Alexey Gaskarov: Robin Hood from Zhukovsky

On the eve of the three -year anniversary of events in Bolotnaya Square, Radio Liberty publishes materials about the "Prisoners of Bolotnaya"

On May 6, he has been performed for three years since the opposition campaign "Millions Mart" in Bolotnaya Square in Moscow, which served as the basis for a criminal case of riots. Now there are already more than 30 defendants in the case, and despite the fact that three years have passed, investigators have not left attempts to hold the new, from their point of view, violators of the law.

In 2015, the “swamp business” was “replenished” with two more defendants-human rights activist Natalya Pelevina and design engineer Ivan Nepomnya . On the eve of the next anniversary of the action on Bolotnaya Square on the air of Radio Freedom, materials dedicated to the "Bolotnaya prisoners" sound. Today we will talk about a public activist, a 29-year-old economist from Zhukovsky Alexei Gaskarov , who was sentenced to 3.5 years in a colony for participating in the riots and the use of violence in relation to police officers.

Before the "Swamp business", in 2010, Alexei Gaskarov was already arrested as part of the so -called "Khimkinsky case." Then he was accused of defeating the city administration, which occurred in the wake of protests against the cut of the Khimkinsky forest. A year later, Gaskarov was justified, in court it was proved that he was in this action as a journalist.

He is a certain criterion for me - as far as I am not a vegetable in this world

In the framework of the "swamp business" Alexei Gaskarov was not immediately detained , but almost a year after the events in Bolotnaya Square - April 28, 2013. According to investigators, Gaskarov was a member of the mass riots and applied violence against the police - he pulled one by the hand, the other by the leg. In August 2014, the Zamoskvoretsky court found Alexei Gaskarov guilty and sentenced him to 3.5 years in the colony . In December, he was transferred to a correctional institution in the Tula region. The fact that Gaskarov himself was beaten by police on May 6 and then the seams were applied to him, the investigators did not take into account and refused to initiate the case on this subject. According to his wife Anna Gaskarova , who was also on May 6 with his parents in Bolotnaya Square, Alexey intervened in a brawl when the police, trying to detain one of the demonstrators, began to beat him.

Detention on Bolotnaya Square on May 6, 2012

According to Anna Gaskarova, now in the media her spouse is often represented as a leader of anti -fascists or a member of the Coordinating Council of the opposition, where he was elected in 2012, but in fact Gaskarov was more engaged in not political, but public activism. In particular, he devoted a lot of time to activities in his hometown, Zhukovsky near Moscow. He was even elected to the Zhukovsky People’s Council - a local government created by a group of activists to solve urban problems, defend the interests of residents and influence the city authorities. The meetings of the Council are held in the premises of the Zhukovsky Vesti newspaper, and many employees of the publication have known Alexei Gaskarov for several years. Gaskarov met with the chief editor of the newspaper Natalya Znamenskaya in 2009, after the election of the head of the city. In 2012, Znamenskaya, together with Gaskarov, were among the leaders of environmental protest - they defended the Tsagovsky forest , which, like Khimkinsky, the authorities were going to cut down to build a road in its place.

Radio Liberty talked with relatives and friends of Alexei Gaskarov.

Anna Gaskarova, spouse, about a three -day date in the colony:

Alexey and Anna Gaskarov

- For my part, nothing was required, in addition to agree with Lesha for the days of dates. From the side of Lesha it was required to write a statement, and not earlier than two months after that he was set a date. I do not need to bring anything except my passport, but I still took 40 foods for three days with me. You can bring homemade food and a bunch of products that are prohibited for transmission to long dates. Considering that Lesha has been in places of imprisonment for almost two years, I decided that this was a good opportunity to feed him with something home. The day before, my mother and my mother spent a lot of time in the kitchen and in stores, preparing all kinds of delicious dishes.

I did not really imagine what a date for dates would look. The day before, I set the entire Internet in search of photos, but it is clear that only advertising photos from the FSIN website fall on the Internet. I was ready for the worst, but everything turned out to be really, as Navalny described when I went to my brother: it looks like a Soviet business trip. At first it was unpleasant for me to touch everything, I even brought a bunch of detergents with me in order to wipe everything there, but when Lesha came, all this faded into the background.

In addition to the room, there is also a common corridor, a common kitchen, a common bathroom and a common toilet. There is also a walking courtyard in which Lesha and I walked in a circle. It is surrounded by a tall fence, covered with a wire with a wire with a grate on top, and cameras hang in the corners. I had a complete feeling that I got into the environment in which Lesha has been around daily for almost two years. In these three days you get used to each other, being in such a relatively free environment. For Lesha, it was generally a strong contrast. And when on the last day the daytime knocks on your door and says: “Gaskarov, to the exit,” it becomes completely sad, because the feeling that you are experiencing a second arrest.

Natalya Znamenskaya, editor -in -chief of the Zhukovsky Vesti newspaper, about communication with Alexei Gaskarov :

Natalia Znamenskaya

- It was surprised that Lesha did not leave. I told him: "Lesha, you think like a Chinese - - for centuries. Life is one." And he says: "Well, yes, but maybe I'm doing some kind of role now." All the time I thought that he could be arrested at any moment. It was evident after Himmok, it was visible in all. I will not say that we often met, we still have a generational gap, although Lesha found a relationship with everyone. There is a hobbit cafe in Zhukovsky, and the underground cinema was shown there, and all the youth gathered there in order to think, think. The owner of this cafe, Viktor Frolov, he recently died, he was one of the best Leshin friends. And he is two years older than me. Mom Lesha Ira says: “He and my father taught us life, said:“ You can’t live like you, like vegetables. ”And when the son began to actively engage in, interested in the fact that they were around, they also began to go to rallies. She says:“ That I live not like a vegetable is all thanks to my son. ”

Lesha is a real hero, such a dunko with a burning heart. I know that he will not leave. He believes that there is no other country where he should live. It happened to me, it was surprising - such an ass around: in the country is an ass, in the city in general a nightmare, the elections were falsified, the whole land was distributed. Then we returned from the forest when we were in a civil control camp, and he says: "I want to discuss with you: what is important for the city? Can the city survive to become a pearl of education?" I told him: “Lesh, well, you are crazy?! ..” And then we walked all the way and talked about what would happen when everything would be fine. He is a certain criterion for me - as far as I am not a vegetable in this world.

