We have one goal - to become power

Ilya Goryachev, coordinator of the Russian Image

While preparing a material about the Russian Image organization, which is associated with the names of the suspects in the murder of Stanislav Markelov and Anastasia Baburova, we decided to ask a few questions to the coordinator of the RO, who was interrogated in the case...

While preparing a material about the Russian Obraz organization, which is associated with the names of the suspects in the murder of Stanislav Markelov and Anastasia Baburova, we decided to ask a few questions to the RO coordinator, who was interrogated in the Tikhonov-Khasis case as a witness. Despite the fact that we consider his views unacceptable, we still publish the newspaper version of the interview without any editing. So that readers themselves can draw a conclusion about the essence of “legal nationalists”. On our own note, I. Goryachev designed the answers to some specific questions in the form of lengthy discussions on topics that, in our opinion, are not related to the essence of things. For example, we asked if the murders committed by the fascists were a political action or a criminal offense, we were answered about the Irish Republican Army or about our opponents from among the anti-fascists ...

Questions:

1. Is it true that Tikhonov and Khasis, who were detained on suspicion of the murder of S. Markelov and A. Baburova, were members of the "Russian Obraz" or collaborated with your organization in any capacity? In which?

2. When and under what circumstances did you meet Tikhonov? Is the Russian Obraz magazine really registered to you and Tikhonov?

We met Nikita at the Historical Library in the summer of 2002. We are both historians. He was writing a diploma on Chechen separatism, and I was writing a term paper on the genocide of the Serbian people in the Independent State of Croatia in 1941-1945. They worked together in the 2003 parliamentary elections at the headquarters of single-mandate candidate Boris Fedorov, then they worked together in several publications. The last place we worked together was in the politics section of RE:Action in 2005.

Yes, we published the first issue of our magazine in 2003, and in 2005 we received official registration with the Federal Press Agency. However, "RO" as a movement began to take shape on the basis of the editorial office of the magazine only in 2007. By that time, Nikita had already retired from active work as part of the editorial board for more than a year.

Zhenya Khasis collaborated with the Russian Verdict human rights organization. She has never been a member of "RO".

3. Do you admit the possibility that Tikhonov and Khasis are really guilty of this crime, or do you consider them innocent? What is your point of view based on?

I am under a non-disclosure agreement, so I cannot comment on any issues related to the Tikhonov-Khasis case.

4. What public position did "Russian Obraz" take after the murder of S. Markelov and A. Baburova? Have any statements been made in this regard?

5. What is your assessment of the activities of Nazi skinheads and other radical groups aimed at physical measures of influence (up to the murder) of representatives of non-Slavic peoples and public figures who adhere to liberal views? Is it a political fight or criminal offenses?

The lack of a political alternative, the lack of the opportunity to fight for their views, beliefs, rights by legal means, the inability to get into parliament really pushed many honest, sincere Russian people into the underground. There can be only one solution to this problem - a political one. Conflicts in Ulster, in Chechnya only flared up even more when they were tried to be suppressed by force. Let's take a closer look at the example of Ulster. Until 1972, IRA fighters had the status of prisoners of war. Despite the fact that they were all citizens of the United Kingdom, they were engaged in an armed political struggle and therefore were considered prisoners of war. From 1972 to 1976 their status was political prisoners. After Mrs Thatcher's government began a policy of criminalizing the Irish Resistance, trying to equate IRA fighters with ordinary criminals, the special status was abolished. However, as a result of a long struggle for their rights, in 1983 the imprisoned IRA fighters achieved the return of political status. Returning to Russian realities, I would like to recall a recent interview by anti-fascist Vadim for the website Liberty.ru, where he does not rule out that in 2010 antifa may start liquidating right-wing activists. More recently, anonymous antifa on one of their websites claimed responsibility for the assassination attempt on DPNI leader Alexander Belov in late 2008. Alexander survived then by a miracle, the next day I was in his hospital, I saw what condition he was in. And what is curious - when the radio ECHO OF MOSCOW conducted a survey on how listeners feel about anti-fascist violence - 87 percent of listeners spoke positively, that is, they support violence when their sympathizers are its source.

6. Do you admit that a network of Russian nationalist underground militant organizations has been created in Russia, which is trying to achieve its political goals through individual terror?

I think that such a network does not exist in Russia. For now. The point of no return has not yet been passed, and the violence can be stopped by political means. But time is really short. On the other hand, there exists and is actively operating a network of Wahhabi jamaats, who prefer not only individual, but also mass terror to all possible means of struggle. And the left-liberal forces, point blank not noticing the deadly danger posed by the Islamists, are trying to flirt with migrants and diasporas - carriers of the Islamist matrix. Although some are beginning to see clearly. So, for me, the statement of Elena Bonner, published on the "Faces" - "Vivat, Switzerland", was a big surprise, where she fully supported the referendum on the ban on minarets initiated by the Swiss People's Party.

