News of the Ukrainian Revolution of February 2014 continues to capture much of what free time I have these days.
To those who read my post-193 ("Ukrainian Insurgent Army, 1940s and 2010s") and doubted that they were actually looking at the flag of the WWII-era, anti-Soviet, wildly-anti-Communist, pro-German ["collaborationist"] nationalist-paramilitary group called the Ukrainian Insurgent Army [UIA], see here:
I saw today a video put out by "Right Sector" which essentially names the UIA as a forerunner of its own group. Right Sector uses the UIA flag, actually, which explains why it showed up atop Kiev's anti-government barricades.
I'd never heard of "Right Sector" before last week. It is a Ukrainian street-gang-style nationalist group, and seems to be a kind of armed wing of a political party (Svoboda) that got 11% of the vote two years ago. Russian media, in their typical form, calls them "neo-Nazis" (a term that the Russian media also applies to the meek Estonians).
Reading between the lines, Right Sector does seem to have instigated the major fighting in Kiev last week. They charged the police lines, killed several police, took scores more "hostage"at one point, and provoked the huge counter-attack. Some of their units, meanwhile, had 'liberated' a large armory in Lvov (western Ukraine). The weapons began to move towards Kiev. Seeing a determined, disciplined, now-better-armed, fanatical foe, for whom fear of death was not a strong deterrent, the kleptocrats of the Ukrainian government folded; the kleptocrat-in-chief disappeared. As of this writing, headlines are saying that President Yanukovich's "whereabouts are unknown".
Here is the video released three days ago by Right Sector, featuring one of its "commanders" [2:19, w/English subtitles]. The video seems to be an introduction to Right Sector, explaining what its goals and views are.
I saw today a video put out by "Right Sector" which essentially names the UIA as a forerunner of its own group. Right Sector uses the UIA flag, actually, which explains why it showed up atop Kiev's anti-government barricades.
I'd never heard of "Right Sector" before last week. It is a Ukrainian street-gang-style nationalist group, and seems to be a kind of armed wing of a political party (Svoboda) that got 11% of the vote two years ago. Russian media, in their typical form, calls them "neo-Nazis" (a term that the Russian media also applies to the meek Estonians).
Reading between the lines, Right Sector does seem to have instigated the major fighting in Kiev last week. They charged the police lines, killed several police, took scores more "hostage"at one point, and provoked the huge counter-attack. Some of their units, meanwhile, had 'liberated' a large armory in Lvov (western Ukraine). The weapons began to move towards Kiev. Seeing a determined, disciplined, now-better-armed, fanatical foe, for whom fear of death was not a strong deterrent, the kleptocrats of the Ukrainian government folded; the kleptocrat-in-chief disappeared. As of this writing, headlines are saying that President Yanukovich's "whereabouts are unknown".
Here is the video released three days ago by Right Sector, featuring one of its "commanders" [2:19, w/English subtitles]. The video seems to be an introduction to Right Sector, explaining what its goals and views are.
As this video may likely one day disappear, here is my attempt to describe it and transcribe the provided subtitles:
[Bold is what is spoken/subtitled] [Bracketed: My description of what is happening on screen]
"Textual Transliteration" of the Right Sector Video
[Title of the video; a serious-sounding voice narrates] The Great Ukrainian Reconquista....
What is Right Sector fighting for?
[The camera cuts to a grizzled, tough-looking man, about 40, who sits at a desk, his hands on the table in non-clenched fists. He wears a wedding band on his finger and a brown, militaryesque shirt. Behind him there is a red-and-black flag with the words "Right Sector" (in Cyrilic) across the middle, with a sword emblem between the two words. When he begins to speak, he maintans a steady gaze at the camera. He speaks in a serious and official tone, as one would expect an actual military commander to speak]
[The man speaks] "We are the fighters and commanders of Right Sector. We remember the heroic struggles of Svyatoslav Khorobry and Danyl Halytsky, Bohdan Khmelnytsky, and the fighters of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army. We stand for the right of the people to revolt against injustice. We are conscious of the responsibility to the dead and disabled heroes of Maidan [the large Kiev square which was the site of the anti-government protests of November 2013 to February 2014, and the epicenter of the Ukrainian revolution of Feb. 2014].
"We fight!" [Video footage of street fighting is shown without narration; one scene shows a masked man throwing a firebomb; hundreds of police in anti-riot gear are shown; another scene shows masked men (RS members?) pushing a policeman to the ground and beating him]
[Narration returns] We stand for the right of every Ukrainian citizen to be treated with human dignity.
