Occupied Kherson: “Started to suppress everything Ukrainian”

Cherson has been under Russian occupation for months. A resident who managed to escape reports in the daily topics-Interview about the regime that Russia put there and the Russification of life.

ARD: You came to Kyiv from Kherson two weeks ago, together with your husband and your seven-year-old son Kirill. How did you manage to get out of Kherson?

Olga: That happened more or less by accident. There are special Telegram channels with evacuation chats. After seven days I was suddenly written in such a chat: are you ready to drive? You have 24 hours to pack, only 24 hours! In that one day I got tons of things done, packed a lot of things and took them somewhere… And so we packed it all up. In one day. We dropped everything. We had a rented apartment. A lot of things just stayed there. We only took two bags, got on the bus and drove. The journey took two days and two nights.

ARD: And how did you fare on the journey?

Olga: Thunder, thunderstorms, driving rain – and then: missiles nearby, anti-aircraft defenses overhead. I didn’t know if we would survive. That was the worst time, from 2 a.m. to 5 a.m. We were all sitting like that on the bus – with our hands over our heads (shows the attitude, editor’s note). Only the children slept – surprisingly. Some of us have been praying… My hands still tremble when I think about it.

I thought: My God, where is this twilight? When can we finally continue? You actually have to drive through this corridor between the fronts quickly. But we got stuck there. And when it was finally five o’clock in the morning, it started again… We got into the middle of a firefight. You didn’t pay any attention to us. Something exploded two or three hundred meters away from us, and it lifted the bus into the air – it was terrible. That can’t be put into words. You thought, “Oh god, something’s about to hit the bus.” There was a bang nearby.

“Some came back, others didn’t”

ARD: I saw the video you shot and posted on TikTok during these last few minutes just before the Ukrainian checkpoint. One sees you there, everyone ducks; You and the whole bus are scared. For us unimaginable. Can you describe a little how you felt?

Olga: Very difficult, I can’t describe it, it can’t be explained. Five months under occupation… When this “Russian peace” came with its rules and everything, I got such a longing, such a longing – for five months! I understood what Ukraine, what homeland is. She is here. One must not suppress it, even if one lives under occupation. That gave you a hold.

When I saw the first checkpoint of our army, this huge Ukrainian shield… I can’t describe it. There were tears, tears of joy, it was coming home to freedom. You feel the freedom. Ukraine has been a democratic state for many years. There are no such reprisals here as in Russia. You’re not allowed to say the word war there. How can this be, what is this? That’s allowed, that’s not… This word has been abolished, you’re not allowed to say that… You’ll be arrested for that… That’s why it’s a special feeling to be free, with your own people. When the children got off the bus, everyone was hugged and kissed. One soldier even shed a tear. That was such a special moment.

“Everything has changed completely”

ARD: We have little insight into the areas occupied by Russian troops. Can you tell us a little about what everyday life looks like there? How has life changed there?

Olga: Everything has changed completely. We can take any little thing, everything turned 180 degrees. I’ll start with the smaller things: In the first few days, they forced Russian television on us, their propaganda. I lasted five minutes at most. I looked at their messages – exactly five minutes. And I understood what nonsense they spout. We then only watched the two entertainment channels and the animation channel for my son. We didn’t watch anything else.

The atmosphere in the city was oppressive. People’s stories when you wait in line. The lines for the groceries were very long, the prices have skyrocketed. They started suppressing everything Ukrainian. Ukrainian symbols were not allowed to be worn. It was not desired to speak Ukrainian. Phones were checked. If you were traveling in a minibus, they could stop the bus and check the phones. God forbid if there was anything Ukrainian on it or anything critical of them. Any chats on Facebook or other social media were enough. The people were taken away. Some came back, some didn’t. And you don’t know where they went. Some are still missing.

“They had no choice”

ARD: From the beginning there was speculation that there were collaborators, people who didn’t want to fight back. Was it also in Cherson?

Olga: Many were forced to do so. First and foremost, they were particularly vulnerable people. Those who had nothing left to eat. A lot of businesses were closed and people were out of work. The food supplies might last for three weeks or a month. It was enough for us for two months, including the money. After that we had to struggle through somehow. But many people were simply forced to turn to the Russians for humanitarian aid.

And then the pensioners: In March and April Ukraine still paid the pension – either by post or bank transfer. After that it was over. In May and June they have (meaning the Russian occupiers, editor’s note) introduced their pension system. you want to eat Welcome, come and get your pension. And people were forced to go there for help and pensions. Just to adapt. What was left for them? Either die or… They had no choice.

I said it before, not a lot of people wanted that. The young people fled quickly. But those who couldn’t and still can’t leave have no choice. The main thing is that they don’t get Russian passports so quickly, that would be terrible.

“We must free everything”

ARD: Do you think it is realistic that Kherson can be recaptured?

Olga: Of course I believe in it. We must free everything, take everything back. Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhia, Kherson and Crimea regions are all Ukraine. Our sovereignty has long been recognized around the world. It is time to stop such wars and banish these “green men”.

I believe that the whole world is finally watching what is happening here. It’s not even a war, it’s genocide. They are terrorists. Russia is a terrorist state. Shelling houses, cities, birthplaces, hospitals – what’s that? is this a war This isn’t a war. The whole world is watching. The whole world helps. Not only do we get attention, we get guns too.

“The world must unite”

ARD: In order for Ukraine to be able to retake these areas, it needs a lot of support from the West, including Germany. And in our country, too, public interest is waning. What message do you have for the Germans, for our viewers?

Olga: oh dear That’s hard to put into words. Because people who are in their own house, sleep in their own bed, go to work, live in their own country, nobody hurts them – they won’t understand. There is a saying here: The satiated does not understand the hungry. Maybe it doesn’t quite add up… What I’m trying to say is that it’s important to understand that Russia is not going to stop. You have to stop it. Now they have come to Ukraine, but they will move on like a horde. They are already talking about it openly, explaining it very directly.

As long as missiles don’t hit you, your house, it’s better to stop this now. To nip in the bud – although you can no longer call it a germ. Because millions of people have already experienced so much suffering! This must end. We need to understand that. The whole world must unite to defeat evil.

For security reasons, Olga does not want her last name published.

Caren Miosga, daily topics, conducted the interview.