Sick bird Russia. Anti-war protest of Petersburg artists
31-year-old St. Petersburg artist Sasha Skochilenko replaced the price tags in the store with leaflets with information about the actions of the Russian military in Ukraine. She was accused under a new article of “spreading fakes in the Russian army” and sent to a pre-trial detention center, despite a hereditary disease. Her condition in the pre-trial detention center has worsened, her cellmates are hounding her.
76-year-old artist Elena Osipova comes out with posters to solo anti-war pickets in the center of St. Petersburg. Her posters are torn up, her “titushki” are chasing her, but Osipova, the daughter of the blockade, continues for peace. A room in a communal apartment where the artist lives, filled with her work. In the first, after the anti-war solo pickets, the artist of the city council of Milan awarded Osipova honorary citizenship and inventor in Italy to participate in the exhibition.
Skochilenko and Osipova – in the film “Artists. Anti-war protest” of the documentary project “Signs”.
Lawyer Alexandra Skochilenko
– They accuse Alexandra under article 207.3 – the so-called “fakes”. The plot of the accusation: “Reporting deliberately false information about the actions of the armed forces outside the Russian Federation.” He is accused of having discovered the central node in the Perekrestok store, according to what information that the discovery, the armed forces of the Russian Federation fired at an art school in Mariupol, in which civilians are present.
Destabilizes the situation in the Russian Federation
– Alexandra does not deny that this price tag is a description, but does not rule out guilt, as she believes that the information is true. She is accused of having stopped these actions on the grounds of political danger in the Russian Federation, and that the action by its actions destabilizes the situation in the Russian Federation. Although Alexandra said in her messages that she is a citizen of the Russian Federation, that she loves her country – this is her homeland.
Reminder under the article – imprisonment for up to 10 years
– There are reports of a witness, a buyer, who says that he saw a price tag with information about the actions of the armed forces in the city of Mariupol. She went to the store, then to the police. The punishment under the article is imprisonment for a term of 5 to 10 years, or a fine of 3 to 5 million.
Died of these consequences
– Alexandra has a congenital, genetic, which is not treated, celiac disease. It is necessary to follow a gluten-free diet, in the absence of the risk of developing cancer. She died from these consequences. The disease is not included in the list of those that prohibit detainees in custody. Of course, this could be taken from the humanitarian participants, of course.
Elena Osipova
It’s not true that all of Russia supports all this
– Russia is disgraced by the actions of the authorities. Russia, which lost 30 million participants in the war, has now become an aggressor itself. Fortunately, I have seen that there are many who do not support and translate everything. It is not true that all of Russia supports all this. Therefore, there was hope that something could be changed.
Then she went to the front as a nurse
– During the blockade, my mother was carrying bread and could not reach her door, [на лестнице] lost consciousness, died. My relatives dressed up something, opened the door in time, managed to drink its water. Then she went to the front, there was more rations, she worked as a nurse. That’s why my grandfather made such a small bench [на лестнице]so that people can rest, higher yet to go. I support this area.
I hurt the bird
– I did practice. Russia I would like to see birds. The second was hopeful, it says: “She is sick, but it’s not evening yet, she can still get better.” And now I will make a sick bird, completely suicidal, with broken wings.
“Titushki” won’t even let you take out the poster
– The police, if you pick them up, they have some tokens, you can, if anything, agree. And the “titushki” work in full-time, very aggressive. They even pursued me from home somehow, they guarded me, they went on the bus together. And then they joined. These “titushki” will not even let me take out the poster – when I feel, they just tore me, they have both men and women.
Why be afraid in your own country?
– In any country, if something happened, in an hour, the inheritance would probably change. I had a teacher when I studied art, she always taught us when someone cannot be brave in painting: why be afraid in your own country? But these people lived in Stalin’s times, when people were shot in the back of the head. A person could go through all this and say all the time: why be afraid? If a lot of people weren’t afraid… But now the brains are twisted like that. Television, of course, has done a lot for this.
In such a rich country, not even a stretcher is captured
– In 2002, there was the Nord-Ost tragedy in Moscow. When victims are found, even those swallowed by people are not found, those discovered were poisoned by an unknown gas, moreover, from which there was no antidote. In such a rich country, not even a stretcher was seized, he did not know where he was bringing it. People sat on buses with their heads thrown back because of this tragedy. I have a picture of a girl, a very beautiful actress with a big plait, how she was caught, just like a bag of potatoes. It was simply awful. The shock of a lifetime, it is impossible to forget or reconcile. Since then I have been collecting [на протесты], since 2002. Beslan.
Only individual daredevils turn to do something
– The pacifist movement is not developed at all in our country, even in comparison with other countries. In 2014, everything was already clear where it was all going. There was no repentance among us; on the contrary, a militaristic policy developed. How could it have come to this? It is not clear how people can have such anger and hatred towards their former brothers. We have always been like brothers with Ukraine and Belarus. That’s how it starts – it’s just crazy.
Society society has become consumption. Most of the people who were happy with the invasion of Ukraine, they are interested in some material things. This leads to such a disgrace in which Russia finds itself. The funds are used only to strengthen the power, some new emerging ones that support the power. And our houses under the nets just stand with stairs, they are already under construction, these houses are under the nets. But nothing is being done. Most Petersburgers still live in communal apartments, the houses are old, they are no longer going for major repairs. Only a change of power can save.
It’s just awful that a person can’t even express their opinion. And the courts are also afraid of someone, because otherwise they will be fired themselves. Only individual daredevils sometimes repeat something to do. Evil is always greater, only a small good must unite, and it can win, although it is always less than evil. This is the only hope.