Yesterday at 21:05
In 2014, people gathered to pay respects to Mykhail Zhyznevsky on Maidan on his birthday. He was 25 when he was killed, just 4 days before his 26 birthday. On Jan. 22, Mykhail was shot in his chest with a bullet used to stop vehicles. Until that day, Ukrainian police forces were using rubber bullets against Euro-Maidan protesters.
“On January 22, it was clear that they were ready to use combat ammunition. Meaning, there was no specific order not to use weapons that kill. Maybe at the level of unit commanders it was not noticed, that someone wasn’t chambering with rubber bullets, but with those that could kill a boar or breach a door,” Ihor Mazur said.
Mykhail Zhyznevsky was on Maidan from the very first day of the protests.
“I would go home sometimes, but he lived there. He was with several women he knew, had a few romances. And when he was laid to rest, I saw many women crying, ones I knew from Maidan. Maybe each of them thought that he was the man they were looking for. He was striking, with this interesting Belorussian accent. He was the type that women like. A bit of a troublemaker,” Mazur added.
Many remembered the mischievous character of Zhyznevsky. He himself chose a pseudonym, or callsign, for himself.
“He called himself “Loki”. You know, it fit him. Loki in Scandinavian mythology is the god of mischief. He was like that. Always cheerful, could never sit still. I cannot even remember him ever being grim. He always smiled. A real Loki,” said a friend of Mykhail, Major Maks.
Mykhail Zhyznevsky moved to Ukraine in 2005 because of his disagreement with the political regime in Belarus. He made friends quickly in Ukraine, and, according to them, was someone who could be relied on.
“He was the kind of man, who you could always rely on. I mean, if you knew that Loki is behind you, you didn’t have to watch your back,” Major Maks said.
Loki was one of the most active participants of the Maidan revolution. He was defending the Hrushevskoho street barricades in central Kyiv and became one of the first ones to die for the freedom of Ukraine.
“I can guarantee, not even just 100 percent, but a billion percent: if he was still alive and what happened after the Maidan, I mean the war, he would be the first one to go and defend Ukraine,” he added.
Loki was the first hero of the heavenly hundred who’s funeral was held on Maidan Square. On that day, for the first time, the requiem song to all the victims of revolution sounded on maidan. It was Zhyznevsky’s favourite song – Plyne Kacha.
In 2017, Mykhail Zhyznevsky was posthumously honored with the Hero of Ukraine award.
