Kyiv mourns again this Saturday… Roman Ratouchny, figure of the pro-European Maidan movement, anti-corruption activist and fighter in the Ukrainian army, was killed on June 9 near Izium in the Kharkiv region at the age of 24. This Saturday, thousands of people paid tribute to this “hero” in Kyiv’s Independence Square.
In front of the coffin covered with a yellow and blue Ukrainian flag at the foot of the monument overlooking this iconic capital square, people of all ages honored the memory of the young man who, like many other civilians, had joined the army since the start of the Russian offensive on February 24th.
“Role Model”, “Father Figure”, “Hero”
They came alone or with their family, young or old, to the Place de l’Indépendance, taking turns approaching the remains, kneeling or kneeling and laying a hand on the coffin on which many flowers were laid. . “I think it’s important to be here because he’s a hero of Ukraine and we have to remember him,” Dmytro Ostrovsky, a 17-year-old high school student, told AFP.
“You were a brother to everyone, a son to some and a father figure to others,” said his father Taras Ratouchny, paying tribute to his son in front of the crowd. “Roman has always fought for a good cause and he is a role model for all of us, for young people,” adds Hlib, a 29-year-old soldier.
Ratouchny was one of the first students to protest on this square, the Maidan, in late 2013, the scene of massive pro-European demonstrations that led to the ousting of pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych in February 2014.
wave of reactions
Alongside his political and anti-corruption activities in Ukraine, Ratouchny ran the NGO Protasiv Yar, named after a historical place in Kyiv defended by activists trying to protect this area from illegal construction leading to the destruction of a large forest district. His activism within this NGO had earned him death threats. He had contacted President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the Kyiv Prosecutor General, but no criminal investigation was launched. “If there were 10 people like Roman in Ukraine, we would live in a completely different country,” Ostrovsky said.
The announcement of his death earlier this week sparked a spate of reactions on social media, including that of English football legend Gary Linecker, who retweeted the information, writing: “tragic”.
tragic. https://t.co/zO0TAQpU6L
— Gary Lineker 💙💛 (@GaryLineker) June 14, 2022
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“Roman Ratouchny, one of the student protesters who was beaten by the police on the first night of the Maidan revolution (…), I’ve interviewed him several times (…) a very lively, very intelligent guy,” journalist Oliver Carroll tweeted .
After the tribute was paid on the Maidan, six soldiers carried the coffin down the steps of the square through the crowds gathered on either side before depositing it in a hearse. He was to be buried in the afternoon at the Baikove Cemetery in southern Kyiv, where many Ukrainian figures are buried.