Photographer Captures Brutal DIY Weapons of Ukrainian Protesters

[MarlaDesat]

Photographer Captures Brutal DIY Weapons of Ukrainian Protesters

Photographer Tom Jamieson produced a series of portraits of the homemade weapons carried by the protesters in Maidan Square, Ukraine.

They don't look like any weapon you'd craft in an Elder Scrolls game, but the weapons carried by protesters in Ukraine are just as effective. Photographer Tom Jamieson traveled to Ukraine for two weeks in February wanting to convey a larger view of the conflict, and the idea to document protesters' weapons occurred to him in the final days of his time there. Speaking to Wired [http://www.wired.com/rawfile/2014/03/ukraine-diy-weapons/#slide-id-155931], Jamieson says, "Every single person without fail had a club or a bat or something like that. You couldn't help but notice the DIY nature of the whole thing, from the barricades themselves to the totally inadequate body armor that people were wearing, and the weapons as well. It looked like something out of Mad Max, it was crazy."

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Jamieson and his assistant took the photos. The pair traveled Maidan Square in Kiev with a black background cloth, stopping when they saw an interesting weapon. Many of the weapons are decorated with messages, symbols, or cartoons. Jamieson says he saw evidence that the protesters held more modern weaponry, including automatic weapons, but that they were kept hidden to avoid escalating the conflict. "As nasty as a lot of these weapons look, and as brutal and primitive, it's nothing in comparison to an automatic machine gun," says Jamieson. "So they look fearsome but they're almost medieval - it's sticks and stones."

Jamieson plans to visit Crimea in the coming weeks, to document the unrest there. Reuters has published a detailed timeline [http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/03/08/us-ukraine-crisis-timeline-idUSBREA270PO20140308] of recent events in Ukraine. Peaceful protests began in Ukraine on November 21, 2013. Viktor Yanukovich, Ukraine's then president, backed out of trade deals with the EU and moved to strengthen ties with Russia instead. Protests intensified in December and January, particularly following new anti-protest laws. At least 77 people died in the violence. On February 22, the Ukrainian parliament voted to remove Yanukovich from his post as president, and he fled the capital soon after.

Source: Wired [http://www.wired.com/rawfile/2014/03/ukraine-diy-weapons/#slide-id-155931]


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[rofltehcat]

Pretty brutal stuff there. Things like that really shouldn't be necessary on either side of an internal conflict. I always wonder when hearing about protesters arming themselves if it'd actually protect them (would these do much against riot shields and riot armor, possibly assault rifles and machine guns?) or if it actually weakens their position because of how these things look to the general public.

I'm a bit surprised at the different flails. One one hand they are possibly useful to reach around riot shields but on the other hand using one of those probably requires a lot of training so you don't injure yourself and others fighting on your side.

 

[Chimpzy_v1legacy]

I like the that catapult in picture 9, as weird as it may sound.

Also, not going to lie, but the guy with the rock really made me want to post a video of that "I threw a rock at him" scene from Batman The Animated Series.

I feel like a horrible person now.

 

[Pyrian]

The flails are constructed like "footman's flails" - the handle is longer than the chain and implement. Those are reasonably safe to use, and quite effective.

 

[snekadid]

Ironically, few things are as guaranteed to spark protests as anti-protest laws.

 

[soren7550]

I like the that catapult in picture 9, as weird as it may sound.

Also, not going to lie, but the guy with the rock really made me want to post a video of that "I threw a rock at him" scene from Batman The Animated Series.

I feel like a horrible person now.

Your first thought wasn't this?:

... I'll leave.

OT: Based on the article title, I expected more clubs with many pointy bits.

 

[Robert Marrs]

As much as I like the creativity is there not a home depot or lowes nearby? Im sure some of them could do better than that. Have a bit of pride in your craftsmanship.

 

[FalloutJack]

Ironically, few things are as guaranteed to spark protests as anti-protest laws.

I believe it was Jason Statham who remarked in Death Race about starting a self-fulfilling prophecy (in regards to sending police to a factory shutdown to prevent a riot...thereby providing fuel for the riot fire.)

OT: Suffice to say, these weapons could (and probably did already) cause severe damage. Good thing they weren't from around here, where people build their own homemade GUNS. Still, I'm waiting for that staple-weapon of the revolutionaries, the Molotov Cocktail.

 

[Chimpzy_v1legacy]

I like the that catapult in picture 9, as weird as it may sound.

That's not a catapult, that's a hunting slingshot. In practiced hands, probably the most deadly weapon of those shown because you can nail a target from just over 15ft away with them having very little chance to block or dodge. (Of course, in unpracticed hands, you're better off with the rock)

Oh, right, slingshot. That's the proper English word. Messed up a little there. In my language, 'katapult' can denote both a slingshot and the siege weapon, hence the confusion.

Spoiler: Also, I can now no longer resist posting something even more stupid.

 

[Commander Obvious]

Looks like the arsenal of a post-apocalyptic hobo.

 

[Kargathia]

Still, I'm waiting for that staple-weapon of the revolutionaries, the Molotov Cocktail.

They definitely were using those. Chances are those were too commonplace and expendable to be note-worthy for a photographic project.

 

[FalloutJack]

Still, I'm waiting for that staple-weapon of the revolutionaries, the Molotov Cocktail.

They definitely were using those. Chances are those were too commonplace and expendable to be note-worthy for a photographic project.

I feel that that would've been more worthy to be up there than the bottle-onna-chain idea. Swinging a highly-breakable instrument like that seems wasted when any yokel can grab the bottleneck and use it there. Anyway, the cocktail is iconic, the very symbol of common man (or woman) not taking anymore from those in charge, "and they being naughty in thine eyes...shall snuff it".

 

[Vivi22]

(would these do much against riot shields and riot armor, possibly assault rifles and machine guns?) or if it actually weakens their position because of how these things look to the general public.

Armour and riot shields can't protect everything, and if the protestors have numbers and determination on their side, they're going to break through. Even with the advantage of guns riot police couldn't hold out forever. Eventually they expend their ammo and if they're caught out in the open with no ammo and a public that wants to kill them because they just opened fire on a crowd, they're in some trouble.

As for how it looks, I can honestly say that's probably the least of their concerns. The general public in the Ukraine were the ones being abused and killed so trying to arm themselves in any way possible makes sense. And anyone outside the country who wants to criticize them simply because the weapons they resorted too are considered brutal by today's standards don't really have anything useful to say on the subject.

 

[FalloutJack]

Blink

So, you're saying that in post-Soviet Ukraine, Molotov Cocktails YOU?

 

[FalloutJack]

Blink

So, you're saying that in post-Soviet Ukraine, Molotov Cocktails YOU?

You know Molotov was Soviet foreign minister?

"He signed the Law of Spikelets[15] and personally led the Extraordinary Commission for Grain Delivery in Ukraine,[16] which seized a reported 4.2 million tonnes of grain from the peasants during a widespread manmade famine (known in Ukraine as Holodomor).[15] Contemporary historians estimate that between seven and eleven million people died, either of starvation or in labour camps,[15] in the process of farm collectivization. Molotov also oversaw the implementation of the First Five-Year Plan for rapid industrialisation.[17]"

Actually, no, I didn't. I knew the general history of the weapon itself. If I accidentally made an extra reference here, I was not entirely aware.