(česky)
Let me start by asking a question: Are the enemies of our enemies automatically our friends and allies? This is a question that people have always asked themselves when deciding with whom and how to ally in pursuit of their goals. Even today, questions of this kind are relevant to us. For example: if our enemy is Putin and his supporters, is anyone who takes up arms and uses them against Putin’s supporters automatically our friend and ally? Some may argue that a question posed in this way is too vague to be answered immediately. I will therefore try to be more specific. I will describe a few specific people who have died in the war in Ukraine and have become uncritically glorified martyrs for quite a few people.
1) Yuri Samoylenko / Юрий Самойленко
The obituary on the website of the Anarchist Federation states “Yuri Samoylenko: a great organiser of anti-fascist resistance”. But on his tombstone it says ‘Right Sector officer’.
source: https://x.com/Voxkomm/status/1678148412347404288
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The question arises: Can both of these statements be true, or are they mutually exclusive? Let each answer for himself. And if anyone has trouble finding the answer, here is some basic information about the Right Sector that may serve as useful clues.
Right Sector (Ukrainian: Пра́вий се́ктор [právyj séktor]) is the name of a Ukrainian nationalist party founded on March 22, 2014. The movement combines radical Ukrainian nationalism in the tradition of Stepan Bandera and the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA).
Right Sector supporters carry a flag with a portrait of Stepan Bandera, Kiev, January 1, 2015
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And who was this Stepan Andriyovich Bandera? He was the leader and chairman of the radical wing of the Organisation of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN-B). In 1939, he collaborated with Nazi Germany and organized a military unit under the German Wehrmacht. Bandera pledged the cooperation of the new Ukrainian state with Nazi Germany under Hitler, with the final remark “Glory to the heroic German army and its Führer Adolf Hitler”. The declaration was accompanied by violent pogroms.
And what was the Ukrainian Insurgent Army (UPA)? It was an armed unit of the Organisation of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN), more precisely its radical faction led by Stepan Bandera (OUN-B). The organisation is seen as highly controversial, especially for its association with the Nazi occupiers and for its massacres of civilians.
I will now ask two questions, clearly and specifically. Was Yuri Samoylenko – i.e. the fallen Right Sector officer – a hero who should be praised because he was an enemy of the Putinists, just as the anarchists are? Was this enemy of our enemies our friend and ally? Let everyone answer for themselves.
2) Roman Legar / Романа “Ісуса” Легара
“On 9 June 2024, an anarchist, soldier of the Azov Brigade, our comrade and close friend Roman Legar was killed,” wrote his obituary on the Revolutionary Action profile (Революційна Дія). A few lines later, it says: “The hardships of his service and environment did not break Roman, he remained faithful to his anarchist convictions until the end.”
Does this mean that the Azov Brigade, infamous for its collaboration with the far right, was transformed into a formation for people with anarchist convictions? Again, let everyone answer for themselves.
3) Sergey Petrovichev / Сергей Петровичев
The Autonomous Action website announced death of Sergey Petrovichev, also known by the names “Rubin” and “Vasili Volgin“. “We mourn the martyrdom of our comrade who gave his life for the freedom of all nations.” the website says. “Sergey Petrovichev: the unbreakable anarchist from Russia” reads again the obituary on the Anarchist Federation website. But on his personal FB profile, the same Sergey Petrovichev posted a photo of himself proudly posing with neo-Nazi Maxim Martsinkevich. He uploaded the photo 2 days after Maxim’s death with comments about how people should “avenge” him.
source: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=3293046094106365
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So the question is: Has the political situation really changed so much with the war in Ukraine that being an “unbreakable anarchist” now means something like being a “friend of a neo-Nazi”? I’ll leave the question unanswered. As a clue, I will now cite information from the antifa.cz website about the White Rex clothing brand, in front of whose logo “unbreakable anarchist” Sergey Petrovichev posed with neo-Nazi Maxim “Tesak” Martsinkevich.
White Rex is a Russian clothing brand that focuses on combat sports. Although the owner is all obfuscation and denial, one doesn’t have to be much of a guru to figure out that White Rex is primarily targeting neo-Nazis. The brand was founded in 2008 by Denis Nikitins with the idea that it should bring together people with similar views and beliefs while raising some money for “charity”. By charity, he means financial support for incarcerated neo-Nazis, whom he calls “prisoners of conscience.” (…) In 2011, White Rex started a series of its own tournaments called “Duch Vojna” (Spirit Warrior). Although they are not exclusively for neo-Nazis, it is clear that they are primarily intended for them. (…) During the last event in December 2012, a well-known neo-Nazi activist from Format18, Maxim “Tesak” Martsinkevich, spoke at the event.
And some more essential information about the aforementioned Martsinkevich (Максим Марцинкевич in Russian). He first gained public attention as the leader of the far-right youth group Format 18, which was presented as the “armed wing” of the National Socialist Society. The number 18 is the code or symbol for the name “Adolf Hitler”, as the letter A is the first and H is the eighth in Latin. Members of Format 18 attacked Asian migrant workers and homeless people. They filmed the attacks and uploaded the videos to the internet.
Martsinkevich was sentenced three times in prison for inciting racial or ethnic hatred. The first time was in 2007 after he disrupted political debates by shouting “Sieg Heil!” at a book club in Moscow. In 2009, he was again convicted for making a video with racist content. In the autumn of 2013, he was again accused of publishing new videos with racist remarks. During his next sentence in 2020, an investigation was opened into his involvement in hate killings. He confessed to involvement in a series of murders motivated by racist ideology. According to the investigation, the victims were several men of non-Slavic appearance (mostly Central Asian migrants) and a Russian sex worker. Martsinkevich testified against other participants in the murders and led investigators to some of the victims’ bodies, but was soon found dead in his cell.
That’s right, this is the man that the “unbreakable anarchist” Sergey Petrovichev took pictures with, defended and called for revenge after he was found dead in a prison cell.
Final summary
A friend of a neo-Nazi and a murderer is presented to us as an “unbreakable anarchist”, a Right Sector officer as a “great organizer of anti-fascist resistance” and an Azov soldier as a “man with an anarchist mindset”.
Why do I have the feeling that something is wrong here? Or are my feelings deceiving me, because according to some people I am just a confused dogmatist and sectarian who does not understand the meaning of pragmatism? Who knows? Make up your own mind.