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Russian journalist Marina Ovsyannikova interrupted a program on the Russian state channel to protest the war. Last week, she became a worldwide trend after she decided to rebel against Vladimir Putin’s regime.
Ovsyannikova admits that for many years she worked for the Kremlin’s propaganda and decided to protest because she disagreed with Putin’s government. She also assured that several serious events had already taken place, but citizens are afraid to protest.
It is the same fear that the journalist is now afraid of. After her interruption on television, with a sign calling for an end to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, she was detained and fined 30,000 rubles (the equivalent of about 265 euros.)
This Monday she gave her first interview after facing the authorities. She assured that she is at a point of no return and noted that her life “changed forever.” “I can’t go back to my old life. I’m really worried about my children now, my son, who is 17, and my daughter, 11. I take tranquilizers,” she said in a conversation with German media Der Spiegel.
She added: “Of course I’m afraid, very afraid even. I’m a human being, after all. Anything could happen – a car accident, anything they want. I’m aware of that. But that is my position as a citizen: What we are dealing with here is war. Make no mistake, I have already passed the point of no return.”
The journalist’s fears
Despite her fears, Marina says she does not plan to emigrate and therefore does not accept French President Emmanuel Macron’s proposal to move to Paris. “No, I don’t want to leave our country. I am a patriot, and my son is an even greater one. We definitely don’t want to leave or emigrate anywhere,” she assured.
She also explained that the decision to demonstrate against the Kremlin affected not only her, but also her family. “My mother is still in shock, she’s completely exhausted. My son has been very affected by all this – he’s going through a difficult phase at his age, anyway. He accused me of destroying all our lives.”
Finally, she pointed out that, although his dad was born in Ukraine and still has family in that country, the decision to demonstrate was given because she is against any injustice and more so if it happens in what she described as a sister nation.
“No sane person can accept that. My father is Ukrainian, my mother is Russian. It is true that I was born in Odessa back in Soviet times. When I was one, we left for Russia and I have lived here ever since. My father died in Odessa, his grave is there. I still have relatives, an aunt, cousins, but I have little contact with them. For me, the protest was first and foremost a pacifist action – it is in the interest of Russia and the world to end this as soon as possible. I wanted to show that Russians are also against this war, which many people in the West don’t realize. The majority of smart and educated people here oppose the war.”
