The stuffed dummy of Solzhenitsyn hanging on the doors of the Gulag Museum in Moscow
This week three events were most commented upon in Russian press. From the first look these events have nothing in common. Still they are so characteristic of today’s Russia that together they give pretty accurate sense of the atmosphere in the country.
The first event happened on October 9, two days after the country celebrated President Vladimir Putin’s birthday. The members of a youth organization, that call themselves the Revolutionary Communist Youth League, hanged on the doors of the Gulag Museum in Moscow a stuffed dummy with unmistakable face of Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, the author of “The Gulag Archipelago” . There was a plate on the dummy’s breast with the message in verse: ” Solzhenitsyn, a traitor who shamelessly lied to us about the gulag, is hanged here. He was the worst enemy of his motherland! This traitor and this treacherous museum are standing embracing each other stronger then two friends! “
The director of the museum Roman Romanov said to the newspaper Novaya Gazeta:
“From the standpoint of a layman what happened is a horror, blasphemy and some obscurantism. From the point of view of police, I think, it can be regarded as hooliganism.
“We have consulted with lawyers and decided to apply to the police. We have the recording of surveillance cameras and the information on the website of the Revolutionary Communist Youth League.”
The organizers of the action are not trying to hide. Alexander Batov, Honorary Chairman of the Revolutionary Communist Youth League, explained the action as the part of the struggle with the “lies and slander” about the Soviet period of history, and its “falsification” and announced his intention to continue such actions.
The administration of the museum complained to the police and a well known journalist Alexander Minkin published in one of the most popular Russian papers Moscovskij Komsomolets an open letter to the President Putin, asking the president to comment on the event. Neither police nor Putin reacted to these messages yet.
Meanwhile another photo was reprinted by many in the Russian media this week. It’s interesting that this picture appeared even in Moskovskiy Komsomotets, the same paper, which published the photo of the hanged Solzhenitsyn’s dummy and the letter of Minkin to Putin. The photo depicts a new dress designed by Mona Al Mansouri, a designer from the United Arab Emirates.
The article in the Moscow Komsomolets was entitled:
“Dress with Putin on the intimate place beats records of popularity.
Arab women were first who appreciated the Spiritual Mission of the Russian president.“
The presentation of this unusual attire was held at the Arab Cultural Forum in Moscow on October 7, 2016, the birthday of Vladimir Putin. The forum was entitled: “Geopolitical challenges of our time, and Putin’s spiritual mission.”
Moskovsky Komsomolets comments:
“The dress with Putin is not just an evening dress. It is kind of a message to the Russian President and the entire Russian nation. Putin depicted holding the Earth in his hands, and, according to the designer, this means that the Russian president is capable of preservation of peace in the world. And also the dress is a symbol of unity of the Arab world with Russia. The designer herself was present at the presentation of the dress.
“Many Russian designers have stated that they intend to adopt the idea of Monia Al Mansouri.
” ‘Why had not I thought about that first?’, sighed Svetlana Ostozhiteva from Smolensk, a woman who for a long time have been successfully producing wedding dresses, very popular among Russians. ‘I’m sure, a lot of brides would be happy to get married in such dresses. Under the protection of the President, so to say’. ”
The third mostly commented event of the week was the publication of the statement of the St. Petersburg’s Governor Georgy Poltavchenko, addressed to the inhabitants of this second biggest city of Russia.
The Governor Poltavchenko
The Governor seemed to have an intention to cause people to stop worrying about the possible starting of the World War III and that they are going to starve to death as their grand parents did during the WWII. He informed the citizens that the total municipality’s reserves of rye and wheat grains amounts 69,700 tons.
“The reserves can last for six weeks and supply 5.2 million residents of the northern capital at the rate of 300 gram per day. Minimum stock of 31 thousand tons is allocated for 20 day guarantied 300-gram ration of bread for every Petersburger “, said the Governor’s official statement.
