Day: March 30, 2023

More Russian Antiwar

I recently wrote a post about the Russian antiwar movement (something the US is too indoctrinated to have)….since I am antiwar for the last 50 years I like to see people taking to the streets to protest….

I am updating the Russian antiwar news….

This Russian father is imprisoned because his daughter made an antiwar drawing….

There are both hopes and fears for a Russian dissident sentenced to two years in a penal colony after his daughter drew anti-war drawings at school, as he now appears to have fled house arrest and can’t be found. Aleksei Moskalyov, a single father from Yefremov, was separated from his daughter at the start of this month. He was placed under house arrest, while she was moved to a state-run orphanage and “forbidden to communicate with her father,” per the New York Times. Moskalyov came to the attention of police last April when Masha, now 13, “refused to participate in a patriotic class at her school,” reports the Guardian. She also drew an image of missiles being fired at a Ukrainian family, along with the words “No to war” and “Glory to Ukraine!,” per Reuters.

The next day, Moskalyov and Masha were “taken away from the school by police officers,” per the Times. “For three and a half hours they told me that I was providing inappropriate parenting for my child,” Moskalyov, 54, told OVD-Info. “They said she’d be taken away from me and I’d be put in jail.” He was initially fined. He’d allegedly described the Russian regime as “terrorists” and the Russian army as “rapists” on social media, per the Guardian. Months later, however, Moskalyov said authorities raided his home and detained him. “They locked me in a room for two and a half hours, turned on the Russian national anthem [at] full volume, and left,” he told OVD-Info.

Moskalyov was ultimately convicted of discrediting the armed forces and sentenced Tuesday to two years in a penal colony. But the Federal Penitentiary Service later said he’d removed his ankle monitor and fled his apartment shortly before 5am that day. Moskalyov’s lawyer couldn’t confirm that but said he last saw his client on Monday, per Reuters. Vowing to appeal the verdict, Vladimir Biliyenko appeared in court with new drawings from Masha, whom he’d visited in the orphanage. He also carried a photo of a letter she’d written to her father. “Dad, you are my hero,” it reads in part. Russian human rights group Memorial, which is banned from the country, says it considers Moskalyov to be a political prisoner. Police say they’re continuing to search for him.

Updated….the “heat” caught with this dad in Belarus….

Aleksei Moskalyov, an anti-war Russian father who fled house arrest hours before he was sentenced to two years in a penal colony Tuesday, has been arrested in Belarus, his lawyer says. Dmitry Zakhvatov tells Reuters that Moskalyov’s arrest in Minsk, more than 400 miles away from his hometown south of Moscow, was most likely the result of him turning his phone on and giving away his location. Earlier this month, the 54-year-old single father was separated from his 12-year-old daughter and reported to authorities after she drew anti-war drawings at school. He was convicted of discrediting the army after authorities found he had made anti-war remarks on social media. It’s not clear whether he will now face more charges.

Remember Pussy Riot?

One of the members has been in trouble with the Putin government for years and now one of the members is in deep dodo for her antiwar stance….

Russian authorities have put a member of the Pussy Riot punk group on a wanted list for criminal suspects as the Kremlin works to stifle political dissent. Russian news outlet Mediazona discovered an entry for Nadya Tolokonnikova in the Russian Interior Ministry’s database of wanted individuals on Wednesday. The entry, also reviewed by the AP, said Tolokonnikova faces criminal charges, but it didn’t specify what the charges are. Tolokonnikova became widely known for taking part in a 2012 Pussy Riot protest inside Moscow’s Christ the Savior Cathedral. She spent nearly two years in prison.

Earlier this month Russia’s top human rights lawyer, Pavel Chikov, said a criminal case had been launched against Tolokonnikova on the charge of offending religious believers’ feelings, which became a criminal offense in Russia after the 2012 Pussy Riot protest. Tolokonnikova left Russia and reportedly lives in the US. In 2021, the Russian government designated her as a “foreign agent,” a label that brings additional government scrutiny and carries pejorative connotations that can discredit the recipients. Russian authorities have applied the designation to independent media outlets and opposition activists.

It is good to see people that are committed to ending war and not just whiners.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Is Bakhmut The Answer?

Where the Hell is Bakhmut?

Ukraine!

It is a once sleepy town in Eastern Ukraine that has become the focal point of the conflict with Russia…there has been an anticipation that Ukraine will give Russia a counter offense to push Russian troops back into the Donbas.

This should make a visual representation of the region.

Map of eastern Ukraine

The US is pouring weapons and such into the fray….and few people believe that this will do little  but keep the stalemate in place…..and Zelensky is not very optimistic….

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told The Associated Press on Wednesday that if the Donbas city of Bakhmut falls to Russia, he would be pressured to “compromise” with Moscow.

“Our society will feel tired” if the Russians win in Bakhmut, Zelensky said. “Our society will push me to have compromise with them.”

He said if Bakhmut falls, Russian President Vladimir Putin could “sell this victory to the West, to his society, to China, to Iran” as leverage to seek a ceasefire deal that would involve Kyiv ceding territory to Moscow. “If he will feel some blood — smell that we are weak — he will push, push, push,” Zelensky said.

Russian forces are close to encircling the city of Bakhmut, but the battle is still raging as Ukraine continues to send soldiers into what has become known as the “meat grinder.” Ukrainians fighting on the front lines have told the media that soldiers are being sent into battle with very little training, support, and ammunition.

Earlier this month, the head of the Russian mercenary outfit Wagner Group, Yevgeny Prigozhin, said the fighting in Bakhmut was getting “fiercer” and said Ukraine was “supplying endless reserves” for the battle.

Zelensky’s comments about Bakhmut come after he said Kyiv could not launch a counteroffensive unless its Western backers supply even more weapons. He told AP on Wednesday that “the United States really understands that if they stop helping us, we will not win.”

The US and its allies want Ukraine to give up on Bakhmut and to launch a counteroffensive against Russia this spring, but the prospect seems increasingly unlikely. A senior Ukrainian government official told The Washington Post earlier this month that Ukraine doesn’t have enough people or weapons to launch an offensive.

(antiwar.com)

Compromise?

That ought to make the media and about 80% of the people here sad.

This does not seem to be of importance to the MSM…..for them this war must continue.

My friend John at https://limingslynkz.com/ asked about a Plan B for this conflict…..this is something to consider.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”