Karina and four other Ukrainian women tell their stories in Ulkolinja’s documentary.
Karina was raped by a Russian soldier at the very beginning of the war. It has had far-reaching consequences. Benjamin Suomela / General
Two years have passed since the Russian invasion of Ukraine last weekend.
Delay Berghem Outside linein the document Ukrainian women tells the story of five women whose lives have been irrevocably changed by the war of aggression. Women have found themselves in shocking situations.
In the war, Russia has targeted civilians and the most vulnerable. The women in the documentary have also become victims of these war crimes. They have been captured, tortured, raped and maimed by a missile strike.
Karina didn’t want help at first, but then fortunately she went to a doctor and met a psychologist. Benjamin Suomela / General
Karina raped by a Russian soldier at the very beginning of the war. Since then, Karina has had nightmares. He remembers the rapist’s aftershave and the smell of the body. Karina says that the hardest part of everything is still the fact that her loved ones have labeled her. After the incident, Karina’s relationship fell apart. Instead of providing support, the then common-law husband accused Karina of rape, started talking disparagingly about it and was eventually also violent.
– My boyfriend condemned me and said that the rape was my own fault. He was also surprised that I reported it. They say it’s a shame.
It is not heard in the documentary how the ex-spouse justified his absurd opinions. Two men took Karina with guns, threatening her from home. They threatened to kill him.
– I had to undress. The soldier forced me to have sex. The loaded gun was pointed at me the whole time.
Julija Kulchitsaya was seriously wounded in a Russian missile strike at the Kramatorsk train station. Benjamin Suomela / General
Julija Kultshitskaya was seriously injured in a missile attack in the spring of 2022. In the attack, 63 people died and 150 were wounded. Both of Julija’s legs were crushed. The left one was saved, but an antibiotic-resistant infection has struck it. Therefore, the loose bones cannot ossify.
Teacher Svitlana Karatjuk on the other hand, had to watch helplessly from the sidelines when Russian soldiers abducted 15 mentally disabled children from school to Russia.
– It’s really hard to remember their screams and cries, Svitlana holds back tears in an empty classroom.
Olena Tarasenko was taken from her home to be tortured by Russian soldiers in the basement of the police station. He wasn’t the only one. Benjamin Suomela / General
A bus driver from Kherson Olena Tarasenko is no longer afraid of anything after Russian soldiers capture him while watching TV, put the Hood on his head and torture him in the basement of the local police station.
– There were many means of torture, Olena recalls.
Some were able to walk back to the cell on their own feet, others had to be dragged.
Alona Bogatšuk is a Ukrainian soldier who left behind a comfortable and safe life in Spain. Benjamin Suomela / General
Lived in Spain for years Aljona Bohatchuk left his former life to fight specifically in Donetsk on the front line. Nothing else worked for him, paperwork least of all. Aljona does not dream of family, children or own house, but of victory in war.
Ukrainian women today on TV1 at 22:00 & Arena. See all TV programs and broadcast times in Telku’s TV guide.