Wives of Russian soldiers protest against 'endless war' in Ukraine | DW News
Summary
TLDRA group of Russian women are staging weekly protests to demand the return of their husbands and sons fighting in Ukraine. They initially supported the war but now want their relatives home, with some explicitly calling to end the conflict. The women refuse to give up, protesting every Saturday in cities across Russia. While the Kremlin currently lets them demonstrate without interference to provide an outlet for anger, a harsher crackdown could come if the movement grows substantially. Still, mass anti-war protests are unlikely due to Russia's size, lack of infrastructure, intimidation of dissent, and economic stability shielding citizens from the war's impacts.
Takeaways
- 😡 A group of Russian women are protesting to demand the return of their husbands and sons from the war in Ukraine.
- 👩👦👦 The women are united in wanting their relatives to come home from fighting in Ukraine.
- 🤔 The protesters have differing views on the war itself, with some supporting it and others more skeptical.
- 🚫 The women are sharpening their tone and now demanding an end to the war, not just the return of their men.
- 😟 The protests show growing anger and dissatisfaction in parts of Russian society over the war.
- 📢 The women want their protest to pressure Putin ahead of the March presidential election.
- 😕 The Kremlin is so far letting the women protest without crackdowns, seeing it as not a real threat.
- 🤫 Protesting is risky in Russia, so the movement is still small with only hundreds participating.
- ⏱ The women vow to keep protesting every Saturday until their demands are met.
- 😯 If mobilization resumes, more widespread anti-war protests could occur in Russia.
Q & A
What are the Russian women protesting for?
-The Russian women are protesting to demand the return of their husbands and sons who were mobilized to fight in Ukraine. They want them to come home.
What are the women's views on the war?
-The women have differing views - some claim to support the war, others are more skeptical. But they are united in wanting their relatives to return from Ukraine.
Where are the women protesting?
-The women are protesting in public spaces like the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and President Putin's campaign office near the Kremlin in Moscow.
How long have the protests been going on?
-The women's initiative demanding their relatives' return has been around for months, but recently they have sharpened their rhetoric to explicitly demand an end to the war.
Why don't the authorities crack down on the protests?
-The Kremlin likely doesn't see the small protests as a real threat yet. Also, violently crushing the protests could be counterproductive.
Could the protests grow into an anti-war movement?
-So far the protests seem unlikely to become a mass anti-war movement, as Russia lacks the infrastructure and leadership required. But some observers warn the protests could still grow.
Why don't most Russians actively oppose the war?
-After 20+ years of Putin, few Russians have an interest in politics. Also the war has little impact on most people's everyday lives currently.
What could turn public opinion against the war?
-Economic troubles or a new mobilization wave might worry people. But currently Russia is doing fairly well economically despite sanctions.
What do the women want from Putin?
-The protesting women want Putin to see and hear their protests. They are demanding he announce demobilization to end the war and bring their relatives home.
How are the women planning to continue protesting?
-The women plan to continue protesting every Saturday in public spaces in Moscow, St. Petersburg and elsewhere to pressure Putin ahead of March's election.
Outlines
🤔 Russian women protest to demand return of their relatives from Ukraine war
Paragraph 1 discusses a group of Russian women who are staging protests regularly to demand the return of their husbands and sons from the war in Ukraine. The women have differing views on the war but want their relatives home after long service. They want to lay flowers at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in protest and are determined to pressure Putin to let their men come home.
😕 Kremlin allowing protests so far but could crack down if they grow
Paragraph 2 notes the Kremlin is currently letting the women protest likely because they don't see it as a big threat yet and want an outlet for anger. But if the protests grow much larger, the Kremlin could quickly change course and crack down. Intimidation is already widespread.
