The chronicle of the heroic struggle: the annals of the defense of Mariupol were presented in Kyiv – News

In Kyiv, the project “M86. Chronicle of the defense of Mariupol”. According to the creators, this is “the main source of information about the defense of the city.”

The presentation took place in the Museum and Exhibition Center of the Museum of History of Kyiv. The annals record the entire chronicle of the struggle for the city – hundreds of military testimonies, thousands of photos and video materials have been collected.

Work on the project lasted two years. Defenders of Mariupol took part in the creation.

According to Victoria Titova, director of the Big City Lab urban bureau, “M86” is a daily chronicle of the heroic struggle for the city, verified by the military.

“We worked a lot with Mariupol before the full-scale war – we designed several parks, prescribed strategies, thought about implementing them and generally developing the city.

When a full-scale invasion took place, we were in shock: the city was being destroyed right in front of our eyes. We could not do anything. We really wanted to preserve the truth about the events that took place, because there was a lot of information – both fakes and throwaways. We started collecting all the chronicles, photos, videos, and at some point we met a person who later became the author of the chronicle.” – said Viktoriya Titova in the commentary “UP. Life”.

Before publication, the chronicle passed the examination of the Main Directorate of Intelligence and the Ministry of Defense.

The author of the chronicle “M86” Sector M is a journalist from Mariupol who wished to remain anonymous for security reasons. He collected a large part of facts and testimonies.

“At first I just collected information about Mariupol. Then it accumulated to such an extent that it was simply impossible to find something, and systematization began. When there was a big exchange on September 21, 2022, some of the unit commanders came out. They found out that such an initiative exists and decided to work on it together. I received help from many departments – that’s how it all started“, Sector M said in the comment “UP. Life”.

The author admits that the most difficult moments during the creation of the chronicle were communication with those who lost loved ones:

“This is a difficult topic that made me come back to the most difficult hours of my life”.

Defender of “Azovstal” Dmytro Kozatskyi “Orest” in the commentary of “UP. Life” noted that it is extremely important to remember the heroism of the defenders of Mariupol, who defended Mariupol with their own forces to the last, that is why Ukrainians need this chronicle.

“As experience shows, we did not remember our history well enough. It is engraved, unfortunately, in blood. It is important to record it so that future generations do not repeat our mistakes that were made 20, 30 years ago. Therefore, I believe that this very important, especially since this is the story of the country that is currently at war, the heroes who defend it”he emphasized.

“M86” as a tool for returning prisoners

“The chronicle is our voice, our language of love, our way of saying: FREE MARIUPOL DEFENDERS”– writes Victoria Titova on Facebook.

The chronicle “M86” is intended to become one of the tools of the struggle for prisoners, Natalya Yemchenko, a member of the supervisory board of Mariupol Reborn, noted at the presentation.

“More than 2,000 defenders remain in Russian captivity. Time to fight for those who chose time for us. The chronicle is not only a recording of events, but also a powerful tool of advocacy for the return of prisoners, one of the tools of Ukraine’s struggle for prisoners.”she says.

Defender Ilya Ilyashenko, nicknamed “Smurf”, who defended Mariupol and spent almost 10 months in Russian captivity, also took part in the presentation. He supplemented the chronicle with information about the struggle for the city and his own testimonies.

In the commentary of “UP. Life”, “Smurf” emphasized that people should know and remember about the defense of Mariupol.

“Many boys died, their memory should live forever. Heroes will be remembered only when they are talked about. If you don’t do such projects, the memory of the defense of Mariupol will quickly disappear.”– said the defender.

During the discussion of the annals, Ilya Ilyashenko called on Ukrainians to remember the soldiers who are still in Russian captivity, to talk about it, to attend actions for the release of the defenders of Mariupol.

“It is necessary to participate in actions for the liberation of prisoners of war. If people will come, remind about them on social networks, I think it will give results”he believes.

A view of Mariupol from the point of view of art

One of the important elements of the presentation of the chronicle was an international exhibition of posters with the support of Big City Lab, the National Museum of the History of Ukraine and 4th Block.

It included 138 works by Ukrainian and foreign authors. Among them, you can see those that echo the events in the annals. One of these posters depicts the Mariupol Drama Theater wrapped in an envelope with the inscription “Where are you?”. Some of the posters have thoughts about war, such as “IT’S NOT A WAR_IT’S MURDER” (it’s not a war, it’s murder).

“We invited the authors through interaction and research, metaphors, real stories and, of course, art, which always subtly feels any changes, to depict Mariupol as a place of strength, resilience and light that pierces the darkness with a bright ray.”– explains exhibition curator Nastya Ishchenko at the presentation.

The exhibition can be visited until March 3 in the Museum of the History of the City of Kyiv. After the presentation in Kyiv, it will be presented in the main program of the 12th international triennial “4th Block” in Kharkiv (Ukraine), Graz (Austria), New York and Los Angeles (USA).

Further plans

According to Natalia Yemchenko, they plan to translate the annals into English later, and also, if necessary, the team will be ready to create additional products around “M86”.

“We have an idea proposed by Yaroslava Gres: to make 10 large copies with steel covers, which should go to the Library of Congress, the Library of Europe, etc. For us, this is not just an opportunity to tell the truth, but also an opportunity to make a powerful advocacy platform for all public organizations fighting for the release of prisoners.” – she says.

In the future, the project is planned to enter the international arena.

“The chronicle must be read, it must be commented on. As the commanders with whom we spoke say, it is fundamental. This chronicle is already the main source of truth about the defense of Mariupol”Yemchenko adds.

The team also has an idea to film a film about the defense of Mariupol.

During 86 days (that’s how long the defense of Mariupol lasted), the pages of the chronicle will be gradually opened on the website. Now you can read about the first week of the city’s defense.

According to Victoria Titova, the main text with Denys “Redis” Prokopenko (Azov), Denys Shlega (National Guard), Viktor Sikoza (36 OBMP), Valery Padytel (border guards), Igor Chertov (23 ZMO) has already been verified. Their reviews can be seen on the platform.

As the creators emphasized, “M86. Chronicle of the defense of Mariupol” is an open source project. Additional testimonies and stories may appear there.

The project “M86. Chronicle of the defense of Mariupol” was created by Big City Lab and the National Museum of the History of Ukraine with the support of Mariupol Reborn.

Anna Stopenko, UP. Life