Paper Plant Shuttered

Lake Baikal breathes a sigh of relief

Russia’s notorious Baikalsk paper plant has finally closed, laying off hundreds of workers and writing the penultimate chapter in a decades-long environmental dispute.

The plant was built in the 1960s and has been targeted by environmental activists since the late Soviet era. It was shuttered and reopened several times, then ordered to close in 2008, most thought for the final time.

But then the plant was unexpectedly revived in 2010 by decree of President Vladimir Putin. Over the past three years the plant has “limped along on both legs,” as local environmentalists say, only shuddering to a stop this fall, when nearly 800 workers were laid off.

Baikalsk, a so-called “monotown” of 13,000 residents, has few economic prospects, and has thus figured in many government programs for reforming Soviet-era monotowns and retraining employees of crumbling industries. Little seems to have come from such programs, but the good news is that the world’s deepest freshwater lake is no longer being polluted by factory runoff.

One chapter remains in this story: a monumental cleanup operation faces Baikalsk, where decades’ worth of toxic sludge is buried in vulnerable tanks near the lake.

Sorokin Resurfaces

When art predicts life

Russia’s dark, postmodernist writer Vladimir Sorokin has released a new novel, his first since 2006.

Telluria is about a mythical republic where a magical “happiness metal” is mined. Sorokin, along with Victor Pelevin (whom Russian GQ named 2013 “writer of the year”), is credited with offering, through his literature, special insights into the workings of Russian society.

Many observers say Sorokin predicted Russia’s modern reality with his 2006 novel Day of the Oprichnik (published in English in 2011 by Farrar, Straus and Giroux, translated by Jamey Gambrell). Telluria will be dissected for the writer’s interpretation of the third Putin term, the mass protests of 2011-12, and the rise of neoconservatism in Russia.

Duma on the March

More controversial bills in the offing

A slew of ultra-controversial bills glided through the Russian parliament last year. This fall, there is no sign the government is letting up.

President Vladimir Putin recently sent a bill to parliament that makes relatives of persons accused of terrorism financially responsible for the damage done by their kin.

Meanwhile, the Duma’s Family Committee has approved a bill that would allow the state to remove children from homosexual families. If formally introduced to the floor and passed, the bill would amend Russian family law to include “allowing non-traditional sexual relations” to the list of reasons that the state can take away parental rights.

No Film for You

Tchaikovsky turned away by film fund

A promising movie project by acclaimed director Kirill Serebrennikov about Russian composer Pyotr Tchaikovsky was done in by anti-gay controversy.

Serebrennikov, who had been planning to make a movie about Tchaikovsky for years, wrote on Facebook that the powerful Fond Kino (Film Foundation) did not give him funding, forcing him to postpone the project and even return money already pledged by the Ministry of Culture.

Fed up with the incessant stream of commentary (including from President Putin) about whether or not Tchaikovsky was gay and why he is respected as a musician, Serebrennikov said he saw a “sad irony” in the fact that he is now forced to look for money abroad for a project about one of Russia’s greatest composers.

“In the last years of his life, he was more sought after in Europe and America than in Russia… where the ‘culture community’ was fascinated by rumors about his personal life, while his music left them shrugging their shoulders,” Serebrennikov wrote.

The budget for the drama is said to be about R240 million ($7.5 million). Serebrennikov is mainly known for his work as a theater director, but has also made several art-house films. His latest movie, Betrayal, garnered prizes at festivals.

Mordovia Tales

“Punk prayer” convict exposes prison abuse

Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, a Pussy Riot band member serving a two-year term in a prison colony in Mordovia, reignited the debate over conditions in Russian prisons when she declared a hunger strike to protest 16-hour workdays, beatings, and an elaborate punishment system that exists for convicts who dare to file complaints.

“My team in the sewing workshop works 16-17 hours a day, from 7:30 to 0:30,” Tolokonnikova wrote in a letter chronicling the abuses and announcing her hunger strike. “At best we get four hours of sleep. We get one day off per month.”

With reports of rotten food, only occasional showers, a lack of hot water or sewing machines that work, the missive echoes excerpts from Stalin-era camp literature. Prison authorities, meanwhile, denied that conditions are bad, saying convicts themselves ask to work extra hours. But a group of ombudsmen and former prisoners confirmed Tolokonnikova’s account. Tolokonnikova, who is due to be released next March, was admitted to a local clinic after contracting an infection. She ended her hunger strike after eight days over concerns for her health.

