Teremky: A Veteran Is Jailed, but the Question Remains

On October 7, new searches were conducted at Dmytryshyn’s home. His lawyers allege that police exceeded their authority. The police consider him the organizer of clashes during protests against the development of a green zone. The veteran is now behind bars. Meanwhile, what he was protesting — the disappearance of the last patch of nature in a densely built-up district — continues.

This is not a story about who was right in a scuffle. It’s a story about how the state treats its defender once he stops being convenient.

First, some context. Teremky is one of Kyiv’s most densely built-up areas. Green spaces are a luxury disappearing fast. When residents learned that another plot had been handed over for a high-rise, they protested. Among them was Liubomyr Dmytryshyn — a man who, by any logic, should embody the defense of the country, but instead became a symbol of resistance to construction.

And here’s where the absurdity begins.

A veteran is someone society supposedly owes a debt to. But when he uses the only tool left to him — his voice on the street — the state activates a repressive mechanism. The police don’t seek dialogue with activists. They look for an organizer. And they find one: a convenient suspect.

“A veteran is dangerous — better behind bars” seems to be the unofficial motto of Kyiv law enforcement. The irony is that these are the very people who should be the last to be locked up for trying to protect their city. But no: now veterans are a threat to public order. Especially if they get in the way of business.

Dmytryshyn’s lawyers insist the case is fabricated, that there is no evidence, and that the arrest is pressure on activists. Can they be believed? At the very least, one question deserves an answer: would the developers have been arrested just as quickly if they had started a fight? The answer is obvious.

But the worst part is not this. The worst part is that Dmytryshyn’s story is not an exception. It’s a trend. Veterans are only heard when they take to the streets. And when they do, they are arrested. A vicious circle with no way out until the authorities learn to listen without shouting.

While we debate whether the police exceeded their authority, the green zone in Teremky is already being cleared. And the veteran sits in a detention center. The question he tried to ask remains unanswered. And no one seems in a hurry to answer it.

Because a veteran is dangerous. Better behind bars.