We demand that the "Berkut" (Ukrainian riot police) by criminally prosecuted for their repression of the movement. We stand against the humiliation and the impoverishment of the Ukrainian people. [A man without a shirt on shown amid light snow; he is a prisoner; he is hit on the head and beaten by a masked "Berkut" policeman; other scenes of the "Berkut" in armored vehicles follow.]
We stand against the state's war against its own people. We stand for the direct election of judges. We stand against corrupt "phony democracy". We stand against degeneracy and against "totalitarian liberalism".
We stand for traditional national morality and family values [images of young couples embracing, and young children smiling are shown]. We stand for large Ukrainian families, and for a physically and spiritually healthy youth. [Images of young male RS members, masked and in combat pose, are shown]. We stand against the "cult of corruption" and against moral depravity. [Footage of scantilty-dressed singers at a concert is shown].
We stand against any multinational integration plans that would dictate to Ukraine what to do. [A short video clip of Putin is shown during the preceding line; then, immediately afterward, of EU officials under an EU flag].
[A huge nighttime rally with large numbers of Ukrainian flags waving] We stand for unity; for the greatness of the Ukrainian nation. We are for a Ukrainian, and a European, "Reconquista"! [Images of RS fighters with shields bearing the "Black Sun" emblem are shown; a "Celtic Cross" is briefly shown.]
[The intense-looking man from the early part of the clip returns on screen] "Now is just the beginning. The beginning of the revival of the Kyivska Rus.
The revival of Europe starts -- with our Maidan! [End of Video]
What is Right Sector fighting for?
[The camera cuts to a grizzled, tough-looking man, about 40, who sits at a desk, his hands on the table in non-clenched fists. He wears a wedding band on his finger and a brown, militaryesque shirt. Behind him there is a red-and-black flag with the words "Right Sector" (in Cyrilic) across the middle, with a sword emblem between the two words. When he begins to speak, he maintans a steady gaze at the camera. He speaks in a serious and official tone, as one would expect an actual military commander to speak]
[The man speaks] "We are the fighters and commanders of Right Sector. We remember the heroic struggles of Svyatoslav Khorobry and Danyl Halytsky, Bohdan Khmelnytsky, and the fighters of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army. We stand for the right of the people to revolt against injustice. We are conscious of the responsibility to the dead and disabled heroes of Maidan [the large Kiev square which was the site of the anti-government protests of November 2013 to February 2014, and the epicenter of the Ukrainian revolution of Feb. 2014].
"We fight!" [Video footage of street fighting is shown without narration; one scene shows a masked man throwing a firebomb; hundreds of police in anti-riot gear are shown; another scene shows masked men (RS members?) pushing a policeman to the ground and beating him]
[Narration returns] We stand for the right of every Ukrainian citizen to be treated with human dignity.
We demand that the "Berkut" (Ukrainian riot police) by criminally prosecuted for their repression of the movement. We stand against the humiliation and the impoverishment of the Ukrainian people. [A man without a shirt on shown amid light snow; he is a prisoner; he is hit on the head and beaten by a masked "Berkut" policeman; other scenes of the "Berkut" in armored vehicles follow.]
We stand against the state's war against its own people. We stand for the direct election of judges. We stand against corrupt "phony democracy". We stand against degeneracy and against "totalitarian liberalism".
We stand for traditional national morality and family values [images of young couples embracing, and young children smiling are shown]. We stand for large Ukrainian families, and for a physically and spiritually healthy youth. [Images of young male RS members, masked and in combat pose, are shown]. We stand against the "cult of corruption" and against moral depravity. [Footage of scantilty-dressed singers at a concert is shown].
We stand against any multinational integration plans that would dictate to Ukraine what to do. [A short video clip of Putin is shown during the preceding line; then, immediately afterward, of EU officials under an EU flag].
[A huge nighttime rally with large numbers of Ukrainian flags waving] We stand for unity; for the greatness of the Ukrainian nation. We are for a Ukrainian, and a European, "Reconquista"! [Images of RS fighters with shields bearing the "Black Sun" emblem are shown; a "Celtic Cross" is briefly shown.]
[The intense-looking man from the early part of the clip returns on screen] "Now is just the beginning. The beginning of the revival of the Kyivska Rus.
The revival of Europe starts -- with our Maidan! [End of Video]
A still from the Right Sector video described above
A still of the unnamed commander of Right Sector
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