Free the Kononovych Brothers!
Free all Ukrainian Political Prisoners!
Restore political and media freedoms in Ukraine!
7pm British Summer Time, Thursday 25 August. Access details will be circulated closer to the date.
Speakers from the UK, US and Ukraine.
Mikhail and Alexander Kononovych, members of of the youth wing of the Communist Party of Ukraine (CPU), were arrested by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) on 7th March 2022, and tortured in a Kiev detention centre. The SBU, Ukraine’s intelligence agency, has charged them with being “propagandists” and aiming to “destabilise” the internal situation in Ukraine.
Their trial began in Kiev on 1 July via teleconference. In their first speech to the courtroom, the brothers said their charges had been fabricated, and appealed to the European left:
“Comrades, we appeal to you and we want the deputies of the European Parliament to visit Ukraine and be present at our court session so that they see with their own eyes and tell the whole world how the court is arranged.”
The Kononovich Brothers have become symbolic of the thousands of victims of a brutal reign of terror, arrests, torture and murders unleashed in Ukraine since February 24 by the SBU, which is known to collaborate closely with neo-Nazi groups including the Azov Battalion and Sich-C-14 (well known for violent attacks on Roma settlements).
This includes the killing of at least 11 town mayors accused of collaborating with Russian or Donbas forces, the banning of all opposition parties, and the closure of all TV stations except one government controlled .
Ukrainian president Zelensky himself issued an ominous warning that “there would be consequences for collaborators,” and an advisor to the Ukrainian Ministry of Internal Affairs, Anton Gerashchenko, commented on social media about one mayor’s murder: “There is one less traitor in Ukraine.”
This reign of terror is detailed in these articles, with extensive photo and media evidence:
Confirmed speakers:
Chris Williamson, former Labour Party MP
Alexey Albu, Borotba (Struggle), survivor of the May 2 2014 Odessa Trade Union House Fire massacre
Steve Sweeney, former International Editor, The Morning Star, investigative journalist
Leonid Ildukhin, Union of Ukrainian Political Emigrants and Refugees (depending on communication availability with eastern Ukraine)
Phil Wilayto, Odessa Solidarity Campaign (USA)
(Additional speakers to be confirmed)
We also urge recipients to sign the international petition to Free the Kononovych Brothers:
https://www.change.org/p/freedom-to-mikhail-and-alexander-kononovich
Please share the petition and this message
Organised by: International Ukraine Anti Fascist Solidarity
NO PASARAN!
НЕТ ФАШИЗМУ!
IUAFS Blog: https://iuafs.blogspot.com/?m=1
Facebook groups:
“International Ukraine Anti Fascist Solidarity”
“Free the Kononovich Brothers”
