Kupyansky city council. Then people went to the checkpoints of the invaders, Putin's soldiers started shooting into the air, people continued to chant slogans, Nikolai Masliy walked ahead. The Rashists threw a light-noise grenade and grabbed the Ukrainian patriot. He was never seen again.
– After the rally, we went to the checkpoint where the Russian military were located, they first fired into the air, then used stun grenades, at that moment Nikolai disappeared. After that, we approached the military and asked where Nikolai had gone, to which the answer was received: & # 8220; They are working with him. He is alive, they are working with him”. But now they no longer admit that he is with them, searches are being carried out at the homes of the activists who participated in this rally, at his relatives, and with all their appearance they show that they are looking for him, & # 8212; said one of Nikolai Masliy's friends, we do not disclose his name for security reasons.
The police opened criminal proceedings under the article Enforced disappearance, punishable by imprisonment for a term of three to five years. And the relatives and friends of Nikolai Masliya are worried that since March 1 they have not heard his voice. How many more people are in captivity of the occupier is unknown.
They can open fire on a car
It is very difficult to leave Kupyansk — in Kupyansk, the bridges were blown up, only one remained, from there you can go to the Donetsk region, then to the Dnieper, locals say. But you can’t buy gasoline, the military of the Russian Federation for any reason can stop at a checkpoint, rob and take prisoner, you can get under fire.
– A bunch of checkpoints and inadequate military who can open fire on cars, they can take away the car. Anything, say the locals.
On March 24, next to the Ukrainian flag, which Nikolay Masliy raised on March 1, the Russian tricolor appeared. But local residents believe that the Armed Forces of Ukraine will liberate their city:
— We froze, fell into hibernation, we understand everything and are ready to wait, just tell me how long?
