Stories about Russian from August, 2012
‘Free’ Kyrgyzstan Marks Independence
…[D]espite being generally underdeveloped as a state, I am the freest of all other countries that were also born in 1991! Blogger Ilya Karimdjanov offers a ‘Monologue of Kyrgyzstan‘ [ru] which celebrates its independence today.
Russia: Moscow's Peculiar Illegal Parking Problem
Russian adventures and misadventures in parking could be a movie plot. But Russia’s parking problems are anything but comedy. It remains to be seen how vigorously the country will deal with illegal parking. If it succeeds, its methods could show what kind of transportation system and cities Russia will have, and even what kind of country it will be.
Ukraine: Humorous Political Ad Sparks Online “Pussy Cat Riot”
After weeks of tensions caused by the adoption of the controversial Language Law and in the midst of an intense pre-election mudslinging period, Ukrainians are finally rewarded with the much-needed comic relief - which they have promptly transformed into something of an online political protest movement.
Kyrgyzstan: Facebook Post Spurs Row with Belarus
A photo uploaded on Facebook suggests that Janysh Bakiyev, the brother of the former Kyrgyzstani president ousted by 2010 protests, lives in Minsk. This has sparked an extradition request, the withdrawal of an ambassador and the storming of an embassy.
Russia: Chainsaws to the Cross
On August 25, unknown parties sawed down three wooden crosses in the city of Chelyabinsk, in the Urals. The same night, another cross came down in Arkhangelsk, in the north. Was it a copycat political statement, or a dire plot by the Kremlin to sow discord?
Russia: Censorship Law Threatens Children's Classics
After news that Russian television will soon be forced to curtail showings of a classic children’s cartoon “Nu, Pogodi!” [wiki] (the Soviet version of Tom & Jerry but with wolf and bunny instead of cat and mouse) because it is too violent for a new law protecting children from the...
Russia: Police Claim Top Blogger Was Hacked from Germany
The Moscow police department has determined [ru] that Aleksei Navalny's email and Twitter accounts were hacked in late June from a German IP address. Fellow liberal blogger Andrey Malgin criticized [ru] the announcement, accusing the authorities of disguising their own responsibility for supposedly stealing [ru] Navalny's passwords in a June 11 search [ru] of...
Russia: Foreign Ministry Looks to Germany to Justify Pussy Riot Verdict
Russia's Foreign Ministry has made a series of comments that further enraging Pussy Riot's supporters. Spokesperson Aleksandr Lukashevich defended the recent verdict and lashed out at the West for ignorance about the band members' pasts and highlighted perceived double standards regarding interferences into religious services and criminal penalties, citing laws in Germany and Austria.
Russia: Protesters Aim for Elected Office
In the lead up to Russia's next large protests planned for mid-September, activists and politicians of the anti-Kremlin opposition are increasingly showing an interest in running for local offices. If successful at the ballot box, could this trend bestow valuable "real world" political experience on Russia's protesters?
Tajikistan's Capital Mayor Meets with Facebook Users
In a rare display of political openness, the mayor of the country's capital Dushanbe met with some 400 Facebook users and responded to their criticisms. The meeting was broadcast live online.
Russia's War Games Make Georgia Nervous
This September, Russia is planning to hold 'Caucasus-2012' with forces from the breakaway Georgian provinces of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. With 8,000 troops, as well as heavy machinery, artillery, navy, and air force, this will be Russia’s largest exercise this year. Is this too close for comfort for Georgians?
Kyrgyzstan: ‘Charming’ Prime Minister Falls from High Horse
'Its a shame that the sane, handsome and enterprising premier of #freekg Babanov is on his way out.' The 42-year-old Prime Minister has been accused of accepting an expensive British thoroughbred racehorse as a bribe, from a Turkish company, to secure a controversial US military airbase contract.
Russia: Senator Wants 15 Years in Prison for Hackers
In the aftermath of a hacker attack on the court that convicted Pussy Riot's 3 members, Kremlin youth group organizer and Senator Ruslan Gattarov [ru] has proposed [ru] making criminal penalties stricter for those who target government websites. Gattarov suggests equating hacks with illegal physical occupations of government buildings, which carry a...
Russia: Diva Politics Over Pussy Riot
The Pussy Riot trial has caused no small amount of debate among Russia's public figures, including an amusing row between two of the country's best known celebrities.
Russia: State-Owned TV Caught in Anti-Semitism?
Writing on Openspace.Ru, Oleg Kashin discusses [ru] a short-lived but disconcerting report [ru] from state-owned Vesti.Ru about Patriarch Kirill's recent trip to Białystok, Poland, where he visited the Nikolsky Cathedral — home to the relics of Gavriil Belostoksky, the patron saint of children in the Russian Orthodox Church. Vesti.Ru temporarily featured language endorsing the...
Russia: Pussy Riot's Courthouse Is Hacked By Anonymous
On August 21, just days after Moscow's Khamovnicheskii Court sentenced the 3 members of Pussy Riot to 2 years in prison, hackers attacked and vandalized [ru] the court's official website [ru]. Hackivist groups self-identifying as “Anonymous” claimed responsibility and also leaked [ru] some internal (though largely uncontroversial) emails. Popular blogger Anton Nosik condemned [ru] the attack,...
Kyrgyzstan: China Inc. Under Attack
China’s growing economic presence in Kyrgyzstan continues to be a topic for heated discussion in Kyrgyz society. In the country’s regions, this discourse is reflected in acrimonious standoffs between Chinese companies and locals, confrontations the mainstream media often fails to report on.
Russia: Government Bans Serbian Film for Underage Sex and Drugs
On August 17, Sam Klebanov announced that Russia's Ministry of Culture has banned the release of a Serbian film called "Clip." Klebanov's company owns the Russian distribution rights to the movie, which was honored with a Hivos Tiger Award at the forty-first International Film Festival Rotterdam in the Netherlands earlier this year.
Russia: Drug Drugu, Wish Fulfillment via Social Networks
Drug Drugu ("To One Another") is a service that works with the wishes of users. Community members can not only request some kind of help, but also offer their own. The resource's operating principle is very simple: a user leaves a message in the appropriate category, assigns it a category, location, and image, and waits for another community member to response.
Russia: Taxi Drivers Versus Dagestanis in Ryazan
A possible fight between Russians and Dagestani migrants perhaps led to dozens, possibly hundreds, of taxi drivers organizing a pogrom-like attack. Events like this raise questions about Russia's capacity to effectively cope with its multiculturalism, especially now, when the situation on the ground in the North Caucasus is so troubling.