In addition, we are witnessing the organization of a left-wing radical, anti-state underground – as I said above, the leaders of the militant wing of the so-called “antifa” do not exclude the possibility of carrying out targeted terrorist acts against their political opponents, and an appropriate infrastructure is needed to implement such intentions. The fact that the process of its creation is in the active phase is also indicated by the violent actions of “antifa” that have become more frequent over the past year – unauthorized marches ending in pogroms, attacks on the offices of Young Russia and the editorial office of Komsomolskaya Pravda. All these are trial balloons, I am sure that in the foreseeable future Russia will face a wave of ultra-left violence directed primarily against idological opponents and, very importantly, against government officials, this is directly stated by the leftists themselves.

7. What are the socio-political goals set by the "Russian Obraz"?

The main direction is the struggle for power. Moreover, the struggle for power is not with the Kremlin, but with ideological opponents in our niche, with the left-liberals. This is a different generation of people. The 20 year old generation is not fighting the 50 year old generation. The struggle is for future power within one generation.

A parallel can be drawn here. 1968-69, when old Europe fell. When student protests were led by the left, and what do we see today? We see a Europe that is completely under the control of anti-national liberal regimes. These modes differ from each other only in some shades. All of them come from radical internationalist, left-liberal circles. Recently I read the book "Everyday life of a city partisan" by Alexei Tsvetkov. This is a well-known Russian leftist, an anarchist. He writes about how a member of the European Parliament from the Green Party came to Moscow. There was some kind of meeting with him and the Russian leftists booed him. Because he, an activist of the left movement for another 68 years, went to parliament, entered the system and achieved influence in it.

The left in 1968 relied on the Frankfurt political school of Adorno-Marcuse and their associates. They set the vector for the development of Europe, what they aspired to, and achieved. The activists of 1968 changed the face of Europe beyond recognition, gave the vector of development for a hundred years ahead to the EU and other organizations. These young people entered the system and over time reformatted it for themselves. Naturally, there are eternal radicals who say: you betrayed the ideals of 68. In fact, he did not betray anything. He realized his ideals. Yes, modern reality is somewhat different from his youthful dreams. But what the left-wing activist said in 1968, at the age of twenty, he put into practice in his political activity to the best of his ability. Now the situation is similar to 1968. Today it is decided who will determine the political face of Russia in the 21st century. Our task is to repeat the path that the European leftists traveled in 68, as young student leaders. They were able to become the political class that controls Europe today. If they can do it, then we can too. And the left-liberal camp, antifa, is our main competitor. And we have one goal - to gradually get to the levers of power. Become the power. Otherwise, instead of the country we know, we will get either a Caliphate or a liberal totalitarian concentration camp. Liberal totalitarianism is the most rigid, dogmatic and cruel dictatorship of all that has ever existed in human history. It does not recognize freedom of speech, does not recognize freedom of thought. The ideal of mankind for this ideological model is a gray mass of unified consumers. And for those who are not satisfied with this, they will burn out unnecessary details in their heads, put a chip and sterilize them - for the common good. So that suddenly "extremism" or "homophobia" does not happen by chance.

8. What is the relationship of "Russian Obraz" with such organizations as "Russian Verdict", DPNI, the Orthodox wing of the Nashi Youth Movement, autonomous nationalists?

We have known the DPNI leaders since 2002. I would characterize our relationship between "RO" and DPNI as healthy competition. "Russian Verdict" is a friendly human rights organization. We have no contacts or relations with the "NASHI" movement.

9. The group "Kolovrat" participated in your concert on November 4, their CDs can be ordered through your website. To what extent does your organization share the ideological foundations of these musicians?

Several dozen musicians have changed in the KOLOVRAT group over the 15 years of its history, the group has come a long way, evolved. On the pages of your newspaper, the lyrics of the band's songs, written in the mid-90s, were actively quoted. Let's not distort - for example, many heads of regions today, in the 90s, were "authoritative" businessmen, but today everyone tactfully does not mention this. In the same way, one cannot judge the ideological foundations of creativity on the basis of several verses from different songs written in the 90s. "Dmitry Donskoy", "Kosovo Front", "Russian Caucasus" - all these ballads are imbued with love for the Motherland, for its history, heroes, in a word, for unambiguously positive values.

10. "Russian Obraz" signed the "Code of Ethics of the Russian Nationalist" together with the organizations OB88 and Kombat18. Does this mean that these organizations are your ideological and political allies?

The Code is open for signing by all comers. Our signatures next to each other mean that these three organizations share the provisions set forth in the code and undertake to comply with them. Nothing more. If the editors of Novaya Novaya want to sign the Code, no one will object.

