Five years ago, Ukraine's Euromaidan protests kicked off, driving its autocratic leaders out of the country. But the revolution's promise has never come to pass because it lacks real leadership, writes Bernd Johann.
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For many Ukrainians, the victims of Maidan will never be forgottenImage: DW/L. Rzheutska
When Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych rejected the comprehensive Ukraine–European Union Association Agreement on November 21, 2013, a number of citizens spontaneously gathered on Kyiv's Independence Square that same night in protest. The impromptu rally sparked a wave of large-scale protests against Ukraine's corrupt, oppressive and pro-Russian rulers, who were eventually driven out of the country several months later.
The Ukraine–European Union Association Agreement took years to negotiate, was designed to enshrine European values in Ukraine and help bring an end to the country's endemic corruption. Ukrainians had also looked forward to traveling to the EU without needing a visa.
Anti-government protesters calling for Ukraine’s integration with the European Union occupied Kyiv's Independence Square, also known as Maidan, for months. Photographer Filip Warwick documented their everyday life.
Image: Filip Warwick
Defeating subzero temperatures
Anti-government protesters calling for Ukraine’s integration with the European Union occupied Kyiv's Independence Square, also known as "Maidan" in early December 2013. They set up camp on the capital’s main square and endured subzero temperatures for weeks, hovering around makeshift campfires, like the one pictured above, to stay warm.
Image: Filip Warwick
Trying to stay warm
During the day the temperature hovers around -15 degrees Celsius (5 degrees Fahrenheit), at night it can easily plummet to -25 degrees Celsius (-13 degrees Fahrenheit). To survive the cold, tents are sealed and heated with wood-burning stoves. Firewood is brought in by Kyiv residents but police have stopped and arrested people transporting wood.
Image: Filip Warwick
Clothes for free
Warm clothes are stocked and donated by Kyiv residents who support the EuroMaidan volunteers. Thick coats, sweaters, socks and shirts are in abundance, bundled on top of each other. Anybody who wishes or needs can take any item of clothing, day or night.
Image: Filip Warwick
Maidan’s soup kitchens
Operating around the clock, soup kitchens, tea stations and wood-burning stoves help thousands of demonstrators brave the subzero temperatures. Soup kitchens, like the one above, are a highly disciplined operation made possible by donations and support from surrounding residents.
Image: Filip Warwick
Mustafa’s famous Plov kitchen
Mr. Mustafa’s Plov kitchen is one of the most popular kitchens on Maidan, with a seemingly endless line of cold and hungry protesters. Originally from Uzbekistan and now based in the Crimea, Mr. Mustafa offers Plov, an Uzbek national dish served with rice, onions, spices and meat or fish. It’s cooked in a "kazan," a type of large cooking pot used throughout Central Asia and Russia.
Image: Filip Warwick
A cool game of chess
Another popular activity around Maidan is playing a game of chess. Though it is very cold, Kyivians enjoy playing this game on a frozen fountain. Chess is a traditional and popular game in the Ukraine and is played no matter the season. The 50 cm chess pieces made of sturdy polystyrene do not require much effort.
Image: Filip Warwick
Singing keeps the heart warm
To keep the heart warm on a cold winter night, a Ukrainian bard sings and narrates patriotic hymns, songs and poems on Maidan’s main stage. Pictured above, the bard holds a "Kobzar," a Ukrainian stringed instrument of the lute family. Singers, actors and activists use the main stage as a 24-hour platform. During breaks, film and historical documentaries are also shown.
Image: Filip Warwick
Maidan selfie
Standing by a Metro exit blocked with tires, barbed wire and a "no way through" sign, a Kievian takes a "selfie." Many locals enter Maidan in order to use the underground passage, which acts as a Metro entrance for the Khreshchatyk metro station, a short-cut to the local supermarket and small businesses. It's an opportunity to warm up in freezing weather or to satisfy their own Maidan curiosity.
