{"id":47671,"date":"2022-02-27T10:28:49","date_gmt":"2022-02-27T10:28:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/qatar-news.org\/qatarnewsEn\/?p=47671"},"modified":"2022-02-27T10:28:49","modified_gmt":"2022-02-27T10:28:49","slug":"ukrainians-russians-in-australia-unite-against-putins-war","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/qatar-news.org\/qatarnewsEn\/?p=47671","title":{"rendered":"Ukrainians, Russians in Australia unite against Putin\u2019s war"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Ukrainian and Russian communities in Australia have come together in outcry since Russia launched an invasion<\/a> of Ukraine.<\/p>\n

Protests have taken place across Australia, gathering crowds of Ukrainians and supporters.<\/p>\n

As Russian forces close in on Ukraine\u2019s capital Kyiv, many in Australia feel helpless in the face of a military offensive so significant that leaders are warning<\/a> of \u201cramifications well beyond Europe\u201d.<\/p>\n

Two of the women behind the marches and rallies in Melbourne said that they are \u201cstill in a state of shock\u201d.<\/p>\n

Liana Slipetsky and Teresa Lachowicz led hundreds of people to the steps of parliament in Melbourne last week in protest against Vladimir Putin\u2019s invasion of Ukraine.<\/p>\n

\u201cUs Ukrainians here in Australia, we feel helpless and somewhat privileged,\u201d said Slipetsky. \u201cAnd\u2026 it\u2019s just the two don\u2019t go together.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can\u2019t even send financial aid,\u201d she continued, adding that friends and family on the ground in Ukraine \u201ccan\u2019t get cash out of ATMs\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll I\u2019ve offered them is to buy plane tickets for them, or if they need to relocate I\u2019m happy to find them accommodation,\u201d she said, \u201cOther than that, I\u2019m just lost for words\u2026 I\u2019m just shell-shocked.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"INTERACTIVE-<\/p>\n

\u2018Ukraine finally had a chance\u2019<\/h2>\n

Lachowicz and Slipetsky were both born in Australia to parents who had fled the Soviet Union.<\/p>\n

They worry for Ukraine\u2019s future, fearing that \u201chistory is repeating itself\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201c[Ukraine was] just starting to stand on its feet, economically, culturally, democratically, socially,\u201d said Slipetsky. \u201cUkraine finally had a chance.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lachowicz said she fears for her politically active friends who would likely be targets under a Russian regime.<\/p>\n

\u201cThen there\u2019s the Ukrainian church, that will be decimated,\u201d said Lachowicz. \u201cThe LGBTIQ community will be crucified. All of the indignities that Russian people suffer, Ukrainians will now be subject to again, all the freedoms that we take for granted, they will be stripped.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another Ukrainian-Australian, Lesia (name changed over safety concerns), said Ukrainians \u201cdon\u2019t want to\u2026 be a part of some union\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are on social media, we watch programmes, read books and news from Russia and we know that there is no freedom of speech, that they can\u2019t stand opposition,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

She fears for her family based in Russia and Ukraine.<\/p>\n

On the ground, Russian forces have entered Kyiv with fighting breaking out<\/a> on the city\u2019s streets. People are concerned about running out of food, she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople are worried at the moment about their inability to flee, and [lack] of petrol because the queues are enormous.\u201d<\/p>\n

She said that some of her relatives in Kyiv have fled while others have stayed.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve just heard from my brother that [my flat] was under heavy shelling just three hours ago,\u201d she added. \u201cOn our street, there was artillery and the factory that we can see from our kitchen window was on fire.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"INTERACTIVE-<\/p>\n

Peter Kuzmin, a Russian-Australian and president of the Victoria branch of the Svoboda Alliance, a pro-democracy movement of Russian speakers across Australia and New Zealand, grew up in the middle of the anti-war sentiments caused by the former Soviet Union.<\/p>\n

\u201cI really believed in [it],\u201d he said. \u201cThere were all these slogans everywhere that \u2018We don\u2019t want war, war is the worst thing that can happen.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

The trauma of World War II was also still felt among his generation \u2013 his grandfather was badly wounded in the war \u2013 and the concept of Russia being historically a defender against invasion became part of his identity.<\/p>\n

\u201cI could never imagine that my country would be an invader itself,\u201d he said. \u201cI couldn\u2019t imagine it in my worst nightmares\u2026 and then the reality set in that Russian bombs were falling all over Ukraine, and not just along that disputed territory, but everywhere.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kuzmin has been standing up against the war, helping to coordinate protests with the Svoboda Alliance and the Ukrainian-Australian community.<\/p>\n

