*There are two articles in this series, the last one: How Do Ordinary Russians See The War: “All of this may have not happened if Ukraine had not rejected diplomatic peace proposals.”
The price of anti-war
After weeks of living under a veneer of calm, anti-war sentiment is making a comeback in the streets of Russia.
Anti-war protests held this weekend across 17 cities including Saint Petersburg, Moscow and Yekaterinburg, saw over 200 people being arrested by security forces, according to a Russian NGO tallying anti-Kremlin protests.
Since the beginning of the war, OVD-Info has documented 15,350 arrests resulting from anti-war protests.
In the capital, rallies symbolically took place not in Pushkin Square, as they usually do, but at Zaryadye Park, just meters away from the Kremlin.
Жёсткое задержание участника антивоенной акции в Москве, державшего плакат "NO WAR" #антивоенные_протесты #Путин_против_миротворцев
— Ilya Ponomarev (@iponomarev) April 2, 2022
Видео: SOTA pic.twitter.com/SIm82FUfYk
A girl attracts the attention of the media. Olga Misik, 17, sat on the street, reading a paragraph of the Russian constitution on "peaceful assemblies" and said: "I just want to remind them that we are here for peaceful purposes, without weapons - But they're not." Made the group of armed policemen behind her look ironic.
Public displays of civil disobedience have noticeably dwindled in recent weeks, as the Russian parliament moved to bring in strict new laws to curb dissent.
Public actions aimed at "discrediting" or disseminating “deliberately false information about the use of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation'', have been made illegal. Those arrested face imprisonment of up to 15 years or a fine of as much as 1.5 million roubles ($17,500).
For some, the vagueness of the legislation leaves enough space for authorities to act at will. Independent media reports have shown peaceful citizens holding yellow or white flowers being harassed by the police. While others have ended up in detention for simply holding up blank pieces of paper or replacing words of protest with asterisks.
Russians have tried finding creative ways around the repressive measures, from wearing outfits in the colors of the Russian flag to crossing out the packaging of a popular supermarket chain’s products from Miratorg (world trade) to simply Mir (peace).
“I have friends in Ukraine. A friend of theirs just died today. Those whom I personally know, thank God, are still safe, but they are already losing friends. It's completely unbearable. I am against the criminal acts in Ukraine,” said protester Leonid Tsoi to a media outlet during a rally in Saint Petersburg on Saturday.
Mixed reviews of the pro-war rally
Back in the Russian capital, pictures of anti-war protesters being hauled into riot police vans come in stark contrast to the start-studded pro-war rally held just two weeks ago at Moscow’s Luzhniki Stadium, featuring a parade of Russian celebrities, sports champions, well-known state propaganda figures and the Russian leader, Vladimir Putin, himself.
Meant to celebrate the eighth anniversary of the annexation of Crimea, the spectacle doubled as an attempt to prop up support for the ongoing invasion of Ukraine. But amid reports that a great share of the flag-waving and cheering crowd were in fact public sector workers allegedly coerced by bosses into participating, the event was met with widespread ridicule by many in Russia.
"I'll be here for a while and then I'll leave… I think most people here don't support the war. I don't," said a metro worker to the BBC.
Moscow today lives trapped in a schizophrenic-like reality; public support for the war voiced in the media and official institutions contrasting with private disapproval of the Kremlin’s actions by ordinary citizens.
Shame, shock, disbelief and frustration are a common thread for the Russians whom daring to question Russian state officials have become more and more dangerous.
“I’m against war, against any violence. My views are shared by almost all of those around me,” says Sasha, a Muscovite who spent her teenage years studying abroad. Having only returned to Russia a few years ago, she confesses she’s still living through a cultural shock.
“We can’t forget the fact that many Russians only get their news through TV, so they have no chance to see this war as anything else than Putin saving defenseless Ukrainians from the evil West. I always learned that Ukraine was an independent country. I don’t know what they teach nowadays.”
Sasha is a frequent presence at peace rallies, but worries that the Kremlin’s harsh wartime crackdown has led to fewer people being willing to speak up. And many who’ve dared voicing their anti-Kremlin stance have fled the country, fearing persecution, sanctions and the dawn of a new Iron Curtain.
By some estimates, over 200,000 Russians have left Russia in the weeks following the beginning of the conflict with Kyiv. But even abroad, not all Russians are being welcomed with open arms. In neighboring Georgia, already home to a sizable Russian diaspora, the latest arrivals have been met with anti-Russia rhetoric and covert acts of hostility.
A Russian emigre we spoke to confesses that he feels like a “second class resident” in Tbilisi.
In 2008, Georgia fought a bloody war with Moscow after which the country lost control over the breakaway territories of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Russia has recognised its independence and provides financial and military backing to both regions to this day. Just like what it did to Donetsk and Luhansk recently.
Sasha, however, says she won’t be joining her compatriots abroad.
“There is hope in staying in Russia and living to see the day when this oppressive regime ends. I’m still hopeful, though, that those who stay will strive and help rebuild Russia into something better. But looking back on Russian history, it’s very likely that the worst might be yet to come.” she concludes.
*中文版請見：俄羅斯平民怎麼看戰爭（下）1 萬 5 千人站出來反戰，代價是 15 年牢獄之災
Editor: Sylvia Tien
