“A complete interview with Vladislav Esipenko, see August 16 on Radio Liberty YouTube channel, as well as read on the Crimean website. Realities 15 and 18 August”, – WRITE: www.radiosvoboda.org
According to Esipenko, at the initial stage of this practice, there were “many people”, since Russian recruiters offered “fairly decent money”. “It was probably 23, if I was not mistaken, from the age of 23, probably started calling, finance was offered, quite decent money, if a person did not work anywhere, or worked somewhere in the field, a peasant, a worker, he did not earn two millions here.”
According to the journalist, the employees of the Russian military enlistment office often visited the Kerch colony. During these visits, they forcibly conducted personal conversations with prisoners, offering to fight against Ukraine. When Vladislav came, they refused such a conversation with him.
“For example, the prisoners, for example, come to the war of the military enlistment office, and there, respectively, you go and have to introduce yourself. You say: Hello, a citizen of the chief, convicted by Esipenko, convicted Ivanov. Here I go, for the first time, when everyone has this procedure to go through, they talk to everyone personally, and it is quite often, probably every 10 days, every two weeks came to the military enlistment office and persuaded the ZEKs to go to war. I was summoned once, and I just came in, said: Sentenced by Esipenko, I was immediately said: everything, free, goodbye, ”Esipenko said.
In his opinion, this was due to the media of his case.
Before Esipenko declared torture and this became known to the general public, the employees of the Russian special services tried to offer him cooperation.
“There was such a phrase: if you worked for us, we would pay ten times more to you … You know how, they realized that after I declared torture, and the public joined, colleagues there, that is, everything, in this case, my business became media. They realized that there was no point in offer, ”the journalist added.
For a complete interview with Vladislav Esipenko, see August 16 on Radio Liberty YouTube channel, as well as read on the Crimean website. Realities on August 15 and 18.
Vladislav Esipenko is a freelancer of Crimea. Reality (Radio Liberty). He covered social and environmental problems in the Crimea, filmed street surveys and reports about life on the annexed peninsula. On March 10, 2021, Esipenko was detained by FSB staff of Russia on charges of collecting information “in favor of Ukrainian special services” and storage of a “homemade explosive device” in the car.
In 2022, the Russian -controlled court in Crimea sentenced Esipenko to five years in prison and a fine of 110 thousand rubles. The Russian prosecutor’s office demanded for him 11 years. Esipenko himself stated in court that Russian security forces were tortured, in particular electricity, seeking testimony.
The journalist after more than four years of Russian imprisonment was released on June 20 and left the occupied Crimea. On June 22, he arrived in Prague, where he later underwent medical examinations and rehabilitation.
During the imprisonment, Esipenko became a laureate of several prestigious awards: Free Media Award (2022), Freedom to Write Award from Pen America (2022), Igor Lubchenko National Prize, and received a Ukrainian Lukyanen State Power.