Roman Belousov, friend of Alexei Gaskarov, an employee of the Zhukovsky Vesti, about acquaintance:

Alexey Gaskarov in the colony

- I was engaged in the help of a homeless animal. Once Lesha walked with the company, and they found newborn puppies. He called me at night and asked how far I live, whether I can come and what can be done. I just had familiar veterinarians, I drove to them for dry dog milk, came on a bicycle in Zhukovsky, we picked up this puppy and put it up. It was in 2006, this was how our acquaintance began, and I fell into the Zhukovskaya party, which was spinning around the film club. We were engaged in various interesting things: organized free markets, that is, free fairs, when it was not yet fashionable. It was very cool, there was a feeling of some kind of "Unity". I did not have conflict situations with Lesha. He could have called someone in a friendly manner and continue to do it all day until a person relaxes and clogs it. He was still noticeable in the film club: when we watched the film and discussed in a circle, you had to speak out, even if you do not want or if your opinion repeats someone or it seems uninteresting to you. It was a useful practice, because in this way people are involved in the discussion and this is what is missing in general in politics.

On a date in the colony there is an opportunity to talk about the video, and so we talked with him for almost an hour, as if on Skype. He is awake, actively interested in what is happening here, how are the things of other "swamps". When he calls, he asks - how in a comic book about Gagarin: "Well, how, descendants, have not yet flew to Mars?" - "No, we are still studying the foundations of Orthodox culture." So it is: "Well, how is the protest?" He asks. He doesn’t have much to answer, because I don’t know ... Everyone looks at each other and they say: I have a family house-work, and I am a little interested in “what's the crests”. When now I am trying to describe the situation to him and understand what we could do, I myself do not understand yet.

Olga Aleksandrova, editor -in -chief of Beatle magazine, about acquaintance and "hobbit":

Our friendship was constantly interrupted: in 2010, Lesha was planted for the first time, and now he has not been with us for a long time. Is it insanely missing

- We met in May 2007. Prior to this, I have been unlearned for a year in additional education at VGIK. I was told that in our city there is a film club. When I graduated from the courses, I decided to visit there. There we met Lesha. I am a manager in the specialty and character, so I immediately offered myself for the role of a "Sokolnika", and the guys immediately allowed me to take part of the days. Now I already understand that this was not because everyone was trusted to me at once, but because it was also hard for them alone. This left a strong imprint. I was then 19 years old, and some guys gave me, a young girl older than me, the opportunity to do something on equal terms.

We had a company in the film club, we gathered, watched a movie, discussed, went to concerts. The company was large because Lesha tried to collect all interested guys so that we would not talk idle. But our friendship was constantly interrupted: in 2010, Lesha was planted for the first time, and now he has not been with us for a long time. It is insanely not enough. I am already treated to him as a family member, as an older brother. We correspond now, and there are funny cases. They write a lot to him now, they advise a lot of things, what films have been released. And he writes to us: "No, I have nothing to watch, you are watching it. Here, I advise you that." Although he did not see the film, but someone advised him in a letter. Or: "Here, I heard in the news, some event, go." He constantly writes some articles. And he and I decided once to write an article for Beatle magazine . Probably, she was just the first. And he wrote from a pre -trial detention center an article about what films he recommends to see us, those that influenced his character, his formation.

One of the covers of Beatle magazine

The Hobbit cafe was made by Viktor Frolov. Unfortunately, he recently died of illness. We met him closely in a free school, we used to make a film club with Alexei, and then problems arose with that room, and in 2008 we moved here. The cafe is called "hobbit" because it is in the dungeon, in the basement. Victor did everything here himself, tried to create an atmosphere of mink in which the hobbit lives. We arranged film screenings here, many Zhukovites came here, we showed different films - both the classics of cinema and social cinema. Alexey at first helped Victor, cooked coffee and served people. Lesha found part of himself here, because it was possible to relax with his soul, to collect a company with which it was possible to discuss problems, interests ... We will try to support this institution in every way, especially Lesha, when it comes out, in memory of Victor.

Anna Gaskarova, spouse, about the image of Robin Hood:

-Lesha cannot pass by something if he believes that some injustice is happening. This is expressed in some ordinary situations. When you go in a night train and see a fight through the door of a neighboring car - Lesha will definitely get up and go to understand, stop this fight. It sounds very clicked: here, he cannot pass by, is always ready to help everyone. But it is difficult for me to find among my acquaintances who would come up to these words more than Lesha. He often says that in the letters that he receives in a pre -trial detention center, he is written by words of admiration. And he’s just embarrassed, he has the feeling that everyone deified him, and this is somehow wrong. But I can perfectly understand the people who write to him such words. He really has an image of some Robin Hood.

Mikhail Khodorkovsky, former owner of the Yukos company, about Alexei Gaskarov for the action "One Day - One Name", prepared by the "Committee of May 6":

If the sentence of Alexei Gaskarov will not be reduced (and this may happen if he is released parole or accept the law, according to which one day in a pre-trial detention center is read out for two), he will be released at the end of October 2016.