In Russia, there is an opposition politician and activist named Ilya Yashin. He is 39. Earlier this month, he was sentenced to eight and a half years in prison. His crime? He discussed the massacre of Ukrainian civilians by Russian soldiers in Bucha.
On March 4 of this year, the Kremlin effectively criminalized any criticism of Russian conduct in Ukraine. Many Russians have been imprisoned under this law.
To read about the Yashin case, go to a Reuters report, here, or to a report by Dan Ladden-Hall in the Daily Beast, here.
Yashin was convicted of spreading “fake news” about Ukraine and Russia. I think of Donald Trump and one of the most sickening episodes of his presidency.
At the G20 summit in Japan in 2019, Trump and Vladimir Putin were talking about the journalists assembled before them. Trump said to Putin, “‘Fake news’ is a great term, isn’t it? You don’t have this problem in Russia, but we do.” Putin answered, in English, “We also have. It’s the same.”
If you know what Putin does to journalists, and if you know what America has traditionally stood for in the world, you are sickened by this — probably more than you can say.
After the court in Russia convicted and sentenced him, Ilya Yashin got out a message via the Telegram platform:
With this hysterical verdict, the authorities want to intimidate us all, but, in fact, it only shows their weakness. Strong leaders are calm and confident. Only weaklings try to shut everybody up and scorch any kind of dissent.
Yashin also said, “We have no reason to be sad. . . . We told the truth about war crimes and called for the bloodshed to stop.” Furthermore, “I can only repeat what I said on the day of my arrest: I am not afraid, and you must not be afraid. Changes are just around the corner.”
Are they? Sometimes “history” moves very fast — in positive as well as negative ways.
In court, Yashin was allowed to make a final statement, and he used it to address Putin directly:
Mr. Putin! As you look at the consequences of this monstrous war, you probably realize what a big mistake you made on February 24. No one is greeting our army with flowers. We are called invaders and occupiers. Your name is now firmly associated with death and destruction. You have brought terrible misfortune to the Ukrainian people, who will probably never forgive us.
Alexei Navalny is the leader of the opposition in Russia and has been a political prisoner since 2021. Via his team in exile, he managed to communicate a message to the new prisoner: “Ilya Yashin, we are all proud of you. Russia will be free and so will you.”
I will say once more what I have said often, especially in the last year: Among the very bravest people on earth are Russians. This was true during the Soviet period. It is true now. They should inspire people everywhere, and I hope do.