Courageous critics of Vladimir Putin living in Russia today spoke out against him for destroying their country and “starting World War III” as protesters took to the streets of more than 50 cities, despite the threat of being accused of state betrayal.
Thousands marched amid allegations that Putin may have “gone too far” in invading Ukraine, his critics hoped to drown him – and some were interviewed by foreign press, including the BBC, even though they knew the Kremlin would watch.
One woman broke down and said she “can’t stop crying,” while another protester said, “Most Russians don’t support that. Its terrible ‘.
While the number of protests in a country of 180 million was in the thousands, their bravery was hailed around the world for Putin’s policy of breaking up protests and shutting down his enemies.
They also spoke, although facing almost certain arrests and imprisonment, because the Kremlin says “negative comments” about Putin’s invasion of Ukraine will be treated as “treason.” And yet Facebook was full of Russians angry about the war.
Dmitry Muratov, editor of the only Russian newspaper against Putin to win the Nobel Peace Prize in 2021, said he would publish the next version of Novaya Gazeta in two languages - Ukrainian and Russian – saying: “We do not recognize Ukraine as an enemy.”
Named “Russia’s bravest man” for his vocal opposition to Putin, he told the BBC that the day of the invasion had brought “shame” and would remain “the day Russia’s future was taken away”, adding: “Our peace. .. loving Russians will now feel the hatred of the world because we are starting World War III in the heart of Europe. He added: “Only the anti-war movement of the Russians can save the life of this planet.”
More than 1,000 people were torn to pieces and detained as they marched through the streets of Moscow near the Kremlin, chanting “No to War!” As passing cars honked.
One man told the BBC: “There is a sense of horror and shame at what our authorities are doing. In my circle of friends, this is a very common feeling. I have never voted for those in power now and I did what I could, what a person in Russia is currently able to do to influence political life – I went out to protest. But I don’t think there will be any now. Everyone is too scared. ‘
Hundreds of mostly young Russians protested in Putin’s hometown of St. Petersburg, chanting against the war, and the president, despite a Russian Investigative Committee, issued a warning reminding them that unauthorized protests were against the law.
“This is the most shameful and horrible day of my life. I couldn’t even go to work. My country is an aggressor. And Putin’s house. What else needs to be done to get people to open their eyes? “Said Ekaterina Kuznetsova, a 40-year-old engineer who joined the demonstration.
There are hopes that an unpopular war with Ukraine could sink Putin. Defense Minister Ben Wallace said yesterday that the Russian president was trying to “secure his legacy”, predicting that it would not be the legacy “he wants” in a hint that he believed he could be removed from office.
Despite knowing the authorities would be watching, Russians spoke out to say they ‘hate’ Putin and his war with Ukraine despite being told it would be treason
Dmitry Muratov, the editor of Russia’s only anti-Putin newspaper who won the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize, says they will publish the next version of Novaya Gazeta in two languages - Ukrainian and Russian as anger in the country grows
People attend an anti-war protest in President Putin’s home town of St Petersburg as critics predict the invasion could lead to his downfall
MOSCOW: A woman gestures as she is marched off by Russian police officers in Russia’s capital on Tuesday night
Moscovites with placards reading ‘No war. Putin, go away’ and comparing him to Hitler walked the streets
A man holds a placard reading “No” during an anti-war protest in Lenin Square, Novosbirsk in central Russia
BBC reporter Clive Miri seems to shed a tear as he presents news at 10 live from Kyiv after the dramatic first day of bloodshed and violence in Ukraine
As Clive Miri introduced BBC News international correspondent Orla Guery, tears welled up in his face.
BBC journalist Clive Miri seems to have shed a tear while reporting on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last night.
Miri was reporting live in Kyiv to BBC News at 10 a.m. in front of St. Michael’s Monastery as sirens rang around him.
He told viewers that “fierce battles” were being fought and said Russia had invaded Ukraine “by land, sea and air” on a brutal day of violence and bloodshed as the invasion began yesterday.
Then, when he introduced the international correspondent of BBC News Orla Gueri, a tear visibly appeared on his face. Dozens turned to social media to share their shock at the scene.
One man wrote, “Exceptional! Clive Miri presents @BBCNews in 10 from Kyiv with a tear rolling down his cheek. ‘
Another said: “Wow, a tear ran down Clive Miri’s face right now as she was on BBC News at 10.”
While a third said: “Exceptional – Clive Miri broadcasts the news from Kyiv with great dignity and with a tear on his cheek.”
The BBC reports that similar scenes have taken place in dozens of cities across the country with 180 million people. About 1,745 people were detained in 54 Russian cities, at least 957 of them in Moscow.
