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Let’s hear it for our First Amendment, especially when considering what happened to a Russian woman who left a scathing note on the grave of Vladimir Putin’s parents.
In October, on the eve of Putin’s birthday, 60-year-old Irina Tsybaneva left a note at the grave of Putin’s parents which was not exactly complimentary. It read:
Parents of a maniac, take him to your place. He causes so much pain and trouble. The whole world prays for his death. Death to Putin. You raised a freak and a killer.
On Thursday, a Russian court found her guilty of using political hatred to desecrate a burial place. You could joke that she was also found guilty for releasing a state secret, but I think the world already knows.
Originally state prosecutors wanted the St. Petersburg woman to serve a three-year suspended sentence, but the court lowered it to two years. Tsybaneva pleaded not guilty since she didn’t physically desecrate the graves, nor did she seek publicity. Apparently she wanted to express her feelings about Putin as a response to the invasion of Ukraine.
But such actions in Russia are akin to playing with fire.
Ever since Putin invaded Ukraine in February, 2022, his government has worked to silence dissent, hearkening back to the bad old days of Soviet oppression. Take, for example, Nikita Tushkanov, a history teacher from Komi, who ran afoul of Russian authorities.
In October of last year, the Kerch bridge which connected Crimea to Ukraine mysteriously exploded, from either a truck bomb or a drone. So Tushkanov took to social media to call it a “birthday present” for Putin. Now he will spend the next five-and-one-half years in prison for “justifying terrorism.”
Even an elderly woman felt the sting of Putin’s crackdown on speech. Olga Slegina committed the offense of calling Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy a “handsome young man with a good sense of humor.” Putin’s speech police didn’t find it amusing, however. So a Moscow court slapped the 70-year-old babushka with a $500 fine for “discrediting” the Russian army.
Chief of all the Russian dissidents is Alexei Navalny, who is serving time in a maximum security prison near Moscow. His crime? He exposed corruption in the Putin government. On top of that, he also organized anti-Kremlin protests. Then, on a flight to Moscow nearly three years ago, Navalny became violently ill, due to poisoning. He entered a Russian hospital, which tried to keep him until the poison could dissipate.
“Alexey Navalny in 2020 (cropped)” by Michał Siergiejevicz is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
However, then-German Chancellor Angela Merkel pressured the Kremlin to allow Navalny to enter a German hospital that could better treat his condition. And, indeed, labs in Berlin confirmed the presence of the banned nerve agent Novichok.
But Navalny would not be cowed. Upon recovery, he worked with the Dutch investigative group Bellingcat to identify his would-be assassins.
Five months later, Navalny returned to Moscow, whereupon Russian authorities promptly arrested him at the airport. After a trial, he received a 2 1/2 year sentence prison sentence for parole violation. Then, last year, he received a nine-year term for fraud and contempt of court.
On Thursday, Navalny told his supporters that he’s been returned to solitary confinement for the 15th time since 2021. Plus, last month his daughter told CNN that his health is deteriorating.
His prison facility guards are taking away his food. His health is deteriorating and we are doing everything we can to get him the attention he needs.
All because he dared to expose the corruption of Vladimir Putin’s government.
The great Russian dissident and author Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn wrote: A state of war only serves as an excuse for domestic tyranny. From an older woman who placed harsh notes on the wrong grave to a tenacious dissident rotting in prison, Russia has become a place of domestic tyranny since Vladimir Putin chose to silence citizens who dare criticize his government and his war.
Featured image: Mr.TinMD/flickr/cropped/CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.
Scott says: ” Russia has become a place of domestic tyranny since Vladimir Putin chose to silence citizens who dare criticize his government and his war.”… If we want to be honest, it’s been exactly that since a bunch of malcontents decided to follow the teachings of a lazy, jealous simp named Marx, and his pet (later executioner) Stalin..
Kim Hirsch says: Don’t forget that Putin is a former USSR KGB agent so he inherited that mantle!
Scott says: Nope, didn’t forget, a different turd from the same punchbowl..
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