Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
perhaps seen in Kyiv as a harmless, slightly naive protest movement, tittilatingly
attention-grabbing but generally ignored by the Ukrainian regime (Party of the Regions
MPs often referred to members as 'prostitutes'). However, in summer 2013 things got
nasty. It's thought the Ukrainian secret police (SBU), possibly under pressure from the
Russian FSB (formerly the KGB), were responsible for a series of attacks on Anna Hut-
sol and other members, putting several, including Anna, in hospital. Things really came
to a head in late August 2013 when SBU agents allegedly planted explosive material and
firearms in the organisation's Kyiv offices, then arrested the leadership. Accused of illeg-
al possession of weapons, Anna Hutsol, along with prominent members Sasha Shevchen-
ko and Yana Zhdanova, fled Ukraine in fear of their lives.
For more information on the group's activities and the fate of its members visit
www.femen.org
. A film called
Ukraine Is Not a Brothel
(
www.ukraineisnotabrothel.com
)
by Australian filmmaker Kitty Green, herself interrog-
ated by the Belarusian KGB following a Femen protest there, was shown at the Venice
International Film Festival in 2013.
There are over 3½ million more women in Ukraine than there are men, despite slightly
more boys being born on average than girls.
