Volodymyr Labuzov was captured in April 2022 when the Ukrainian port city of Mariupol fell to Russian forces after weeks of fighting. Labuzov, a military doctor who worked at a makeshift hospital in the area, was one of the 2,500 prisoners captured by the Russians. Released in a prisoner exchange after seven months, he openly tells the media “Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty” that the Ukrainian prisoners were treated “brutally”.
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“We were treated very brutally. There was constant psychological and physical pressure, constant intimidation. They beat us to show their superiority. They called it chastening. They said that we are actually Russians who were brought up wrong,” says Labuzov.
The Russians wanted to extract confessions from the prisoners that would demonize the Ukrainian people.
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“I was accused of torturing Russian prisoners. They said I had been involved in drug trafficking, manufacturing and selling human organs, which I had allegedly done with Russian prisoners of war. All Ukrainian military medics were accused of this,” he continues.
The Russians ordered the prisoners to write dictated letters home: “The pattern was as follows: I’m fine. I can read books. I have food and medical help. I’m glad I can be a prisoner of war instead of fighting. It gives me a chance to survive and maybe come home.”
Volodymyr Labuzov returned home from captivity at the end of 2022.
“We all looked like we were coming back from the Auschwitz concentration camp. I didn’t even look the worst. Some of the prisoners lost 30-40 kilograms,” he recalls.
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After returning home, the medic spent a month with his family before returning to duty.
Now he runs a medical facility where wounded Ukrainian soldiers are treated.
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2023-08-13 18:14:14
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