11. In the program of your organization, it is proposed to limit the civil rights of the "aboriginal non-Slavic population" "outside the territory of compact residence" and - in political rights - women. How do you imagine that? Does this mean that you are a supporter of discrimination based on nationality and gender?

Our program is a utopia, a description of an ideal society for us, a kind of Campanella's "City of the Sun" in a modern edition. This program is written by us for ourselves. And in order to identify people who are ideologically close to us. In the event that some changes occur in Russia and the political field thaws, its temperature ceases to stay near zero and we can take part in the elections, we will prepare a different version of the program, more adapted to the target audience and the political realities of our country.

I imagine the separation of different ethnic groups inside Russia as bantustans in South Africa before the abolition of apartheid. This initiative of ours resonates with what was proposed by Professor Arutyunov, developing the ideas of Khozh-Akhmed Nukhaev to solve the problem of the irreconcilable opposition in Chechnya. Approximately the same thing is offered by the “Russian Obraz”: those who live within the framework of a single state with the Russians, a single geopolitical space, but do not want to live according to Russian laws, but want to live according to Sharia or some other accepted by them on this territory laws, they should receive such rights. But at the same time, throughout the rest of the territory, they will, of course, be struck down in civil rights. Living here according to their own laws, they will not have the right to participate in elections, for example, of the head of state in the same format as other citizens.

12. One of your projects is called "Russian image - 14 words". What are these words, by whom and under what circumstances were they uttered?

First, I will talk about this project. "Russian Image - 14 words" is a help to socially unprotected children who were left without parents due to circumstances. These are not only children from orphanages (as you know, the situation in many of them is quite decent due to various charitable foundations), but also various hospitals, reception centers and other places where children who refuse children end up. We focus specifically on targeted assistance, cooperating with social workers who know the situation at each facility from the inside. So, on New Year's Eve, gifts were purchased, compiled according to letters from children-refuseniks from several city hospitals in St. Petersburg and Yaroslavl. We plan to organize similar work in each regional branch.

And these words were uttered by the American political prisoner David Lane after he was sentenced. Translated into Russian, they sound like "We must preserve the existence of our people and the future for white children." That is, we are talking about the fact that we must take care of our children, without whom we simply have no future.

13. Do you think that persons whose guilt in murder on the grounds of national hostility or political differences is proved by the court should be recognized as political prisoners? Can you name the names of those persons whom you consider to be political prisoners?

Not only those who are convicted by the court, but also those who are in jail until the trial. What is the difference between a political prisoner and a bandit? The motivation for his actions. The bandit acts out of a thirst for profit, for the sake of enrichment, a political soldier acts out of his political and ideological convictions, not for self-interest, but for the sake of an idea. The presentation of the book is scheduled for April, which will contain a list of those who are political prisoners today. This will be the first volume - it will include Russian nationalists - political prisoners. In addition to political soldiers - political prisoners, who can be called prisoners of war, there is also a category of prisoners of conscience who are serving sentences for non-violent actions - articles in newspapers, propaganda on the Internet, or their human rights and social activities. And it doesn't matter which article of the criminal code they are charged with, because everyone understands that they are actually in prison "for politics." There are too many names to list here. According to expert estimates, their number has already exceeded 1,000 people.

14. Do you think that a campaign of political repression has begun against your supporters?

I would put it differently. Rather, left-liberal activists tried to start a campaign to discredit us. At the same time, a conglomerate of liberal pro-Western public organizations acted as the information coordinating center for the attack on "RO". These are the SOVA-Center, the information-research center "Panorama" of Pribylovsky and others. Moreover, behind these organizations is the Russian branch of the American organization ADL - the Anti-Defamation League, even some of the founders of these organizations are common. Moreover, ADL keeps a low profile, skillfully conducting public figures. So, the representative of the OWL - Galina Kozhevnikova, on November 6, called "RO" a respectable organization, and already on the 7th, apparently, new instructions arrived - we suddenly became an "extremist underground", and three days later, apparently, new inputs from the leadership again arrived and Galina generally fell silent . But Yulia Latynina got involved. Another key character in this structure is Vyacheslav Likhachev, the head of the analytical department of the Anti-Defamation League and part-time its founder, it is curious that he is also one of the founders of the Panorama Center, along with Mr. Verkhovsky and Galina Kozhevnikova.

For example, in a number of dubious blogs belonging to these gentlemen, as well as other well-known Internet provocateurs, the message about the search on November 5 at my house appeared several hours earlier than in the media. It is clear that the media have a direct connection with the security forces - sometimes the newspaper pays them extra for leaking information, sometimes they themselves use the media to leak the news they need. But where did bloggers get this information, in particular from Pribylovsky?