Jellyfish CrowdFund

Russian scientists raise money for plankton study

Russian marine biologist and deep sea photographer Alexander Semenov has launched a Boomstarter (a Russian knock-off of Kickstarter) campaign to fund an oceanic expedition. The venture, dubbed Aquatilis, will study delicate plankton and giant jellyfish that live in the deepest parts of the ocean and are virtually impossible to bring into the lab.

The scientific team wants to identify the species living in these realms, as well as their food sources and behavior, while studying them in their native habitat. The team will also make a documentary film and a book.

Semenov, who is known for his breathtaking deep-sea photographs, has a goal of raising R1.5 million from individuals, with the remainder of the expedition’s costs covered by major sponsors. Donors will receive high-resolution photographs, calendars, t-shirts, and hoodies.

The deadline for the fundraising effort had to be met by October 31. As of press time, in early October, Aquatilis had raised over R700,000 ($22 thousand). A Kickstarter campaign will be started in December.

shilovpope.livejournal.com

2013 Russian Booker Prize

Shortlist Nominees

Evgeny Vodolazkin  Лавр. Неисторический роман

Andrei Volos  Возвращение в Панджурд

Denis Gutsko  Бета-самец

Andrei Ivanov  Харбинские мотыльки

Margarita Khemlin  Дознаватель

Vladimir Shapko  У подножия необьятного мира

44 percent of Russians agree with opposition leader Alexei Navalny that the ruling United Russia party is made up of “crooks and thieves,” according to an August poll by the Levada Center. In 2011, that number was about 30 percent and 38 percent in September 2012. The number peaked at 51 percent in April of this year. In June of this year, almost half of Russians (47 percent) said United Russia was the Kremlin’s “puppet party.”

Some 1 million foreigners are officially registered with the migration authorities in Moscow and 1.5 million in surrounding areas, according to the Federal Migration Service. Furthermore, some 3.65 million foreigners are estimated to be living in Russia illegally. There are about 200,000 officially registered migrant workers in Moscow, most citizens of the former Soviet republics of Uzbekistan, Ukraine and Tajikistan. Some 20,000 foreigners were expelled from Russia in the first seven months of 2013. [Ekho Moskvy; RIA Novosti]

For the Spike

In September Russia’s volleyball squad won its first-ever European gold,† defeating Italy 3-1 in the final. This follows on the team’s comeback gold medal in the 2012 Olympics, plus the women’s team dominating the European championships, bringing home their 18th gold, and signals a high point for the sport in Russia.

Most reassuring for local fans was that the victory was achieved with a new head coach, Andrei Voronkov, plus just five players on the roster from the winning Olympic squad.

The towering Dmitry Musersky (218 cm; 7' 1") was named tournament MVP, Sergei Grankin was designated best setter, and Alexei Verbov was named best libero (a specialized defense player). “It would be no exaggeration to say that Russian volleyball is the best in the world now,” Verbov said.

Heavy Loss

Before a sellout crowd on October 5 at Moscow’s Olympic Stadium, Ukrainian Vladimir Klitschko successfully defended his World Heavyweight boxing titles against Russian challenger Alexander Povetkin.

Before the bout, Povetkin had been undefeated (26-0 with 18 KOs), and had never been knocked down. But Klitschko (61-3 with 52 KOs) sent Povetkin to the mat several times, and three times in the seventh round.

In the end, Klitschko, who is three inches taller than Povetkin, won by a 119-104 judgment. “Povetkin is a fighter with high spirit,” said Klitschko’s elder brother, Vitali. “He fought to the end. I do not think the bout could have been finished earlier. If Vladimir could have, he would have certainly done it.”

Ovechkin Zazhigaet*

On a sunny September afternoon, NHL megastar Alex Ovechkin fulfilled his dream of carrying the Olympic torch during its long journey to Sochi, site of the 2014 Winter Olympics.

The Washington Capital’s scorer was the second sports dignitary – and first Russian – to carry the torch after it was lit during an afternoon ceremony in the ruins of the 2,600-year-old Temple of Hera. Organizers invoked the spirit of the Greek god Apollo and lit the torch with a parabolic mirror reflecting the sun’s rays. Ovechkin accepted the lit torch from Greece’s 18-year-old Alpine skier, Ioannis Antoniou.

Ovechkin said he was thrilled to kick off Russia’s Olympic torch relay – a mammoth effort that will span all nine of the country’s time zones and include a trip to outer space. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and something I will never forget,” Ovechkin said.

