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Since early May the Ukrainian security services have been intimidating and harassing the anarchist initiative group Tigra Negra based in Kiev and the radical ecologist movement Rainbow Keepers. The intimidation started just before the meeting in Kiev of the summit of the European Bank for Regional Development. Huge sums of money had been spent cleaning up the city centre and on luxury hotels or buying in buses for the use of the thousands of financiers who would be there. Along with other groups like Rainbow Keepers, Tigra Negra announced a demonstration for the 9th May 1998 outside the conference hall for the meeting, in order to protest against the huge spending by a government which claims not to have the funds to pay salaries or to pay 'deserving' students more than $6 per month and also to demonstrate against the Bank which presents itself as a humanitarian institution whilst in reality it is simply a commercial bank, and finally against the financing of the Chernobyl Nuclear station (even though finance for the project has been suspended because the Ukrainians have failed to honour clauses in the contract the factory still has not closed). For some weeks the security forces had been implementing a clean up policy. Having ejected from the city centre the likes of the homeless and stray dogs the next target was to be potential troublemakers. The following is a statement from Tigra Negra and Rainbow Keepers.
The work of the security forces aimed at avoiding any protest against the economic policies of the EBRD in the Ukraine by Tigra Negra and Rainbow Keepers began long before the summit.
In February ecological organisations along with Rainbow Keepers sent a letter to the head of the bank in which they denounced ploys by the government and other official organisations to misuse monies earmarked for closing down Chernobyl. Because of this letter, the bank, after some verifications, suspended credit.
On 16th April the apartment of a Rainbow Keepers activists was burgled. The computer, camera (with film) and telephone (along with answerphone) were stolen. The choice of items suggested the security services were playing a role here.
The 23rd April saw the first joint-demonstration of Rainbow Keepers and Tigra Negra to demand that the Chernobyl power station be closed and that new reactors would not be built at Rovno and Khmelnitsky. The powers that be authorised the demonstration. However, the next day, the police carried out an illegal 'drugs' raid at the home of a Tigra Negra activist, Dimitri Mejouiev, where a number of people were staying overnight having travelled in for the demonstration. All were searched and forced to sign a 'statement' at the police station.
On 5th May an officer from SBOu, the security services, called in for questioning Tigra Negra activist Maxime Boutkevitch using the philosophy department at the university where he is studying as an intermediary. During a two hour 'conversation' he was asked, since he was according to the SBOu one of the organisers of possible actions against the EBRD, to refrain from any activities during the summit. The officer also tried to get information about members of Rainbow Keepers who he said were organising protest actions along with Tigra Negra. In addition, the discussion included direct and veiled threats: risk of university exclusion, threat of circulating character defamation particularly with regard to his role in radical politics and suggestions of possible arrest during the summit. The next day, 6th May, the officer demanded two further meetings with M. Boutkevitch asking him not only to collaborate with the SBOu but also to carry out overseas work using contacts he would make available.
These conversations made it clear that phones were being bugged. So in order to avoid 'preventative' arrests some people left their homes. On 8th May one anarchist discovered that, whilst away, the police had placed seals on his flat. The same day at the home of Nadia Chevtchenko, a Rainbow Keepers activist, the police came for the ID papers of militants who were there at the time and tried to take a Russian national away with them. Again on 8th May the police raided the flat of another anarchist where according to the security forces, anarchists were gathering to discuss their actions against the EBRD when in reality no such 'planning' was taking place. The police claimed a Mercedes had been stolen in the vicinity and were checking all apartments; a check revealed no neighbours had received a visit. The same day a Rainbow Keepers activist, I Karol was arrested on the underground. After an ID check and a search she was released. Finally that same day the father of one activist - a high ranking civil servant - received information about a supposed blacklist, available to the President, in which his son was named. A little earlier the same information had been passed on to the father of a woman who sympathised with anarchists in Tigra Negra.
During the night of the 8th - 9th May, in a central street, M. Boutkevitch was arrested whilst chatting to a friend (and this just after fixing the meeting by telephone). Although his papers were in order and he had committed no offence he was arrested (although his friend who had no papers was asked to go home). The police first tried to get him for infringing by-laws (being a public nuisance) and then claimed he looked like a wanted criminal. Freed one hour later he had to make his own way home on foot. Not far from the police station four 'civilians' stopped him, threatened to beat him up, kill him or even rape him (since he was wearing an ear ring which they snatched from him) if he 'did anything stupid' like 'going for a walk at night'. They then openly followed him home.
On 9th May there was a protest action against the EBRD financing of the nuclear factories at Rovno-4 and Khmelnitsky-2 organised by Rainbow Keepers and supported by Tigra Negra. Five participants were arrested. The next day during an in camera sitting four of them were sentenced to three days in prison and I. Karol four days for 'failing to obey the police'. Three went on hunger strike and I. Karol also refused liquid. The arrest of the activists even shocked the members of the summit - Ch. Franck - the bank's representative - announced he had called for their release but had been told that 'all those arrested had been released'. However, they were held until it was all over. Other demonstrators were followed after the actions.
On the 10th and 11th May members of Rainbow Keepers distributed pamphlets against the financing by the bank of Rovno and Khmelmitsky and were twice arrested by the police. On the 11th the distribution was accompanied by street theatre and N. Chevtchenko, accredited as a journalist for the summit was arrested by the police who attempted to seize a film which had shots of the action and the arrests.
That same day the SBOu carried out its threat of preventative arrests. Members of Tigra Negra Dimitri Mejouiev and Anna Dovbakh were arrested one evening in a park where they were preparing materials for an action. Surrounded by police their papers were taken from them and they were taken to the police station, where, without being charged, they were held until the hearing the following day. Their friends only found out where they were one hour before the hearing. In the course of a hearing which was held in camera they were found guilty of 'petty vandalism' and sentenced to five days imprisonment. It should be noted that according to the civil code, hearings concerning 'administrative' offences have to be public. The 'vandalism', according to police officers consisted in shouting obscenities (which is ridiculous and known to be out of character by their friends).
Despite the preventative arrests and lack of material an action took place on 12th May. The members of Tigra Negra and Rainbow Keepers distributed some small change symbolising the banks investment in the Ukrainian economy with the text of the 'agreement' on investment conditions. This tongue-in-cheek 'agreement' show that the EBRD represents an instrument of globalisation and neo-liberal policies.
All these events were passed over in silence by the media. Only on the last day of the summit, on one of the TV channels, was the arrest of the 9th May and the action of the 12th finally shown. The next day a local channel gave some time to cover the release from prison of I. Karol. On the 14th May only one of the mainstream newspapers published an article about some of the events with an official commentary from the SBOu: some of the facts were denied and it was claimed that 'the security services had acted within the law.'
What happened here shows the real face of Ukrainian 'democracy', the venality of the press, the unchallenged power of the security forces and the complete absence of citizens basic rights. It is clear that the aims of these persecutions was to screen out any negative views concerning the policies of the EBRD. However, there is no certainty that with the end of the summit that the repression will diminish. Our friends are still in prison. This is why we activists with Tigra Negra and Rainbow Keepers ask all those who are interested to lend us their support.
Tigra Negra and Rainbow Keepers
(To help people in the Ukraine you can circulate this information further and send a letter of protest to the Ukrainian Embassy in your country.)