Our legal department is currently preparing a series of libel suits. The scale of the lies that have been heaped up is simply unbelievable. Reading them, one might think that the "Russian Obraz" is just some kind of center of world evil, a secret Masonic network that is behind all terrorist attacks, murders and natural disasters.

At the same time, attacking the most successful right-wing legal project of the last two years - "RO" - this group of citizens, deliberately provokes an increase in tension. This is understandable, because they are guided by the principle "the worse - the better," therefore, the absence of a legal alternative with a specific program of good deeds and the growth of tension in the country are completely in their interests, more precisely in the interests of their overseas masters. Their main task is to destroy any possibility of dialogue, to push the nationalists and the authorities against their foreheads. And "Russian Obraz" is dangerous for all these people precisely because we work systematically. Our opponents are engaged in constant monitoring, identifying connections, lobbyists among the nationalists, and then through their own journalists they arrange a gevalt in the press - this millennium tactic, it is very effective and mentally close to our opponents. Until recently, the nationalists did not engage in such monitoring. "RO" approaches all issues systematically, which is why, in contrast to the "Sove-Center" and other nazi-watch, we launched the Yermolov project, whose main task will be to analyze the structure, connections, funding channels, lobbyists of all destructive forces - left-wing extremists , liberals, who are on the content of the West, diasporas.

15. What funds are used to carry out the activities of your organization?

Self-financing. Unlike left-liberal organizations, we are not sponsored by international organizations, we do not receive grants from the MacArthur, Cato or George Soros foundations, nor from Freedom House, which, for a moment, is led by ex-CIA director Woolsey. But the so-called "anti-fascists" do not disdain help from abroad - for example, the development of the ideas of "anti-fascism" in Voronezh alone over the past period from 2003 to 2005 by the MacArthur Foundation, which finances, among other things, the Helsinki group, 700 thousand dollars were sent. Information about this can be found on the official website of the fund. And now, when we are witnessing the rapid growth of "antifa", I am sure that the funding for this movement has become orders of magnitude higher. So to present "antifa" as unmercenary street fighters who rebelled against the state at the call of the soul is at least naive - all their actions are paid well and on time.

16. Do you know the journalist Steshin?

I am familiar with many journalists, and from your publication. Strange as it may seem, many right-wing journalists have worked and continue to work even in Novaya Gazeta. And we have known Dima Steshin since 2003, we are godfathers, I am his son's godfather.

By the way, quite recently Dmitry Steshin became a finalist of the prestigious journalistic award. Artem Borovik for material on the war in South Ossetia. Dmitry turned out to be the only Russian journalist in the frontline zone from Georgia. Steshin left Gori after civilians were evacuated from the city, the administration and the police fled. Alas, I do not know anything about such professional courage on the part of his liberal colleagues - I do not consider visits by journalists, including your newspaper, to militant bases in Chechnya.

Today, antifa and their supporters in the media began to persecute Dima, saying what a horror, the journalist has political views and they are also right! It doesn't surprise me at all that journalists have political views. This is fine. Journalism is the closest area to politics, which is why so often journalists are reformatted into politicians and vice versa, and some manage to combine these two incarnations. Indeed, most publications have right-wing journalists. However, it is no secret to me that there are also many pronounced liberals and antifa in journalism, for example, one of the founders and ideologists of the Russian antifa movement, Alexander Litinsky, is published in your newspaper.

One more example. Gazeta.ru journalist Alexander Chernykh. In his LiveJournal maskodegama, he reported in advance, which means he knew about the upcoming antifa attacks on the office of the youth movement "Young Russia" and the editorial office of "Komsomolskaya Pravda". In general, this character plays a very key role in antifa information campaigns. So, it was he, together with Alexei "Socrates" Sutuga, who a year ago launched a provocation with the mythical girl Olga Ruksyla, who was allegedly killed by nationalists in Irkutsk. Then I immediately ran through the name Ruksyl in all the telephone databases that I had - there was no such surname not only in Irkutsk, but in general in Russia and even in Ukraine. From this, I immediately concluded that this whole story is a falsification. So in the end it turned out. Why they needed it is not clear, maybe to report to their Western sponsors, or, on the contrary, to knock out a new grant. It is significant that the West believed in this story, in several countries there were various protests in front of Russian embassies. In general, these guys are well trained to organize information provocations and discredit the Russian Federation in the eyes of the world community.

17. How is the relationship of your organization with the ROC? Do you allow members of other faiths, such as pagans, to be members of your organization?

We are a political organization, not a religious one. But I can say which representatives of what beliefs will never be in the ranks of "RO" - adherents of destructive cults, that is, sects and also Muslims.

We have long-standing good relations with many good shepherds from among the priests of the Russian Orthodox Church and ROCOR. On April 20, 2001, at Easter, at the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, I myself was awarded by Patriarch Alexy II the Patriarchal Letter for my contribution to the development of the Russian Orthodox Church.