C14 (Ukrainian group)

Group logo

C14, also known as Sich[1] (Ukrainian: С14 (Січ)), is a radical Ukrainian nationalists group founded in 2010[2] that gained notoriety in 2018 for being involved in violent attacks on Romany camps.[3][4][5] C14 itself claims that it is only involved in removing illegal Romany camps with only using "compelling legitimate arguments."[6]

According to Radio Free Europe members of the group have openly expressed neo-Nazi views.[3] C14 has denied having such sympathies.[1]

History

C14 began in 2010 as the youth wing of the ultra-nationalist political party Svoboda.[1]

C14 was one of the far-right groups active during the Euromaidan movement (November 2013-February 2014).[1] They were involved with skirmishes with the violent pro-government supporters known as ‘Titushky’.[1]

Early 2018 Ukraine's capital Kiev and C14 signed an agreement allowing C14 to establish a "municipal guard" to patrol the city streets.[7]

Group image

News organization and the Terrorism Research & Analysis Consortium have reported that the number 14 in the group’s name has been seen as a reference to a 14-word slogan coined by American white-supremacist David Lane.[1][7][2][nb 1] But this white-supremacist link is being denied by the group members, they say C14 (as spelled in the Ukrainian alphabet) just resembles the word Sich (Ukrainian: січ) – the name given to the administrative and military centres for Cossacks in the 16-18th century.[1] C14 leader Yevhen Karas has repeatedly denied being a Nazi.[1] According to him his main “confrontations” were with "non-Ukrainian ethnic groups that controlled Ukraine’s political and economic forces" (Karas identified Russians, Jews, and Poles).[1] (According to him) “We don’t consider ourselves a neo-Nazi organization, we’re clearly Ukrainian nationalists.”[1] In May 2018 Hromadske.TV stated "Most of C14’s actions do seem to be directed at Russia, or those sympathetic towards Russia".[1] German political scientist Andreas Umland on the other hand claimed (also in May 2018) that C14 "could qualify as neo-Nazi."[1] Radio Free Europe reported in June 2018 that members of the group had openly expressed neo-Nazi views.[3]

In 2017 C14 was accused by left-wing anti-war[8][9] activist Stas Serhiyenko of having been involved in his stabbing.[10][7] The day after the attack C14 leader Karas accused Serhiyenko of having supported the 2014 pro-Russian unrest in Kharkiv and the 2014 Russian annexation of Crimea and claimed that the attack was "far from the first, but not the last, attack on the bacilli of terrorism, hidden in the midst of peaceful Ukrainian streets".[11]

In June 2018 C14 gained international notoriety after reports it was being involved in violent attacks on Romany camps.[3][4] After one alleged such attack (in May 2018) Kiev police released a statement it had not receive complaints from Roma for beatings nor violence.[12] C14 itself claims that it does only use "compelling legitimate arguments" to remove illegal Romany camps.[6]

Notes

  1. ↑ The David Lane coined slogan: “We must secure the existence of our people and a future for White Children.”[2]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 A Fine Line: Defining Nationalism and Neo-Nazism in Ukraine, Hromadske.TV (10 May 2018)
  2. 1 2 3 C14 aka Sich - Ukraine, Terrorism Research & Analysis Consortium
  3. 1 2 3 4 Ukrainian Militia Behind Brutal Romany Attacks Getting State Funds, Radio Free Europe (June 14, 2018)
  4. 1 2 Ukraine Roma camp attack leaves one dead, BBC News (24 June 2018)
  5. ↑ SBU opens case against C14 nationalists for detention of Brazilian mercenary – lawyer, UNIAN (18 June 2018)
  6. 1 2 (in Ukrainian) On the Fox Mountain in Kiev, the nationalists dismantled and burnt a Roma camp (На Лисій горі в Києві націоналісти розібрали і спалили табір ромів),112 Ukraine (April 22, 2018)
  7. 1 2 3 Commentary: Ukraine’s neo-Nazi problem, Reuters (MARCH 19, 2018)
  8. ↑ (in Russian) The volunteer told about one of the "left" students who threw the cake to the deputy finance minister (Волонтер рассказал об одном из "левых" студентов, бросивших тортом в замминистра финансов), UNIAN (31 August 2016)
  9. ↑ (in Ukrainian) Заява Платформа «Старт» про стипендії, наклеп та російський імперіалізм (заява)
  10. ↑ (in Russian) Kiev, attacked a participant of "shares with a cake" against the abolition of scholarships (В Киеве напали на участника "акции с тортом" против отмены стипендий),Strana.ua (April 23, 2017)
  11. ↑ (in Ukrainian) Another safari on the separa (Чергове сафарі на сепарів),Censor.net. (21 April 2017)
  12. ↑ (in Ukrainian) Kryshchenko: On the Lysi mountain, garbage was burned during the Sabbath, and not the Roma camp (Крищенко: На Лисій горі під час суботника спалили сміття, а не табір ромів),112 Ukraine (May 24, 2018)
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