Are you coming back // dec 2022
In September 2022 Putin started mobilisation in Russia to continue his criminal war in Ukraine. According to various estimates they were going to call for 300-500 thousands of people.
Hundreds of thousands people fled their homes over the next few days. That led to dramatic increase of airfares up to unaffordable level and transport collapses at state land borders. Others, who did not have an opportunity to leave, faced an even worse fate. Frightened and lost they were driven like cattle to frontline to become cannon fodder.
This series is my attempt to picture what my compatriots were going through from the perspective of person who left home with the first wave in March and already reflected similar experience.
Hide and seek // oct 2022
In order to avoid receiving a notice from army people also began to hide inside the country — in remote districts away from family and military commissariat.
what are your goals now // nov 2022
From the very first day to the present neither the Russian government or it's commissars or even hundred of propagandists can explain why this cruel and bloody war was started in the first place.
Mommy // NOV 2022
The piece refers to mothers and wives of russian soldiers, who learned about lack of army supplies and started raising money to purchase the bare necessities for a frontline, including underwear.
goodye // dec 2022
At the border crossing from Russia to Georgia people were stuck in miles of traffic jams spending almost a week there, sleeping, eating and living in cars. Finally they were running out of food and water. Activists declared the situation at Verhniy Lars border a humanitarian catastrophe.
The process
Based on open sources BBC has collected more than 10 thousands names of Russian soldiers who undoubtedly died in Ukraine by December 2022. 400 people among them were called up during the mobilization. Experts believe that this numbers are 40-60% less than in reality. The rest of the names are not known to us yet.
During the mobilization Putin’s servants primarily came after the most vulnerable groups. They sought out the poorest, lonely, and uneducated people to put pressure on. People, for whom there was no one to intercede, who even had no idea that there was no criminal liability for not appearing in military commissariat.
War is a crime 🕊️