A young man told the BBC: “I’ve been crying all day. People in Ukraine are dying. The children are dying. Men who fight die. And then what? And we, the young Russian men aged 19-20, will be charged with fighting? ‘
Asked if he and his friends were too scared to come to the rally, he replied: “No. This is not scary. What is happening in Ukraine and its borders is frightening. What we have here now is nothing. ‘
Hundreds of publications have been published condemning Moscow’s most aggressive actions since the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979 and growing fears that it could lead to global conflict as Putin tries to assemble the Soviet Union and the Iron Curtain.
Vladimir Putin called the attack a “special military operation” to protect civilians in eastern Ukraine from “genocide” – a false statement by the United States, which they predicted would be a pretext for invasion and which many Russians flatly rejected.
Many people who took to the streets also took to social media.
Tatiana Usmanova, an opposition activist in Moscow, wrote on Facebook that she thought she was dreaming when she woke up at 5:30 p.m. of the news, which she called “a disgrace that will be with us forever now.”
“I want to ask the Ukrainians for forgiveness. “We did not vote for those who started the war,” she said.
As sirens exploded in Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital, and large explosions were heard there and in other cities, Russians signed open letters and online petitions demanding the Kremlin stop the attack, which the Ukrainian health minister said killed at least 57 Ukrainians and injured dozens of sea.
“Public opinion is in shock, people are in shock,” political analyst Abbas Galyamov told the Associated Press.
A petition launched by renowned human rights lawyer Lev Ponomavyov garnered more than 150,000 signatures in a matter of hours and more than 330,000 by the end of the day. More than 250 journalists cited their names in an open letter condemning the aggression. Another was signed by about 250 scholars, and 194 members of the municipal council in Moscow and other cities signed a third.
“I’m very worried about people, I’m worried about tears,” said Zoya Vorobey, a resident of Korolyov, a city outside Moscow, with a broken voice. “I’ve been watching TV since this morning, every minute to see if anything has changed. Unfortunately nothing. ‘
Several Russian celebrities and public figures, including some working for state television, have spoken out against the attack. Elena Kovalskaya, director of a state-funded Moscow theater, announced on Facebook that she was quitting her job, saying “it is impossible to work for a murderer and get paid by him.”
“I know that many of you are currently experiencing despair, helplessness, shame from Vladimir Putin’s attack on the friendly people of Ukraine. But I urge you not to despair, “human rights activist Marina Litvinovich said in a video statement on Facebook, calling for mass protests Thursday night.
“We, the Russian people, are against the war that Putin unleashed. We do not support this war, it is not being fought on our behalf, “Litvinovic said.
But the authorities had none of that.
In Moscow and other cities, they quickly intervened to deal with critical voices. Litvinovic was detained outside her home shortly after the protest call was published. OVD-Info, a human rights group that monitors political arrests, said 1,745 people in 54 cities had been detained by Thursday night, at least 957 of them in Moscow.
MOSCOW: Police officers detain a woman during a protest against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
MOSCOW: Police officers drag a protester towards a police van in Moscow on Thursday night amid anti-war demonstrations
MOSCOW: Police officers detain a demonstrator during a protest against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
ST PETERSBURG: Demonstrators are seen during an unsanctioned anti-war protest after Putin announced his decision to launch a special military operation
ST PETERSBURG: Police officers detain a demonstrator during an anti-war protest, after Russian President Vladimir Putin authorized a military operation in Ukraine
SAINT PETERSBURG: Police officers detain a woman during a protest against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in central Saint Petersburg on February 24, 2022
SAINT PETERSBURG: Riot police are seen during an unsanctioned anti-war protest
SAINT PETERSBURG: Armored police gather in a square near protesters during an anti-war protest on Thursday night
Roskomnadzor, the state body for communications and media, called on the Russian media to use “information and data that they receive only from official Russian sources.” Some media outlets reported that employees of some state-funded companies were instructed not to comment publicly on events in Ukraine.
Human rights activists have warned of a new wave of repression against dissent.
There will be new (criminal) cases for saboteurs, spies, treason, prosecution for anti-war protests, detentions of journalists and bloggers, authors of critical posts on social networks, bans on investigating the situation in the army, etc. further, the prominent human rights defender Pavel Chikov wrote on Facebook.
“It’s hard to say how big this new wave will be, given that everything has already been suppressed.”
Russia’s official line, meanwhile, has remained uncompromising. The speaker of the upper house of parliament, Valentina Matvienko, accused those who opposed the attack only of their “current problems”.
State television described the attack in line with what Putin said in his televised address.
Russia 1 TV presenter Olga Skabeeva called the effort “to protect the people of Donbass from the Nazi regime” and said it was “without exaggeration, a turning point in history”.