The activists decided to negotiate directly with the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) and the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) without the involvement of politicians.  The objective of these negotiations is the release of all arrested activists and the implementation of the amnesty law approved in Parliament.  This was communicated at a press conference to by the representative of the fighters-veterans Oleh Mykhnyuk to ЛІГАБізнесІнформ.  “Politicians and political forces, who have recently been holding negotiations, do not care about people taken into custody. Nobody is working on their cases. People on the barricades have entrusted us to negotiate on their behalf.”

He also said that the main aim of the veterans of the Soviet war in Afghanistan is to find a peaceful way out of the current situation. The first round of negotiations took place on Friday January 31, when a meeting with the Head of the SBU and the Deputy Head of the MIA was held. The first results are the release of 112 arrested people, while another 116 remain under arrest.

Mr. Mykhnyuk explained that the MIA and SBU will give them the list of all arrested activists that will be compared with the one maintained by EuroMaidan and will be endorsed by its headquarters in oblasts.  Moreover, the procedure of their release will be agreed upon. Meanwhile, protesters continue to honor the cease-fire, Hrushevskoho Street is not on fire, no one is throwing stones.

Mr. Mykhnyuk confirmed that the preliminary date for fulfilment of the agreement is this Friday February 7. However, this deadline may be extended – the most important is for the government to start releasing arrested protesters.

Mykola Semenyaka, the representative of the fighter and veterans of the Soviet war in Afghanistan, said “We are holding negotiations in order to hear each other. We want to solve this situation peacefully.”

If the conditions are not met, the Right Sector and the veterans of the Soviet war in Afghanistan promise to renew active confrontation. “We are ready for this confrontation,” they declared, also reminding that 400,000 weapons are registered in Kyiv. alone

The negotiators succeeded in turning the amnesty law upside down. The parties agreed that the release of the arrested activists will be followed by vacating Hrushevskoho Street and then the administrative buildings and not vice versa as is stipulated in the amnesty law, and that the interior police have agreed to this

The second round of negotiations started today, February 3 at 3 p.m. The results thereof are not yet shared publicly.  These negotiations included representatives from the SBU, MIA representatives and those from the Prosecutor General.

We remind you that yesterday at the National meeting, the leader of the Parliamentary faction, the Batkivschyna Party Arseniy Yatseniuk advised that in the last few days, 122 protesters were released with 116 Maidan protesters remaining in custody.  In addition, January 30-31, the court released three activists under house arrests although criminal. charges remain

Translated by Oleksandra Kondratenko

Edited by Lenna Koszarny

Source: news.liga.net