😟 Criticism that the women aren't explicitly anti-war, just pro-family
Paragraph 3 discusses how the protesters have faced criticism from both pro-war and anti-war camps. Some say the women weren't brave enough to be explicitly anti-war and just want their own families back. But the women say they are gaining members and believe they will eventually be seen by Putin.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡protest
💡mobilization
💡Kremlin
💡election
💡opposition
💡sanctions
💡criticism
💡decree
💡demobilization
💡manifesto
Highlights
First significant highlight text
Second notable highlight text
Transcripts
a group of women in Russia are staging
regular protests to demand the return of
their husbands and Sons from Ukraine
they have differing views on the war
with some claiming to support it and
others more skeptical but all are united
in the belief that their relatives have
done their fair share of the fighting
and should be allowed to now come
home determined to get their man back
marand d and a dozen other Russians
whose husbands were m ized want to lay
flowers at the Tomb of the Unknown
Soldier this isn't a ritual but a
protest they wanted their husbands who
have been fighting in Ukraine for more
than a year to finally come
home there is a war going on people are
dying there average people men who were
called up during the partial
mobilization we can't pretend that
they're not dying
there she calls her women's initiative
the way home Mar Andre recently even
took it to the campaign office of
President Vladimir Putin near the
Kremlin emotions ran high
there should my husband come back
crippled your husband is defending our
homeland and what will I get back a man
without legs and arms a sick man
how are you talking about your husband
you don't even know what's going
on the women want to get through to
Putin with their protests the president
who in early January celebrated Orthodox
Christmas with a select group of
completely different women everything
there was
harmonious as you know our brave heroic
men our boys the Warriors of Russia are
fighting for the interests of our
country even now during the
holidays the initiative has been around
for months but in recent days the women
have sharpened their tone at first they
were not explicitly against the war only
in favor of their husbands coming back
now they are demanding an end to the
war it's
symptomatic we see similar anger in
other are of
society young people are becoming
increasingly
dissatisfied pensioners are increasingly
worried about Rising food
prices the war is causing more and more
consternation and
tension but that doesn't mean that
people are ready to take to the streets
on
mass it means they see the situation
that Russia is currently in
differently couldn't this turn into a
bigger movement
the problem is is that Russia is a very
large country to organize an all Russian
movement you need proper
infrastructure these women have neither
infrastructure nor a
leader they refuse to give up the women
now take to the streets every Saturday
not only here in Moscow but also in St
Petersburg we have to come back again
and write lots of protest letters to ERT
massive pressure now is exactly the
right moment to
act that moment is the presidential
election in less than two months time
the Kremlin hasn't yet intervened in the
protests but that could change
quickly more I'm joined Now by DW's Yuri
retto filed that report Yuri was our
Moscow bureau chief before 4dw was
banned from reporting from Russia now
joins us from Ria Yuri what exactly do
those women we saw in your report want
to achieve with their
protest well Terry first and foremost
these women want what they call Justice
they are pretty unhappy that their
husbands are at the front for so long
against their will they say uh this
isn't about contract soldiers but about
mobilized men uh the wives of these men
want their husbands to come home
immediately and this is new that are
demanding an end to the war in other
words uh we are talking here about a
group of citizens in Russia who
represent a part of Russian society that
it against the war and therefore also
against President Putin's policies uh
it's still difficult to estimate Terry
how many people in Russia share this
view because all surveys are difficult
in times of War however there is
obviously a certain part of the Russian
population that wants to the the end to
the
war it's difficult of course risky to
protest in Russia these days Yuri but
these women are protesting openly even
in moscow's Red Square are they not
afraid of being
arrested well I think the Kremlin is
letting the women protest for two
reasons um firstly because these women
don't seem to be a real threat to the
Kremlin so far um and secondly because
the Kremlin understands that a total ban
on expression once opinion uh is
ultimately counterproductive there are
not yet thousands of women but at most
hundreds who dare to protest in Moscow
St Petersburg in other words it's not a
yet mass movement uh they might come
insistently to Red Square in Moscow and
to Mars of Apollo in St Petersburg every
Saturday but they are not storming the
Kremlin and as soon as there are much
more women the Kremlin can quickly
change the mind um also the uh police
don't want to produce images to of
Arrested women in front of the Kremlin
now in the run up to the presidential
election and uh yeah that takes us to
the second reason the kremin understands
that there has to be an outlet for
people's anger and from the kremlin's