Image: Filip Warwick
Mourning on Maidan
But life on Maidan isn’t always fun. Last month three protesters were killed in clashes with riot police bringing the official death count to six, including two police officers. More than 1,000 have been injured. The circumstances of some of the deaths still remain unclear. Four people died from gunshot wounds; ambulance services have confirmed bullet wounds from sniper rifles and other handguns.
Image: Filip Warwick
Separated only by barricades
Protesters have constructed a layered defense system. At the front barricades, protesters are only a few hundred meters away from police. Ice, bricks, burn barrels and scrap metal separate both groups. There are many young men patrolling the Maidan, armed with a long stick and usually wearing helmets, trying to keep the peace and enforce the ban on alcohol and recreational drug use.
Image: Filip Warwick
Training the protestors
The order and security on Maidan are provided by the protesters themselves; many of whom are former police officers or former members of special forces units, including soldiers from various public organizations, who fought in Afghanistan. They train volunteers in tactical and formation awareness, striving to prevent any provocations by instilling self-discipline within the ranks.
Image: Filip Warwick
'Mothers of Maidan' marching
Accompanied by Orthodox priests, the "Mothers of Maidan" are often seen marching in groups carrying printed slogans, such as "Not our Children." Many of the mothers have come from all over the Ukraine. Since their sons are serving in the police and special force units, they have pleaded with officials not to deploy them in Kyiv. The compulsory military service for men aged 18-25 ended in 2014.
Image: Filip Warwick
Pro-Europe, pro-democratization
While you can’t take EuroMaidan home, you can bring home small souvenirs, such as magnets with slogans like "Ukraine is Europe" or "(Your) Choice Matters." Though Ukraine joining the EU was one of the protestors' initial demands, the demonstrations are now addressing a larger issue: demanding the Ukrainian government to show transparency and respect for their constitutional rights.
Image: Filip Warwick
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Ukrainians tired of Russian dominance
But instead of endorsing the treaty, Yanukovych spoke out in favor a customs union with Russia — and shortly thereafter officially declined to sign the Ukraine–European Union Association Agreement at the EU's Vilnius Eastern Partnership summit. Ukrainians were aghast at what they saw as a rejection of a better life.
Bernd Johann leads DW's Ukrainian department
Russia had exerted tremendous pressure on Ukraine ahead of the summit and had threatened a trade war. Many Ukrainians disliked the idea of a customs union with Russia, as this would have increased Moscow's influence over Ukraine. At this time, nobody would have dared to imagine Russia would later start a war in Ukraine's Donbass region, and annex Crimea.
Ukrainians take to the streets
It soon became clear that President Yanukovych had no qualms about brutally suppressing the anti-government protests. On the night of November 30, Ukrainian Berkut riot police used excessive force to disperse peaceful protesters. In response, hundreds of thousands of protesters gathered the following day in Kyiv, thus setting off a massive wave of protest that brought together Ukrainians from all walks of life. It became known as the Revolution of Dignity as Ukrainians had become fed up with their violent rulers humiliating and stealing from them.
On February 22, 2014, Yanukovych fled to Russia. The protests had been successful, although more than 100 activists had lost their lives. Until this day, Russia has refused to extradite the former president, who is being tried in absentia for treason.
Today, Ukrainians can travel to the EU without needing a visa. Many have made use of this new liberty. The Ukraine–European Union Association Agreement was signed, and Ukraine's economy is growing. Much progress had been made, but more work still lies ahead; Ukraine's political revolution has stalled because there is nobody to take the lead.
Corruption is still endemic in Ukraine, and there is no rule of law. Oligarchs still dominate the political decision-making process, as backroom deals remain common. President Petro Poroshenko, elected in 2014, is one of these very oligarchs and many Ukrainians see him as part of the problem. But no viable political alternatives are in sight.
While the Euromaidan protests invigorated the country's civil society, it lacks actual political power. Some anti-corruption activists and journalists have paid with their lives for asking too many questions, and not one of these murders has so far been investigated. Ukraine's revolution — once so full of promise — is incomplete, and long overdue.
