The inhabitants of occupied Mariupol, left homeless after the Russian invasion, were blocked from sending appeals to the “hotline” with Vladimir Putin. According to the independent publication Astra, people tried to record video messages addressed to the Kremlin leader, but faced systemic obstacles: “Donbas Mail” has not been functioning since mid-November, and telephone operators block registration via SMS on the event’s website.
Moreover, instead of help, those who tried to complain began to be summoned by law enforcement for “discussions” and were handed warnings about “illegal rallies” or even “extremism”.
One of the victims is Ana Guzevskaia, a mother of several children. After receiving a warning for “extremism”, her name was “marked” in the system, and every time she tries to cross the border of the so-called “DNR” to go for a medical consultation in Rostov-on-Don, she is detained for hours. Another city resident stated that the Ministry of Interior told him that his future actions could be classified as an administrative offense “or even more”.
In the images published by Astra, people appear in front of foundation pits and construction sites, with signs reading “Homeless” and “SOS”, stating that, in the fourth year of occupation, the housing problem remains unresolved. They say that in the new blocks built on the ruins of the houses destroyed by the Russian army, not a single former tenant has received an apartment. Instead, the “authorities” proposed them to buy them through a mortgage, impossible for most, as the compensation for the lost homes is, according to those in Mariupol, three times less than the price of the new apartments.
Details, HERE