\u201cUkrainians are our brothers,\u201d he said. \u201cThere\u2019s such a close cultural affinity. All that logic that Putin has used to attack Ukraine, for me, it\u2019s the justification not to attack Ukraine.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s the justification for why we need to live as independent and equal nations with mutual respect and cooperation,\u201d he continued. \u201cThat\u2019s the way to create a kind of a union, if the people want [a union]. That\u2019s how you do it. You don\u2019t do it by force.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dr Michael Baron, another Russian-Australian,\u00a0said that there was \u201cno rational logic\u201d to the invasion and \u201cit\u2019s not clear what he\u2019s [Putin] aiming to achieve\u201d.<\/p>\n

Baron said he was not politically inclined until Russia\u2019s invasion of Ukraine but the recent events made him feel very involved.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe madman has no logic, or has his own kind of logic, and with Putin, anything is possible,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s not about him being evil, it\u2019s about him being mad.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kuzmin agreed with Baron, saying \u201cwe really have a suicidal maniac with a messianic complex\u2026 [Putin] is detached from reality\u201d.<\/p>\n

He added that Putin had also misjudged the level of support he would get from his own people.<\/p>\n

Kuzmin said he is part of a WhatsApp group of childhood friends and he posted an \u201cimpassioned speech\u201d in the group, \u201cfully expecting\u2026 some might be supporting the war\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cNobody. Nobody in that chat supported the war,\u201d he said. \u201cThere were people who said that they can\u2019t believe this [is] happening, they want to do something but they\u2019re scared, they\u2019re afraid to protest, they\u2019re saying that the risks are so high.\u201d<\/p>\n

In Russia, at least 3,000 people have been arrested over protests against the war<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Kuzmin said this is what is needed to stop Putin: an uprising from the Russians.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m really hoping that it will increase,\u201d he said. \u201cI really hope that people will start opposing the war effort\u2026 through whatever ways they can.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"INTERACTIVE-<\/p>\n

He will not stop at Ukraine<\/h2>\n

Lachowicz and Slipetsky, meanwhile, said the war is very much a Western war too and \u201cchallenges the world order\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe peace [and stability] of the world as we know it today could potentially be changed forever,\u201d said Slipetsky. \u201cEurope as we know it may be no longer.\u201d<\/p>\n

Melbourne-based Ukrainian-Australian Yuriy Verkhatsky, agreed, speculating that Putin \u201cwill not stop at Ukraine\u201d and the Baltic region will be next, followed by Poland.<\/p>\n

Many feel that the West is not doing enough in the face of this threat.<\/p>\n

Sanctions have been placed on Russia, with Biden stepping in<\/a> on Friday to join Europe in even tighter sanctions, placing restrictions on Putin, his foreign minister and members of his security team.<\/p>\n

Australia has also instigated direct sanctions on Putin and placed financial punitive measures on members of Russian politicians and oligarchs.<\/p>\n

But while diplomatic action may be effective in the long-term, said Verkhatsky, it is not enough in the short term.<\/p>\n

\u201cMaybe they will feel [the] result of those sanctions in a year, but when the mad criminal attacks you with arms, [something really serious] should be done right now,\u201d he said, adding that the people behind Russia\u2019s assault \u201cdon\u2019t care about lives\u2026 of Russians, Ukrainians, of anybody.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Baron, this immediate action has also got to be more unified. The wider world should also \u201cstart moving towards a complete removal of dependence from the Russian energy supplies\u201d, he said.<\/p>\n

\"INTERACTIVE-<\/p>\n

\u2018How many lives will be lost?\u2019<\/h2>\n

The clock is ticking as Ukraine fights to stave off Russia\u2019s intensifying attack, battling military forces on the very streets of its capital city.<\/p>\n

While Verkhatsky firmly believes that Ukraine will be the eventual winner of the war, he remains worried about the loss of life.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe question is, how many lives will be lost?\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

More than 150,000 Ukrainians have fled the country since Russia launched the invasion last week, and more than 200 people have been killed, including children.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere might be hundreds of thousands [of] lives lost and a lot of damage will be caused,\u201d said Verkhatsky, who added that he wants to speak out in whatever way he can. \u201cEvery little drop matters.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Slipetsky and Lachowicz, this is the only way forward. More marches are taking place across Australia this weekend and in the coming weeks.<\/p>\n

What Ukraine lacks in military power, it makes up in patriotism, said Slipetsky.\u00a0\u201cAll we have is our words, so we have to speak to as many people [as possible].\u201d<\/p>\n