Saying “no”. A rally against a play in Hamburg based on Filatyev’s book

The Ukrainian community in Hamburg opposes a play. The playwright is not a modern creator but a former Russian military. The community issued a press release about it.

Starting on 30 April, a play based on the book “ZOV 56” by former professional Russian military officer Pavel Filatyev is scheduled for performance in Hamburg. The play will run until 25 June 2023!

On 28 April, the theatre posted on its website that the event on 30 April had been cancelled, but they were not going to stop showing the play.
Therefore, on 1 May, Ukrainians hold a rally near the theatre during the performance.

The Ukrainian community in Hamburg expresses its outrage at the provision of a creative platform in Hamburg for a play based on a book by a military man who was directly involved in Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

In 2022, paratrooper Pavel Filatyev took part in the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine.

After two months of active combat on the front line, Filatyev published a book about his military experience. In it, he criticises the material support and preparations of the Russian army for the so-called “special military operation”.

The former Russian paratrooper also claims that he did not take part in the killings of Ukrainians. With the help of the Gulagu.net project Filatyev was able to escape to France and is currently promoting and popularising his work in Europe.

The top facts used by the support team and Filatyev himself to promote the book are:

• Substitution of concepts and exploitation of the image of a repentant soldier. The facts of Filatyev’s direct participation in hostilities as part of the Russian army are currently being established;
• A statement that part of the proceeds from the sale will be donated to Ukrainians affected by the war. There is currently no evidence of any funds being transferred to support Ukrainian projects or initiatives

The Ukrainian community want to draw attention to the importance of the issues that Europeans should understand when agreeing to show the play based on Pavel Filatyev’s book ZOV 56.

Activists urge people not to be indifferent and join the protest. This is a way to prevent the manipulation of public opinion.

The performance should be stopped until a full and comprehensive investigation into the crimes of the book’s author, Pavel Filatyev, is conducted.