"The Ministry of Information of the DPR" has launched a propaganda project - presentation of companies that continue to operate on the occupied territory. Among the filmed items there were reports on the work of the Doprokabel plant, Shakhtorskaya – Glubokaya mine, Zuhres plemptitsereproduktor JLLC, DonVtorPererabotka clothing manufacture and presentation of Yasinovatsky machine building plant.
The general line of the items is the restoration of pre-war capacity, complete set of staff, productive cooperation with Russian contractors and market expansion in the Russian Federation.
However, the propaganda machine sometimes fails and there was ugly truth about the real state of things in an interview with business leaders.
Peter Barabash, the director of DonVtorPererabotka clothing manufacture, recognizes that the main customers for the past two years were military. In the interview he also laments the difficulties in crossing the border of the "DPR" with the Russian Federation.
"We are not without work in 2015, as well as we weren’t in 2014. We now – is it needed to say? Can I? – are sewing overcoats, uniform for the Military Lyceum. How many? Hard to tell. Previously we had a year contract, now we are working in the just-in-time system. We’ve got work now and we hope that there will be work ... And I hope that we’ll sew another uniform for the Lyceum. The quantity is quite big there - a few hundred units. Ceremonial suits, overcoats, work uniforms. Now we are sewing overcoats ... "
"Nothing has changed greatly, we are working as we worked. But only if could cross the border with goods and fabrics more easily. Because queues are too large at the Russian border. If passing capacity is increased slightly [meaning from the Russian side], it would be fine. We buy the material in Russia. Now we have concluded a contract with Russia on the supply of fabrics. We drove somewhere around 10 thousand kilometers in Russia to sign contracts for the supply, getting to know companies what they know, what they produce, what fits us, what doesn’t fit. And I hope that in 2016 it will be like in 2015. I mean there will be work ..."
Alexander Kharchenko, director of Zuhres plemptitsereproduktor JLLC claims that his poultry farm provides eggs to "all the counters of the Republic".
"Last year we produced and sold about half a million of daily chickens of the final hybrid, which today produces commodity egg on the territory of our republic. And, in fact, all the eggs, which are now on store shelves are made due to the fact that we were able to complement the production of commodities. That all was very difficult to do especially after when the Ukrainian side organized the blockade of our territories. We could not get mixed feed from the territory of Ukraine, we were unable to deliver the goods there. But nevertheless, due to the actions of our Republican leaders we were able to enter the Russian market, from which we get the ingredients for the production of the mixed feed. In general, in the given situation we are more or less confident that we will soon work and produce the products that we produce and provide work to the same amount of people that are working for us now".
It should be noted that apart from the Zuhres poultry farm, Donetsk Proletarian and the Shakhtorskaya poultry farm work on the occupied territory. However, the "republican" power is not enough and the authorities of the self-proclaimed republic are forced to import eggs from the Russian Federation.
The most cynical was the video footage of the "Ministry of Information of the DPR" on Yasinovatskiy machine building plant.
Since August 2014 the plant was repeatedly exposed to cross-shelling, in which three factory workers were killed, and the central factory gates burnt down completely. The front line went through the plant territory and the administration did not even think to evacuate employees or at least suspend production by a day.
"And where can I go? Well, they shoot ... So after all, those who stayed to workare paid 50 hryvnia per day, we have got an order from Russia on the production of two harvesters ... "- said the mechanic, who lives in a house opposite the plant (Zorka, 19). The very next day after our conversation with him the last entrance of the house was destroyed by a direct hit of mines. Neither the commandant office of Yasinovataya nor residents of the house even now do not know how many people died that day in the destroyed house. In spite of the tragedy and the incessant shelling, the residents of the house did not agree to leave their apartments. Miraculously, heating, water and gas are still supplied in the house.
"The plant suffered from the military actions on August 14th, 2014. And almost since the factory has been on the front line for eight months. At the factory we have got a full burnt old plant office, two seriously damaged workshops. According to the official reference of our MOE, hostility losses amounted to about 150 million rubles. We have four dead plant workers. One was killed in the militia and three others in the workplace. But with all this, the backbone of the team has been saved. Almost since the end of September 2014 the plant has been working, producing and restoring at the same time. We had to restore twice, some three times - because they were bombed. Roughly speaking, there were three waves - August, October 2014 and we were seriously bombed from Avdeyevka on January 29th ... We are working very closely with our Ministry of Fuel, Energy and Coal Industry. We are now engaged in the restoration of relations with the Russian Federation. Literally tomorrow my deputies are going to a large technical meeting in St. Petersburg to Petersburg Metrostroy. We are now restoring relations wirh is Kuzbass, Vorkuta and other coal enterprises of the Russian Federation. So, basically, we have huge plans... "- Vladimir Trubchanin, CEO of Yasinovatskiy machine building plant.
Maksim Ksilantyev, Donetsk, for OstroV