Sometimes a state fails to represent in its entirety what the nation thinks and wants. The nightmare is real, Putin’s war has dragged millions of innocent people into this conflict, leaving thousands of people displaced, with charnel houses, cities levelled, and a barrage of misinformation and pain.
An anti-war movement has been sprouting outside and within Russia, with Russian anti-war activists hanging up and waving white-azure-white flags and taking to the streets to protest the unjust act of aggression levied by Russia on the Ukrainian Nation-State.
Free from the Russian red stained flag, the white-azure-white flag is the symbol of peace, of the anti-war movement, and for a democratic, free Russia. It is wielded by Russians who do not support the authoritarian, military regime instilled by Putin, thus removing the red blood stain from their flag; the colour of war and aggression does not belong with their nation’s identity.
The red stripe free Russian flag is a defiant blow of a symbolic nature that demonstrates the anti-war and anti-military expansionist acts and claims that the current Russian State is using in its rhetoric to justify itself. The white-azure-white flag is grounded in historic symbolism, tied to the Republic of Novgorod`s flag, that can be thought of as the only true democracy in Russia’s history. This autocratic, militaristic, violent, bloody, war cult has no place in the future of Russia.
Much like the white-red-white flag of free Belarus, this white-azure-white flag represents the solidarity of the people in their fight against their illegitimate autocratic government. As such, the white colour symbolises peace, purity, prudence, and in the current context it represents the desire to halt the imperialistic ambitions and aggressions, while the azure blue symbolises truth and justice, as the future of Russia is one of democracy that respects human rights.
This is a flag of peace and freedom used by Russian anti-war activists and protestors in rallies to oppose the unprovoked and unjust invasion of Ukraine. We must remember that not all Russians want this war, most despise it and disagree with it. Since the start of this conflict, February 24th, more than 14,200 anti-war protestors have been arrested. Just recently, on the 13th of March, the police detained 745 people during demonstrations in 37 Russian cities, with about 353 of these detainees being in Moscow.
As Marina Ovsyannikova, Russia`s Channel 1 employee demonstrated on live television with an anti-war poster saying: “No war! Stop the war. Don`t believe the propaganda. You are being lied to here. Russians against war.”
The Russian people are victims too of this nightmarish hell.
Cover photo by mis_pazuzu
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