Firstly, what is the political climate in Russia, and what is the general attitude of society towards war? Those who protect Putin and justify the war, on the one hand, and those who oppose, on the other, will be about
half and half. It is also important to understand that in Moscow, for example, there is a strong protest movement that began towards 2011 in the Plaza de Bolotnaia with the movement of “white ribbons” [Protest movement against the riots]. Most people in Moscow were against Putin's policies, protests were massive... The whole center was full of people, and with the Occupy movement, people put tents in the plazas and stayed there. The citizen felt that things could change because in those protests there were very different people.

But little by little, a lot of people stopped and imprisoned. And then came the first wave of political repression, political prisoners, anarchists ... It directly affected many of its members, who had to serve years in prison for attending demonstrations.

In 2014, for its part, about 2,000 people were going out on the street and we didn't think that much. Now, on the contrary, it seems to us tremendously to bring 2,000 people together in one place, because in the present situation it is not possible to bring so many people together in one place, all of them would be arrested. People are now coming out very dispersed, appearing on multiple sites at once, and trying to protest in some way.

Many people believe there will be civil war here. Some friends bring their valuables to other places near the city because they think there will be burglaries in Moscow. That's the environment we're living these days.

On the left of Russia, in a broad sense, what attitudes towards war exist?
All opposition leaves the country. Very few of my friends are left. And that is what the protest is now, because in this situation it cannot happen otherwise. And this migration is so massive that it's manifesting itself as a great protest movement, it's being an exodus. Obviously, people are also organizing some clandestine protest movement, for example, by printing muffins.

As for the mobilizations against war, how has this movement been organized and what strength does it have?
The anti-war movement has become a total clandestine, as the threat of prison sentences is real. In the early days of the war, everyone went to the streets, but many were arrested. And now judicial proceedings are being launched and criminal investigations are being carried out, so the issue is getting serious.

Together with my colleagues, we have created the Global Coalition against War, which brings together cultural agents, friends, artists, writers, etc. from around the world. The first thing we did was collect money and start looking for friends. At first, many Russians were helping us and we started sending money to friends who wanted to leave Ukraine. But then it became clear that many had to stay in the country, because men are forbidden from leaving Ukraine. We're also starting to print muffins, and we're still staying in other ways.

We realize it's useless to go out into the street, for example, because there are police cars around our homes. If you leave now they will take you immediately, whatever your performance. So we started thinking about how things can be done differently. Of course, we are all very scared.

The government has just imposed a new law allowing, among other things, prison punishments of up to 15 years for the dissemination of "fake news". What is the state of freedom of expression and the press? All the
opposition media have been blocked and I believe that many of them are now under criminal investigation. But we don't know about it, we have very little information. However, this law is very scary and, above all, serves them as propaganda mechanisms, because it directly influences the thinking of ordinary people and generates fear of speaking publicly.

Recently another law has entered into force that punishes “betray the homeland”. The “high-level betrayal” had already appeared in the legislation for a long time, but it is now that we begin to clarify exactly what that means. A high-level betrayal is to give all kinds of protection to Ukraine.

As I've read in some sociological studies, sociologists don't have enough data to know what percentage of society is protecting Putin's war and politics, and how many are not. When they call for surveys, people answer: “You know you’re in jail for this, I’m not going to talk to you,” and he hangs.

Even for the mere publication on Facebook or Instagram you can enjoy a serious condemnation, as these networks are now considered as shameful organizations. I keep doing all this and my friends tell me I've lost my head. But I'm sick of being afraid, I just can't live longer in permanent fear.

Women have been pioneers in many cases in anti-war movements. How is the Russian feminist movement against war organizing today?
The Russian feminist movement is one of the strongest at the moment. Yesterday and today [March 19] The Russians celebrate the anniversary of the conquest of crime and I have seen a lot of people with Russian flags on the street, but the feminist movement has made a new call to go out in black dresses with our friends and colleagues. Black is the color of the duel and we also carry white roses, a symbol of the anti-fascist movement that began in Germany. This movement of white roses was initiated by German activist Sophie Scholl.

Before, when it was held on 8 March, Russian girls and women came out with flowers and placed them on the monuments of soldiers killed in the Second World War to pay tribute to those who fought fascism. But now for us the fascists are from the Russian army. My grandfather also helped liberate the world of fascists, and really ... Sometimes I think it is good not to have lived so far, because he did not fight for this Russia.

You've lived in Ukraine. In one of his poems he said it would take ten years to clear Donbas from mines and that nobody wanted war… Did you anticipate what is going on? The
first time I was in Ukraine, I worked in a residence to investigate all kinds of discrimination and subsequently worked as a journalist in a media outlet called Politiczna Krytyka.

We wrote this poem because we were researching at a military hospital in Odessa and talking to the soldiers who had been in Donbas. Of course, no one had foreseen the current situation, and for eight years we lived in some peace of mind, it seemed that nothing happened, even though the war was already underway. It was a great surprise to me when I arrived in Ukraine in 2017 and 2018. The resistance has lasted for these eight years in Donbas, but nobody expected this to happen.

