MAKIYIVKA, Ukraine – Some 300 people, many cold and clearly impatient, have gathered in front of the community center in Makiyivka, a Donetsk Oblast city of more than 300,000 people. They are waiting for the distribution of food as part of the humanitarian aid that Russia claims to have been providing over the past six months.
A large white truck stands in front of the community center. Some Russian-backed separatist fighters oversee the offloading of the truck. Whatever is inside the truck is brought inside the community center. Despite the large truck though, inside there is not a lot of promised aid inside.
From a distance, it even looks empty. Civilians has noticed that too.
“Will there be enough for everyone?” a man shouts from somewhere in the back.
A scene of desperate chaos followed as more people become concerned whether they will be provided with promised aid. A woman stands with her two young sons shaking her head. “We have been standing here in the cold for more than two hours,” she says, introducing herself as Maria.
Fearing reprisals, no one gave the Kyiv Post their last names.
“Look at them!” she shouts, pointing at others. “They have done nothing wrong. They don’t deserve to live in a situation like this.” By the look on the faces of her two sons it looks as though childhood has vanished in them. Their faces are pale. They are traumatized by the ongoing war.
Maria admits the humanitarian aid is not as good as officials in the self-proclaimed separatist republics, as well as Russia, claim it to be. “I depend on it as I don’t have enough money to go to the supermarkets that are still open. However, last time all I got was cabbage, milk and some eggs. If I need more food, I have to go to the supermarket with some of the money that I have left.”
Russia has been claiming to provide the territories controlled by their proxies with humanitarian aid. Its 14th humanitarian aid convoy arrived in the separatist-controlled regions on Feb. 15. The convoy was not checked and crossed Ukraine’s border illegally.
Many assume that, apart from a small portion of real humanitarian aid, Russia has used the convoys as cover to provide weapons and arms to their fighters.
The separatist fighters who are present intimidate some of the civilians who are criticizing the modest efforts to help them.
“There will be not enough aid,” says Nikolay. The separatist fighters remove him from the line for “spreading lies” to the press.
One of the separatist fighters, a young, big guy, introducing himself as “Chorniy” became annoyed as the Kyiv Post tried to ask civilians to show the content of the humanitarian aid they received.
“I ask you to leave. I’m armed, you’re not,” he says, pointing at his Kalashnikov he wears around his shoulder.
Nonetheless, as aid is being distributed only the first 50 people in the line receive a plastic bag with food. There’s not enough aid for the remaining people in the line.
An old woman who goes by the name Anastasia traveled to Makiyivka by bus from the smaller city of Torez. She looks down to the ground with her face, almost tearing up.
“What have I done wrong to deserve this?” she desperately asks, her wrinkled hands shaking.
Anastasia is hungry, yet she won’t receive any aid today. And she is not alone. Many more people are suffering in the self-proclaimed separatist republics as promised aid fails to reach them.
Stefan Huijboom is a freelance Dutch journalist living in Ukraine.
