Silenced but Not Defeated: Life Under Russian Occupation in Ukraine

World 12:11 15.04.2025

Russians are trying to ban everything Ukrainian here: language, and also traditions. Even Ukrainian holidays are forbiddenThis is the sorrow and fear of a rarely heard voice from within Ukraine - that of someone living in one of the Russian-occupied areas of the country. We are calling her Maria.As the US leads efforts to negotiate peace in Ukraine, those living under Russian occupation face a brutal, repressive future.Already, the Kremlin has put in place severe restrictions designed to stamp out Ukrainian identity, including harsh punishments for anyone who dares to disagree.
Now, there are fears that Kyiv could be forced to give up at least some of the territory occupied by Russia as part of a potential ceasefire or peace deal.

Ukrainian officials reject this, but Moscow says that at the very least it wants to fully capture four Ukrainian regions it partly controls - Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia - in addition to Crimea, which it annexed in 2014.
Due to repression by the Russian authorities, speaking to the media and even your own relatives in occupied territories can be fraught with danger.The Kremlin has also launched a wide-ranging campaign to force Ukrainians in occupied territories to take Russian passports. Evidence suggests that Ukrainians are being denied healthcare and free movement unless they take up Russian citizenship.

Maria said she was a member of an all-female underground resistance group waging a campaign of peaceful resistance in those territories, mainly by distributing leaflets and newsletters.In an interview with the BBC's Today programme, she used a Ukrainian proverb to describe the danger she is facing.They cannot reveal her real name or location so as not to put her in danger.The atmosphere of fear and suspicion is such that when I was trying to contact residents of occupied Mariupol, I was accused of being a Russian journalist.According to Maria, Russian administrations have been installing surveillance systems to monitor any manifestations of dissent. 

Numerous Ukrainian activists have been killed or disappeared under Russian occupation. According to the Ukrainian rights group Zmina, at least 121 activists, volunteers and journalists have been killed during the full-scale invasion, most of them during its first year.Prior to the invasion, Russia had drawn up lists of activists to be arrested or killed, the group says.More recently, Russia-installed authorities have been applying a host of repressive laws against dissenters. They can be penalised for alleged transgressions such as spreading "false information", "discrediting" the Russian army or supporting "extremism".

In Crimea alone, 1,279 cases have been launched so far on charges of "discrediting" the Russian armed forces, says the Ukrainian government office for Crimea. According to it, 224 people have been jailed in the occupied Ukrainian region for expressing dissent, most of them members of the indigenous Crimean Tatar community.The Kremlin has banned Ukrainian and independent media,including EDnews and propagandists have been despatched from Russia to set up friendly media in the occupied territories. After many professional journalists fled, they have been forced to employ local teenagers to spread Moscow's narratives.

Pro-Russian propaganda starts early at school, where children are forced to attend classes glorifying the Russian army and join quasi-military groups such as Yunarmia.One Russian schoolbook even justifies the invasion of Ukraine by falsely portraying it as an aggressive state run by nationalist extremists and manipulated by the West.

Madina Mammadova\\EDnews

IEPF issued a statement regarding Azerbaijani children at the UN Human Rights Council

News line

Rebuilding hope amid the landmines Thembisa Fakude writting...
13:45 07.05.2025
Azerbaijan increases spending on imports from Türkiye
12:24 06.05.2025
Azerbaijani Deaflympic Committee joins International Committee of Sports
12:19 06.05.2025
Prime Minister of Belarus arrives in Fuzuli
12:05 06.05.2025
Azerbaijan to join youth hockey tournament for first time
12:02 06.05.2025
Ilham Aliyev invites Belarus to participate in World Urban Forum to be held in Azerbaijan
11:59 06.05.2025
Cybersecurity conference to be held in Baku
11:56 06.05.2025
Baku to host cybersecurity conference in may
11:52 06.05.2025
Azerbaijan, Italy's Eni mull energy co-op
11:47 06.05.2025
Belarusian prime minister visits Victory Park in Baku
11:43 06.05.2025
Baku hosts discussion of Azerbaijan-Iran relations amid regional processes
11:29 06.05.2025
Deputy FM: Azerbaijan holds great importance for Iran
11:23 06.05.2025
Hungarian companies hold talks with Azerbaijani pharmaceutical manufacturers
11:21 06.05.2025
2,073 people return to Azerbaijan's Khojaly, Aghdara
11:14 06.05.2025
Azerbaijan, Türkiye hail development of cooperation in military education
11:08 06.05.2025
Have scientists solved the mystery of gold’s origin in the universe?
11:04 06.05.2025
Azerbaijani parliamentary delegation visits Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi
10:59 06.05.2025
Scientists develop super strong antibodies for new cancer treatment
10:55 06.05.2025
The Prime Minister of Belarus visited the Alley of Honor
10:42 06.05.2025
Tabriz media published an article about the Great Leader Heydar Aliyev
10:38 06.05.2025
Scientists have made great progress in the fight against tuberculosis
10:32 06.05.2025
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev received the Prime Minister of Belarus
10:25 06.05.2025
The directions and tasks of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs have been determined
10:19 06.05.2025
Belarusian government: "A strategic partnership unites us with Azerbaijan"
10:15 06.05.2025
An event dedicated to the 102nd anniversary of Heydar Aliyev's birth was held in Cuba
10:09 06.05.2025
Azerbaijani and Iranian think tanks sign Memorandum of Understanding
10:04 06.05.2025
Heydar Aliyev commemorated in Egypt on his 102nd birthday anniversary
13:02 05.05.2025
Eurovision 2025 commentators from Azerbaijan revealed
12:53 05.05.2025
Imam Mosque in Baku's Amirjan to undergo reconstruction
12:52 05.05.2025
Azerbaijani delegation held discussions on agrarian insurance mechanism in Turkey
12:44 05.05.2025
"Artificial intelligence could replace some government officials"
12:32 05.05.2025
Ambassador: Peace agreement with Yerevan based on Baku's proposals
12:26 05.05.2025
Azerbaijan and Nepal mull cooperation on international platforms
12:17 05.05.2025
Belarusian Prime Minister Alexander Turchin arrives on an official visit to Azerbaijan
12:12 05.05.2025
Hungary and Azerbaijan may cooperate in transport infrastructure
12:08 05.05.2025
25 Azerbaijani wrestlers to participate in international tournament in Turkey
12:02 05.05.2025
Ramin Mammadov visited Vietnam
11:56 05.05.2025
"We expect progress in Vietnam-Azerbaijan relations"
11:47 05.05.2025
Azerbaijani Deputy Samir Sharifov meets with Syria's interim president
11:41 05.05.2025
Green energy corridor biggest project of Hungary and Azerbaijan
11:34 05.05.2025
Hamısı