“I sat with people in the basement when the Ukrainian army shelled Gorlovka. I saw the houses near the frontline. All of Donbass was razed. There were mine shafts from which the dead had to be recovered; people whom the Nazis had thrown into these shafts alive,” recalls Liane Kilinc, chair of the Peace Bridge – Aid For War Victims foundation. She used to be a renowned German athlete, but what she is really admired for is the help she’s been offering the children of Donbass. They were the ones who suffered the most from the civil war that engulfed eastern Ukraine in 2014.
She and her team have been following the developments in Ukraine from day one. They saw the Nazi crimes and knew people were dying there. The shortage of food and clothing was appalling. In February 2015, she was asked if they could help with winter clothes, and they did. This is when the first truck with winter clothes and shoes was sent to Donbass.
What gives Liane energy and strength to do her job? Why might she face jail time for what she’s doing back in Germany?