Russia
04/10/2011 / RUSSIA
Moscow builds its very first bicycle lane – or is it an obstacle course?
Moscow, home to 11.5 million people, recently got its very first bicycle lane. It was proudly inaugurated with much fanfare by city officials this summer to the great excitement of the city’s cyclists. However, their joy was slightly diminished when they realised that it was more like an obstacle course than a way for cyclists to more easily navigate city traffic. Read more and see the photos...
05/09/2011 / RUSSIA
Death by bullying: extreme hazing in Russia's army
In August alone, three Russian soldiers committed suicide. According to their families and soldiers’ rights defence groups, these deaths were caused by “dedovshchina,” an extremely brutal form of hazing dating back to the Soviet era which remains common today. Our Observer, a 25-year-old man currently doing his military service, tells us about his harrowing experience. Read more...
Contributors
05/08/2011 / RUSSIA
Russian anarchists fight capitalism with fire
In Russia, anarchists are increasingly attacking symbols of capitalism and authority by setting them on fire. These arsonists, linked through a secretive network, say they are ready to do whatever it takes to get their message out. We talked to one of them. Read more…
27/07/2011 / RUSSIA
‘Sexist and ridiculous’: feminists blast Putin’s big-breasted ‘army’
You won’t find guns or tanks in Putin’s Army, but you may see a fair amount of bare female flesh. This new Russian activist group is composed exclusively of young women using their looks to lobby for Prime Minister Vladimir Putin’s re-election as president. The initiative has many other Russian women fuming. Read more…
Contributors
11/07/2011 / RUSSIA
Popular blogger prompts thousands of Russians to clean their city
To many Russians, the concept of not littering and recycling waste is totally as foreign as green cheese. After years of environmental neglect by the government and piles of trash littering every streetcorner, a growing number of citizens have decided that they’ve had enough. Using the Internet as a mobilisation tool, they have resolved to clean the country’s streets, parks and rivers. Read more…
Contributors
30/05/2011 / RUSSIA
Whistleblower officer says Russian troops served dog food
A whistleblower in Russia’s security force has released photos and videos of what he says are cans of dog food disguised as beef stew, which were allegedly fed to Interior Ministry troops earlier this year. Read more and watch the videos…
Contributors
17/05/2011 / RUSSIA
Russian youths invent absurd way to by-pass demonstration ban
Staging a political demonstration is a particularly difficult feat in Russia where authorities tend to find any number of reasons to ban protests from taking place. As a result, young Russians have come up with an off-beat way to get around the demonstration ban: they stage ‘monstrations’ instead. Read more…
Contributors
04/04/2011 / RUSSIA
Russia gets its first real-life superhero
The Russian Web is abuzz with talk about the country’s first real-life superhero: Mstitel (Avenger in Russian), a masked crime-fighter from the south-western Russian city of Chelyabinsk. Real vigilante, or online hoax? Read more…
02/03/2011 / RUSSIA
Russians suspicious over Putin’s 2014 Olympic mascot pick
An Internet outcry followed the announcement of the 2014 Winter Olympic mascots in Sochi, Russia, after a selection process that has left the government of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin mired in allegations of political meddling. Many in Russia’s blogosphere question the legitimacy of the results after Putin’s unpopular pick won first place. Read more...
Contributors
28/02/2011 / RUSSIA
Activists’ banner at Kremlin says Putin, not Khodorkovsky, should be in jail
A banner draped by Russian activists directly in front of Moscow’s Red Square, called on Russian Prime Minister Vladmir Putin to swap places with jailed oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky. The stunt, which took place several weeks ago, captured the imagination of Russia’s blogosphere in a country where freedom of expression is severely restricted. Read more...
