January 23, 2024

Bashkiris Protest


Bashkiris Protest
A monument to Bashkir national hero Salawat Yulayev in Ufa, the capital of the Republic of Bashakrtostan. Lesnoy Volk, Wikimedia Commons

On January 17, in the city of Baymak, in the Republic of Bashkortostan, a protest rally was held in support of ethnic and environmental activist Fail Alsynov.

Alsynov is best known for his participation in the movement to protect Mount Kushtau from industrial development. He was found guilty of inciting ethnic hatred and sentenced to four years in prison in a penal colony.

Alsynov's supporters began gathering outside the court before the verdict was announced. The protests lasted for several hours. According to various estimates, from several hundred to several thousand people participated. Police used tear gas and stun grenades against the protesters. The protesters responded by throwing snowballs at security forces.

In the end, police detained about 20 persons. The Telegram channel RusNews, which covered the protest action in Baymak in detail, was temporarily unavailable. Before Alsynov's verdict, the Kushtau Bayram Telegram channel, which was used to coordinate the protest in support of Alsynov, also became unavailable. 

Famous Bashkir performer Altynai Valitov called for a follow-up protest on January 19: "I would remain silent now, but my soul burns for this arbitrariness. Why do Russians in Ufa walk around with the words 'Russia for Russians,' yet they are not imprisoned? And a Bashkir who speaks out in defense of his people is imprisoned on his land. Why? Because we are a national minority. They can shout 'We are Russian' to the whole country, but we can’t shout on our land. Where's the justice? And we should swallow this outrage? If we swallow it, in 100 years the Bashkir people with a thousand-year history will disappear. I'm not ready to put up with this. We, Bashkirs, are not ready."

The January 19 rally was held in the central square of Ufa, the capital of Bashkortostan, near a monument to Bashkir national hero Salawat Yulayev. About two thousand people, despite the frosty weather, sang songs and danced in circles to support Alsynov; several people were detained by the police.

The head of the Republic of Bashkortostan called the protests "an attempt to undermine the situation" by "a group of people, some of whom are abroad." The Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation opened a criminal case under articles against organizing and participating in mass riots and the use of violence against a government official. The Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation said in a statement that calls were posted on social networks and instant messengers "for the purpose of organizing mass unrest" to take part in protests at the Baymaksky District Court. According to investigators, the protests aimed to free Alsynov from criminal liability. According to media outlet DOXA, so far, four people have been charged in the riot case.

You Might Also Like

Under the All-Seeing Eye
  • January 21, 2024

Under the All-Seeing Eye

The extent of Russia's surveillance may surprise you — and it's only getting more invasive.
The Women with the White Scarves
  • January 08, 2024

The Women with the White Scarves

Family members of drafted soldiers picketed solo in Moscow demanding the return of their loved ones from the war in Ukraine.
Student Sentenced for Spying
  • January 03, 2024

Student Sentenced for Spying

For the first time, Russia has sentenced a student for spying. The 18-year-old was a high-achieving student.
A Snowy Protest
  • December 21, 2023

A Snowy Protest

After a week of heavy snow, Voronezh locals painted snowdrifts with calls for the local government to finally remove them.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of our Books

Jews in Service to the Tsar
October 09, 2011

Jews in Service to the Tsar

Benjamin Disraeli advised, “Read no history: nothing but biography, for that is life without theory.” With Jews in Service to the Tsar, Lev Berdnikov offers us 28 biographies spanning five centuries of Russian Jewish history, and each portrait opens a new window onto the history of Eastern Europe’s Jews, illuminating dark corners and challenging widely-held conceptions about the role of Jews in Russian history.

Murder at the Dacha
July 01, 2013

Murder at the Dacha

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin has a problem. Several, actually. Not the least of them is the fact that a powerful Soviet boss has been murdered, and Matyushkin's surly commander has given him an unreasonably short time frame to close the case.

Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka
November 01, 2012

Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

In this comprehensive, quixotic and addictive book, Edwin Trommelen explores all facets of the Russian obsession with vodka. Peering chiefly through the lenses of history and literature, Trommelen offers up an appropriately complex, rich and bittersweet portrait, based on great respect for Russian culture.

Little Golden Calf
February 01, 2010

Little Golden Calf

Our edition of The Little Golden Calf, one of the greatest Russian satires ever, is the first new translation of this classic novel in nearly fifty years. It is also the first unabridged, uncensored English translation ever, and is 100% true to the original 1931 serial publication in the Russian journal 30 Dnei. Anne O. Fisher’s translation is copiously annotated, and includes an introduction by Alexandra Ilf, the daughter of one of the book’s two co-authors.

White Magic
June 01, 2021

White Magic

The thirteen tales in this volume – all written by Russian émigrés, writers who fled their native country in the early twentieth century – contain a fair dose of magic and mysticism, of terror and the supernatural. There are Petersburg revenants, grief-stricken avengers, Lithuanian vampires, flying skeletons, murders and duels, and even a ghostly Edgar Allen Poe.

The Latchkey Murders
July 01, 2015

The Latchkey Murders

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin is back on the case in this prequel to the popular mystery Murder at the Dacha, in which a serial killer is on the loose in Khrushchev’s Moscow...

Bears in the Caviar
May 01, 2015

Bears in the Caviar

Bears in the Caviar is a hilarious and insightful memoir by a diplomat who was “present at the creation” of US-Soviet relations. Charles Thayer headed off to Russia in 1933, calculating that if he could just learn Russian and be on the spot when the US and USSR established relations, he could make himself indispensable and start a career in the foreign service. Remarkably, he pulled it of.

The Samovar Murders
November 01, 2019

The Samovar Murders

The murder of a poet is always more than a murder. When a famous writer is brutally stabbed on the campus of Moscow’s Lumumba University, the son of a recently deposed African president confesses, and the case assumes political implications that no one wants any part of.

About Us

Russian Life is the 31-year-old publication of an award-winning publishing house that also creates books, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955