They took the Red Cross flag away with them, announcing that it is their trophy.
More than 20 Red Cross medical volunteers suffered as a result of collisions on Hrushevskoho of January 22nd, 2014. Vice-President of , All-Ukrainian Council for Patients’ Rights and Safety, Evgen Najshetetyk, stated: “In the last couple days we received information about more than 20 people that work for Red Cross being beaten up”.
He says the medical workers were beaten up by Berkut [riot police]. He also notes medical volunteers are always under attacks of traumatic and gas weapon. “Now they have to work in body armors and shields. Different sources talk about more than 500 qualified medical workers helping out medical volunteer squads and Maidan medical service. More than one third of them reported different injuries got from security forces” – summed up the representative of the charity organization. We remind that yesterday All-Ukrainian Union’s “Svoboda” press service informed that special service “Berkut” fighters destroyed a medical post of protesters on the first floor of the National Academy of Sciences on Hrushevskoho st in Kyiv. Six fighters walked into the Red Cross building with medical workers and wounded people, and started to break windows, throw stun grenades and use tear gas. Volodymir Tyschenko posted a video on Youtube with this attack.
“Medical workers had to escape, leaving all the medicine and drugs behind. When a Berkut agent walked into the building he shot one of the volunteers that was trying to help one of the patience out. The Berkut agent fired inspite of the fact the medical volunteer wore a red vest with the Red Cross symbol and he showed his ID. The injured volunteer told us he was shot on purpose: “At the beginning he was aiming my face, however, he lowered his weapon and shot my leg. Of course, later on they can say it was an accident. But he was looking into my eyes. It was done on purpose”. The medical volunteer commented that Berkut doesn’t care about humanitarian and protective mission of the Red Cross and consider everyone criminals – medical, mass media workers, and ordinary people”, – wrote Tyschenko.
Now the medical workers are forced to give first aid in the Trade Union house, which is several hundred meters away from the battleground.
