The Kremlin paints a picture of the Russians fighting against each other, even though in reality the people and their administration are opposite, writes correspondent Erkka Mikkonen.
28.3. 12:00 • Updated March 28th. 12:11
MOSCOW Over the weekend, I said goodbye to a couple of friends from Moscow.
The nightmares that had tormented us for weeks had matured a difficult decision. The couple is trying to get into an EU country on the grounds of discrimination and the threat of violence they face as members of a sexual minority in Russia.
The solution is drastic and risky. It tells of the despair that many Russians, branded as enemies of the people, are currently experiencing for their future.
In the last ten years the government has resolutely deprived Russian civil rights.
The first clear sign of Russia’s move towards a totalitarian state system was the adoption of the so-called Homopropaganda Law in 2013.
In practice, the law has forced Russians belonging to sexual and gender minorities to conceal their identities from others. At the same time, it has encouraged extremists and authorities to beat and torture gays.
Totalitarianism allows only one “right” way to be and think. That is why minorities are its first victims.
Next is free communication.
President Vladimir Putin took over television, which is important to the Russians, during its first presidency, but it is only in recent years that the independent media has been strangled.
The state of democracy is illustrated by the fact that there are no longer any representatives in the Duma who publicly criticize Putin. It has been achieved by manipulating the election process and falsifying the results.
Last December, the authorities closed the Memorial, Russia’s oldest human rights organization, a symbol of civil society as a whole. Demonstration is no longer allowed.
The last remnants of civic activism and independent journalism are now being destroyed at a rapid pace by the adoption of war censorship laws.
After Russia launched its offensive war The campaign of pressure on Ukraine has moved to a new, darker level.
Putin is pursuing persecution with his increasingly rampant rhetoric. He demands that the land be cleared of rubbish and traitors.
Well-known human rights lawyer Pavel Chikov says in the Telegram messaging service (you switch to another service), that 60 criminal investigations have already been launched in Russia into anti-war movements. In addition to arrests, interrogations, and home searches, people are intimidated by hitting their homes.
Editor-in-Chief of the closed radio channel Eho Moskvy Alexei Venediktov a pig’s head was brought in front of the apartment last week and anti-Semitic slander was glued to the door.
The Kremlin is working to create an image of societywhich is divided into two camps: a majority in favor of Putin and a minority opposing him.
Now the weights have hardened. The regime opposes the patriots who defend the homeland and the enemies of the people who oppose it.
Policy commentator Abbas Galljamov tells , however, that the division is artificial in the current circumstances. Therefore, the administration is machining employees of public sector and state-owned enterprises as well as educational institutions and organizations for mass events in support of Putin.
– The Kremlin is trying to destroy the opposition’s worldview, according to which there is a struggle between society and the state and, on the other hand, put a gap between the people, Galljamov says.
Galljamov considers it clear that the attacks on the homes of activists and journalists are ordered by the government.
As the war dragged on and sanctions struck the repression of the Russian economy will only intensify.
That means more and more Russians are trying to flee their country. Abbas Galljamov, who was interviewed by , has already left Russia.
– Otherwise, I could not tell you about these things I am talking about, Gallyamov says on the phone.
This is ‘s daily analysis of the current theme of the Russian invasion. You can discuss the subject until Tuesday evening, March 29, at 11 p.m.