Wrestling Reinstated

The good news for Russian fans is that wrestling – one of the original disciplines at the Ancient Olympics – has been reinstated as an Olympic sport for the 2020 and 2024 games. The bad news is that Russia’s unified wrestling team won only three gold medals instead of the expected five, and finished second (behind Iran) in the overall medal count at the 2013 FILA World Championships.

Mikhail Mamiashvili, President of the Russian Wrestling Federation, said the Russian team had a hard time adjusting its training system to some of the new rules in such a short time: “The new rules are very physically demanding on the wrestlers and also call for better tactical and technical skills. We do have the right methodology in this respect in Russia, so we will be up to task next season.”

Meanwhile...

The “Russian beach boys” retained their FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup crown with a comfortable 5-1 win over Spain at Tahiti 2013.

Russia topped the medal table at September’s Rhythmic Gymnastics World Championships in Kiev.

† The Soviet men’s squad won European gold in 1991.

* See Survival Russian, page 28.

Overheard

бесполезно называть эти слухи ерундой

“Please understand, this is all from the sphere of fantasy, it’s pointless to deny it, to call the rumors nonsense… It would be difficult for me to answer questions about his personal life. He works so much that I don’t really understand where this personal life would fit in.”

Dmitry Peskov, spokesman for President Vladimir Putin, on persistent rumors
that his boss married former gymnast Alina Kabayeva
at a ceremony in Valdai, Novgorod region. (Izvestia)

пусть общество образует запрос на эти проекты

“Our country has been fortunate to have so many mega-events in Russia in recent years: the opportunity was there, as were the funds. Perhaps we need to pause and consider what costs they entail for the economy, then let the public develop demand for such projects.”

Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov, on the tens of billions of dollars Russia
has spent on prestige projects like the APEC summit and the Olympic Games,
now that the Russian budget is under pressure. (Itar-TASS)

если бы он был гомосексуалистом, его пальцем бы никто не тронул

“Berlusconi is on trial because he lives with women, but if he were a homosexual, no one would lift a finger against him.”

President Vladimir Putin speaking at the televised Valdai Club meeting,
on the prosecution of his friend, and former Italian Prime Minister, Silvio Berlusconi,
who was found guilty of having sex with a minor.

Что эта 15–20-миллионная
масса производит?
Ровным счетом ничего.

“Who are the citizens of Moscow? They are street sweepers, drivers, office drones, journalists… service employees, traders, bloggers even. What does this 15-20 million mass produce? Absolutely nothing.”

Kremlin Chief of Staff Sergei Ivanov,
offering his take on Muscovites after
they voted in unexpectedly high numbers
for opposition mayoral candidate
Alexei Navalny. (gazeta.ru)

Departures

Tatyana Zaslavskaya, a sociologist and leader of Russia’s first independent polling organization who was one of Mikhail Gorbachev’s key economic advisers, passed away at 85.

Zaslavskaya made a name for herself when she founded the Novosibirsk school of economic sociology in the late Soviet era. In 1983 she authored a report explaining why the country’s planned economy was doomed, a report that was seized by the KGB after a brief and lively debate in the research community. It was published in the West as the “Novosibirsk Report,” where it was hailed as the first sign of perestroika, a word Zaslavskaya used in the report, which became a significant influence on Gorbachev and some of his other advisers. Zaslavskaya was also a deputy in the first democratically elected Soviet parliament and an ally of physicist Andrei Sakharov.

Zaslavskaya was later put at the helm of VTsIOM (All-Russia Center For Public Opinion Research), where she worked with the people who later left VTsIOM to establish the Levada Center, the only Russian polling organization not funded by the state. Zaslavskaya served as the organization’s honorary president.

Vadim Yusov, the cinematographer who made Andrei Tarkovsky’s most famous films, passed away at the age of 84.

Enormously respected in the film community, Yusov was a perfectionist, known for both his artistic vision and the technical savoir-faire needed to make films in times of scarcity, before the advent of digital technologies.

Yusov was behind the camera in Tarkovsky’s Ivan’s Childhood, Andrei Rublyov and Solaris. He also shot several films for Sergei Bondarchuk, including the classic war film They Fought for Their Country and Georgi Daneliya’s I Walk Through Moscow. He won the award for Best Cinematography at the Venice Film Festival for his work with director Ivan Dykhovichny on the 1988 film Black Monk.