On the Western left there has been widespread belief that there is a great presence of extreme right and fascist in both the army and the institutions of Ukraine. Would you say that? There are
far-right organisations, but I do not think there are many. And some are in power, yes. But there's also a lot of entrepreneurs, there's a strong left-wing movement that's dealing with all of that. When I found it, I was very surprised and I set out to stay forever, because I found the real entrepreneurs, the real people who were fighting for their future.

And among the soldiers, well, there may be nationalists, but I didn't know anyone like that. A soldier I met told me that, despite being at war with Russia, the Russians were still siblings, and that politics is something separate from the people, who could not believe that they were in conflict with the Russians. We talked to that soldier in 2017. Now no one would say that we are brothers, because that phrase comes from Soviet propaganda, which you couldn't say in 2022.

Ukrainians and Russians have historically maintained a great relationship (Ukrainians living in Russia and vice versa, “mixed” families …). How is war affecting these relationships?
I do not know how this situation will live in the families watching television, because there are many people convinced that fascists dominate in Ukraine and that the country must be liberated from them. Probably, somehow, the joints have been cut. For example, the soldiers who spoke with me told me that the Russian relatives decided not to attend a wedding in Ukraine because they feared [Stepán] that the Flag followers [Ukrainian fascists] would cut their heads if they went to Ukraine. And those soldiers would tell me. “Well, but what Flag?”

In my environment, however, the opposite has happened. Mutual protection has become even stronger. We are very united with each other, I am permanently in contact with the friends of Ukraine, we call each other or write each day. I have about 50 people. I have never received a word as nice and tender as the one I receive from my Ukrainian friends, they help me a lot and they give me a lot of strength to continue working. If it wasn't for them, I'd surely be totally desperate and depressed.

How are your Ukrainian friends living through this whole situation?
My ex-boyfriend is now there, Lvive, and you can recruit him at any time. He is a journalist and writes about the situation. All my friends have already gone to Europe. Those who have children take them with them and men have had to stay there. I recently called my friends in a shelter against the bombs that were all there. Apparently, the alarm sounded and they had to go somewhere. It was terrible.

They are being offered as volunteers, for example, those who have cars take refugees. Others prepare food for the public with the Food Not Bombs movement. Others work at the hospital... And when the alarm sounds, they enter the shelters, even though they know that this is going to end soon and that they will also be recruited. I cry every day, I've spent weeks waking up and crying in the morning.

One day I was so tired that I went out to the street to talk to the police. I took the camera and I started asking questions, followed who, why were so many? And they started trying to convince me. “Girl, don’t worry, the police won’t do you anything wrong, we do nothing but keep order.” That servant made me laugh. But he really thinks that, he has romantic ideals in his head, and he really thinks that the police now have good intentions.

He was making a film linked to Ukraine, now he wants to end up in Moscow and intends to take up the current situation.
As I explained before, I was in a military hospital in Odessa. This is where the movie begins with the narrative of a recruited soldier. He explains that in 2014 he did not believe in the war with Russia until it happened to him that they took him to Donetsk, gave him weapons and told him to shoot. I could not believe at all that the Russians had to be shot. And as he tells these things, everyone around him appears crying. He said that he used to work in a bar in Kazantipe, Krimea, where rave-s were made, various parties. And now, with war, it's an absolute hell. But he still speaks well about Russian people despite the war.

I keep making the movie. I'm finishing the second part and just documenting what's going on around it. I film the actions of the Global Coalition, I film the streets occupied by the police and I also film some affected by the protest movements.

I am also asking my friends in Ukraine to video what they live there, to do a kind of diary with what they see there, how they spend time in those shelters against bombs, how they volunteer, etc. And with all this, I'm going to publish in the video a kind of diary, that is, what is happening every day in Russia and in Ukraine, to show how we are experiencing the situation.

The policies prioritised by the European Union have been armed support for Ukraine, the imposition of economic sanctions on Russia and a significant increase in military spending in the short term. What do you think?
In these situations, unfortunately, there are always ordinary people who suffer the most. It appears that, in order to influence Russian policy, the EU has no other instruments than the imposition of sanctions, but this mainly affects ordinary people. And it seems that Putin cares so much about what happens to the economy or to the people. It seems that it follows its own objectives, the feeling is that these penalties do not matter at all.

Under no circumstances do I know what needs to be done in this situation, but for all of this poverty and crime will increase greatly. Everyone fears that this will become hell. There are a lot of people who are losing jobs, prices are growing and it is not clear how we are going to survive, people are also afraid of civil war starting. This is all shit.

What do you think the citizens of the European Union should do in this situation?
I don't know ... But I also feel the support of EU friends. Everyone joins in some way, solidarity grows. It is now important to save people in real danger in Russia. Now we have to rescue those persecuted by the police, obtain visas, subsidise and host at home, rent homes, etc. Because we are carriers of a particular culture, and if we lose it, if Europe does not help us, it will be the end of all that.

This interview was published in Spanish in El Salto.