point of view it's better to control a
dozen unhappy women than tens of
thousand of supporters for example of
the opposition politician naali who took
to the streets a few years ago here you
say the kemin doesn't see these protests
by those women as a threat but could
this not grow into a larger anti-war
movement that's potentially dangerous
for Putin
well yeah it's remarkable that the women
are demanding an end to the war and not
just a rotation at the front so that
their husbands can come home
nevertheless uh there won't be a mass
protest I think we've just heard it from
the political scientist in my report
Russia is a big country and that every
protest needs an infrastructure and a
leader but there is also Terry another
much more let's say ordinary or banal
reason after more than 20 years of Putin
hardly anyone in Russia has any interest
in politics uh people leave according to
the motto I do leave my life and the
state should leave me alone in addition
there is much intimidation across the
country plus as long as Russians don't
feel this war very clearly in their
everyday lives uh they won't take to the
streets and protest against it and the
Russian the Russians hardly feel the war
because all the Western sanctions are as
good as useless Russia is still doing
pretty well economically the only thing
that could really worry people would be
a new wave of mobilization but that
won't happen apparently at least not
before the election in March Yuri thank
you very much as always that was our
correspondent in rioo Yuri
retto let's get more on this from DW
reporter Alona mova welcome uh Alona so
these women why are they speaking out
now given that this war has been going
on two years yes Phil so because of
disappointment this women say that
they're disappointed in the Russian
presid president and that's the main
sentiment that I got while reading all
the messages in this telegram group this
women say that there is this dichotomy
between what the President says and
what's actually written in the decrees
that he signs so they also say that they
had been lied to several times so the
first time when they were told that
there would be no mobilization the
second time when they were told well
there is mobilization but your man will
be gone for three maximum 6 months and
right now this decree is still in place
and it's says explicitly that this man
can only come back the mobilized one
when Dem mobilization is announced and I
also spoke with some women and people
there in Russia and I asked them about
what they think about mobilization and
some of them told me but there is no
mobilization anymore and I asked them
why they think so and they said well
it's been quiet and that's a very tricky
situation because just because it's
quiet doesn't mean that decree is not
there the decree is there and this women
say that please join us support us right
now because tomorrow today it's us but
tomorrow can be any of you fighting for
you man and they have faced criticism
haven't they yes they have faced
criticism from both sides of the aisle I
would say so obviously the first side is
proar activists and obviously they blame
the women traitors they brand them
estrus but also it's very interesting
from this anti-war groups as well and
there are two main points of criticism
there so the first one is that this
women so to say let their men go and
fight and this women say well we were
apolitical before and these are the
consequences of that we know that we
regret that and we didn't really know
what was going to happen so we were
basically lied to but the second point
and it's very tricky here as well some
say that this women are not brave enough
so I read their Manifesto and they call
for demobilization they call for normaly
to be brought back to the country but
they don't specifically say that they
want the war to end they allude to that
but they don't say specifically so some
praise their bravery and at the same
time there are people who say well why
can't they just say we unti War we un to
Putin well for obvious reasons because
the political climate in Russia is very
very dangerous right now for that so how
dangerous are they then how scared are
authorities that this could grow into
something this movement well I would say
there are some signs of that to be
honest so at least according to this
women some of them have been approached
by FSB agents and they say that these
FSB agents they try to exert some
pressure on them but they were surprised
as well that this pressure wasn't as
strong as they expected and they have
their own theory for that they say that
authorities might be scared to put too
much pressure on this women because
their men right now are fighting there
so they are already fatigued and tired
and they of course they would be
outraged when they find out that this
women are being basically uh put on
pressure by the government there back in
Russia so this women say that there are
these authorities are scared of the
reaction of their men on the
Battleground so the main goal of this
women right now that's what they they
say they want to be seen by the Russian
president and they want demobilization
to be to actually become a decree to be
real so they say that the longer the war
is ongoing the bigger the group is going
to grow and right now it's more than
40,000 people there in this telegram
chat so that the president has to see
them at some point okay thank you for
that Alona DW's Alona Mur over thank you
thank
you
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