Translated material
"Power is to blame." Ex-head of the headquarters of Navalny in St. Petersburg left Russia
The ex-head of the St. Petersburg headquarters Alexei Navalny Irina Fatyanova left Russia, although she had repeatedly said that she did not intend to leave the country even because of criminal prosecution. In an interview with the North. Reali, she told why she still changed her mind.
Irina Fatyanova led the headquarters of Navalny ( Navalny’s headquarters were recognized as extremist organizations in Russia. - SR ) in St. Petersburg from November 2019 until it was closed in 2021. After leaving the headquarters of Navalny, the activist participated in the elections of deputies at the Legislative Assembly of St. Petersburg. But two months before the vote, Fatyanov, as well as other former volunteers of Navalny’s headquarters in Russian cities, was removed from the elections under the pretext of communicating with an extremist organization.
- You have repeatedly said that you are not going to leave Russia. What has changed?
- I think that the last stone that was injected into the decision is a pre -trial detention center to which Lilia Chanyshev was sent ( the former head of Navalny’s headquarters in Ufa, against which a criminal case was instituted to create an “extremist community.” - SR ). Even when she was sent to the IVS, I was sure that there would be a house arrest. I had some illusions that in such a patriarchal country as Russia, a female person would be somehow more loyal. The term for the article is serious-6-10 years, and the departure in the pre-trial detention center suggests that this can hardly end with some conditional term. After she was sent to a pre -trial detention center, I thought for several days and quickly left. From the moment when the headquarters recognized as an extremist organization, this case appeared that the Moscow prosecutor’s office appeared, I first thought about emigration.
When I came to work at the headquarters, I was ready for interrogations, searches, a criminal case that could end in a conditional time or fine. But every month, especially after Alexei Navalny was poisoned, my red line was moving further and further. When I participated in the elections, there was either everything or nothing. And, while remaining in Russia, I understood that this could end in a deadline. In this case, for me it was an adequate price. It’s just that then it was not about such long terms.
After the elections, many counted on some kind of calm time, but they began to finally tighten the nuts
It is one thing - 1-3 years, in extreme cases 5 years, and another thing is 6–10. I have adult parents, and if I sit on an extremist article in a colony at such a time, then there is a chance that I will leave prison and will not see them. To be abroad for me is a more adequate option. My red line was 6-10 years old. It just seemed that such landings would not begin at all soon, and they would begin when some politician crossed the road with some specific action. After the elections, many counted on some kind of calm time, but the nuts finally twisted. Therefore, I left ... such as Lilia Chanysheva, who worked at the headquarters for several years, in Russia there is little left. The materials of her criminal case, which are on social networks and the media, indicate that the whole case was built, in fact, on the denunciations of several “informers” or interrogations, where they did not take the 51st article of the Constitution, and criminal activity is simply called participation in the elections or the organization of mass events, including even permitted headquarters. To blind such material, nothing is particularly required, you can substitute the name of any coordinator from the decision of the Moscow Court on recognition of an extremist organization.
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- Whether the former volunteers of the headquarters of Navalny in St. Petersburg are disappointed in you, because they remain in Russia with the risk of criminal case ...
- The worst in the whole situation is that it is not clear where the next time the shooter will indicate. There was no negative reaction, many of them wrote to me for a long time to leave and they are worried. The volunteers are insanely happy that I am safe, they are sad that it happened, they are missing.
- You were a person who actively participated in the political life of St. Petersburg, now you have broken?
- It is difficult for me to answer this question. It seems to me that it is better to answer from the side, I have broken or not broken. There is no morally morally, in any case, I can certainly do everything that I can do abroad. I will write about St. Petersburg policy, participate in public and political projects, where it is possible to do remotely. Another thing is that to engage in public policy, to be a full -fledged public politician, being abroad, is quite difficult. I simply will not have a moral right to some things - to call on to go out. After some time, you lose a little connection with reality, you do not understand what is happening here on Earth, and read about it only in the news, and this is a slightly distorted picture. Personally, I can say to myself, it does not seem to me that I have broken. I have a lot of motivations, strength and faith in the good, not to exterminate it. It’s just that now there are such circumstances that for my loved ones my sitting in prison will not give anything else, and for the people who are my supporters, they were volunteers in my campaign, this will also give nothing. This is such a strategic retreat.
- Based on the events of the last year, it does not seem to you that the protest movement in Russia has ceased active existence?
The authorities did everything so that politics leave the legal field
- Yes, at times the moods are very depressed, and I sometimes try to do detox from the news, because it is different sad and hard. The authorities did everything so that politics would leave the legal field, and we saw this in the last election. Strong politicians, most of them, were not allowed to the election, we are moving according to the Belarusian scenario. But my opinion is this: a holy place is not empty. I left, other politicians left, but new ones will appear, yes, in the circumstances that are. Maybe they will not speak so radically, but they will be the same political views, democratic, will want changes for the country. And when these changes will become possible, in fact, they will bloom, these politicians.
- In your opinion, why is there no active protest in Russia today?
20 years was laid Putin to create such a situation in the country
- To blame people is quite difficult. Who will have a desire to go to the elections that have no competition? The authorities did everything to cross out interest in politics and prevent strong competitors in either the presidential election or the governor. Where will people have a desire to go to the polls? I understand them perfectly. I perfectly understand those who donate “OVD-info” ( included in the register of media-foreign agents.-SR ) and various human rights organizations, but he himself does not go to rallies, because they can be fired, taken into the army. For 20 years, Putin was supposed to create such a situation in the country. We see that it is very difficult to predict protest activity. Could someone think that there would be such a great excitement around the cutting of the square in Yekaterinburg or in Khabarovsk in a situation with the arrested governor Furgal? It is very difficult to predict that people will really bring to a state where they can no longer endure. And of course, power is to blame for this, no one else. I am sure that everything will change, that people cannot endure for a long time, that somewhere this trigger will be. I would not really like the power to bring the country to a state where everyone will live so bad that it will spit, who to change Putin, it can end poorly. But to this, it seems to me, everything goes.
- How is what is happening in Russia can be changed and who should do this?
-I do not have any special recipe. I think that if he was, everything would have been different in our country for a long time. When some weighty number of people in society will have a high request for changes, these people will develop our country.
- That is, now people have no request for change?
People still think that "it will not affect me, it is more important for me that I have everything good in the family, so that I have enough for food and work"
- There is a request, but it is not high enough. We see how many people go out into the streets, if you take the January, April actions. Yes, indeed, there were a lot of people in large cities, and in cities not central, but this is still an insufficient number. So, people still think that "it will not affect me, it is more important for me that I have everything good in the family, so that I have enough for products, so that I have work." But at some point it will become so disgusting to live in the circumstances that this request will be higher. According to my feelings, the request for changes is now really high, but it is still insufficient for changes.
- What should change so that this request becomes higher and lead to changes?
- This is a stick about the two -edges. It seems to me that if we want some kind of positive outcome, then a more real picture is when people will live very badly when they feel it on their wallet, at the standard of living. But ideally, of course, an enlightenment should work, this game is a long time. People must understand their rights, realize them. Of course, no television now, which is watching most people, is not aimed at this, but more and more people go online. It seems to me that people who are engaged in educational projects should do their job so that more people understand how they need to, what they have the right to.
- Under what conditions will you return to Russia?
- I really want to return. If the situation does not change, and criminal prosecutions will continue, I will not return. If I feel that there is no danger to me or it is small, I will think about returning. I would really like to do it as soon as possible.
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