Ravers held a protest in Podil, Kiev’s main clubbing district, on Friday in response to police violence.
The demonstration took place outside the main police station and was organized after a brutal incident days earlier, as Resident advisor reports.
At around midnight on Wednesday evening, special force officers stopped local musician Dmitry Bugaychuk for looking “suspicious.” Onlookers claim they witnessed the officers beat, strangle and detain Bugaychuk for about three hours.
A member of the crowd started recording the incident as he was being treated for his wounds. Protesters are calling for the resignation of the head of the local Podilsky Police Department and an end to illegal searches and police raids.
“In Ukraine, the police are crazy violent and super corrupted,” protest organiser Nataliia Voitova told Resident Advisor. “They want money.” Police have been known to force partygoers and venues to pay bribes when caught with drugs, or otherwise face imprisonment. She believes that in this case marijuana was planted on Bugaychuk.
Watch a recording of the protest here.
