DONETSK, June 9 (RIA Novosti) – A special Committee for matters relating to war prisoners and refugees started its work in the self-proclaimed Donetsk Republic, the authorities are currently compiling lists, the head of the committee and one of the republic’s leaders told RIA Novosti.
“I am waiting for the lists of these people that we have. Those who need to be freed will be freed. And at the same time I’m compiling my own list of the people I want to get back. The lists will be handed over to a mediator. He will go to Kiev,” Leonid Baranov said.
Baranov was previously detained on charges of inciting separatism and later exchanged for an advisor of the National Security and Defense Council Secretary, Andriy Parubiy.
The head of the committee also specified that local independence supporters hold captive both military forces and people conducting propaganda campaigns against the authorities of the republic.
“There are war prisoners taken during battles. For example, in Gorlovka we took three unit Alfa senior officers and exchanged them for Pavel Gubarev [Donetsk People’s Governor]. There are also local supporters of Kiev and ‘united Ukraine’ who are staging anti-national campaigns against my new republic. There are people who are spying on our activists and snitch. And then steal our people,” Baranov said adding that all the detentions are in accordance with the decrees by the republic’s government.
Prisoner swaps are negotiated with Kiev, represented by Defense Council Secretary Parubiy, Baranov elaborated.
He said that the exact number of prisoners detained in the republic is not clear yet.
“It’s hard to name an exact number, so far we are just compiling the lists. I know about 15. But the situation in Gorlovka and Slaviansk [the cities controlled by autonomous self-defense groups] remains unknown.”
According to Baranov, the number of captives detained by authorities in Kiev is much higher.
“No one knows for sure. It’s impossible to count. Over 30 people from Odessa are missing. Where are they? God only knows. More than 70 Kharkiv residents were detained and I’ve already lost count of those missing in Donetsk,” he said.
In mid-May the Donetsk and Luhansk self-proclaimed republics held referendums on self-determination. Following the vote, the two declared independence from Ukraine triggering condemnation from the authorities in Kiev, which said they would never recognize the results of the vote.
