Rights in Russia

Pictured: Masha Slonim

28 May 2026

Welcome to the 42nd edition of the Russian-language podcast Then & Now with me, Teresa Cherfas

I’m one of thousands of Facebook followers of Russian-British journalist Masha Slonim. Masha and I met forty years ago when we were colleagues at the BBC Russian Service.

Scrolling through Facebook a couple of weeks ago, I unexpectedly discovered that Masha’s cousin, Nina Litvinova, had died. It was May 13. The next day, May 14, Masha posted again:

“Today, RIA Novosti reported, citing law enforcement sources, that our sister Nina Litvinova had taken her own life. In other words, the cops leaked this information. They also wrote that Nina had left a handwritten suicide note.”

Masha then published excerpts from Nina’s suicide note, explaining: “Of course, no one—neither RIA nor Gazeta.ru, which reported this—will publish the note…’

The note speaks of a feeling of helplessness, of the number of people in prison for not supporting the war against Ukraine, of how life had become unbearable.  Of her shame that she had given up, surrendered. 

On the evening of 12 May 2026, at the age of 80, Nina, a human rights activist and academic, was found unconscious beneath the windows of her apartment building on 3rd Frunzenskaya Street in Moscow. Clearly,  Nina had thrown herself out of the window.

I found the story haunting,  and not just because I could imagine where and how it happened—I had lived on 3rd Frunzenskaya Street when I worked in Moscow in 1998.

I wanted to understand why Nina Litvinova’s act had had such an effect not only on me, but on so many others—both those who knew her and those who didn’t—in Putin’s Russia and beyond.

I asked Masha to talk about her sister and the significance of her decision to take her own life.

• Masha, how did you find out that Nina had died? Did you understand straightaway what had happened?
• You published excerpts from the letter Nina left her family and loved ones. What do you make of her final note?
• You grew up with Nina in Moscow—tell us about your family. Your grandfather was Maxim Litvinov, Stalin’s People’s Commissar for Foreign Affairs from 1930 to 1939. How did you understand his role in the history of the Soviet Union?
• Nina’s older brother was Pavel Litvinov, who on August 25, 1968, took part in the “Demonstration of Eight” on Red Square, protesting the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia. Did his actions influence the direction of Nina’s future life?
• Pavel Litvinov left for America; you and your sister Vera also left, first to America and then to England. Why did Nina stay in Russia? What kept her there?
• What did Nina do in her professional life?
• Many people came to the wake for Nina in Moscow. What was your impression of it? 
• You wrote on Facebook that by publishing excerpts from Nina’s last note, you had taken the decision to reveal the real cause of her death and you accused Putin of Nina’s murder. What exactly did you mean?
• Do you remember Irina Slavina, who died in 2020 after setting herself on fire in Nizhny Novgorod? She blamed the Russian Federation for her death…. And then there was Alexander Okunev in Kaliningrad who also committed an act of self-immolation on the third anniversary of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine—his death was hushed up and only came to light a little over a year later. How many more martyrs are needed for Russia to rid itself of its illusions about its president?
• How would you put into a few words your feelings about Nina and what the nature of her death symbolises? 

8 May 2026

by Teresa Cherfas

Welcome to the 41st edition of the Russian-language podcast Then & Now with me, Teresa Cherfas. 

Ksenia Luchenko (pictured above) is the author of the book Благими Намерениями – Русская Церковь и Власть от Горбачева до Путина [‘With Good Intentions: The Russian Church and State from Gorbachev to Putin’] for which she received the ‘Prosvetitel’ award (Enlightener Prize) in 2025. That same year, her name was added to the list of ‘foreign agents’ and, in March this year, she was sentenced in absentia in the Russian Federation to eight years’ imprisonment under the ‘military fakes’ law. Ksenia left Russia in April 2022. Prior to this, she had worked extensively as a journalist and scholar in the field of church affairs and media.

This podcast was recorded on 7 May 2026

• What prompted you to leave Russia so soon after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine?
• Your book With Good Intentions was published last year. Why did you choose that title?
• In 2014, the annexation of Crimea took place, and shortly afterwards, the so-called separatist war in the Donbas region of Ukraine began. Did this mark a turning-point in relations between the Orthodox Church and Putin’s Kremlin, a turn that led to the ‘road to hell’?
• In the summer of 2021, Putin wrote a lengthy treatise on his interpretation of Russian history and the place of the ‘Russian world’ in contemporary politics.. Could you comment on the role of the Russian Orthodox Church in shaping his worldview?
• The Russian Orthodox Church is currently one of the main ideologues of the war with Ukraine, calling the war a holy war and glorifying death on the battlefield. In this context, what is a ‘holy war’ and what are the criteria for defining it?
• And what about relations between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Ukrainian Orthodox Church?
• An important event during Gorbachev’s policies of glasnost and perestroika was the celebration of the millennium of the Russian Orthodox Church in 1988. In hindsight, does it seem surprising that it was celebrated so widely in a country that was still atheist – the USSR?
• Patriarch Aleksy, who led the Russian Orthodox Church during that period, was succeeded by Kirill, who became patriarch in 2009. How did their characters differ? What role did this play in the Church’s subsequent relations with the state?
• It is said that the only institutions that did not undergo reform following the collapse of the Soviet Union were the Russian Orthodox Church and the KGB. Is this true?
• Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, did the Russian people welcome the revival of the Russian Orthodox Church? And to what extent has the revival of the Orthodox Church been related to the development of Russian nationalism?
• For several years now, under Putin’s leadership, Russia seems to want to be seen as a bastion of so-called “traditional values.” These values have been enshrined in laws criminalising homosexuality and declaring the ‘dissemination of LGBT propaganda’ a criminal offence. What is the role of the Russian Orthodox Church in this legislation? How is its role in this sphere evolving today in connection with the war in Ukraine?
• Today, Putin’s “holy war” against Ukraine seems to have been a precursor to the ‘holy wars’ of other global leaders – this is how Israel’s wars in Gaza and Lebanon are justified, this is how President Trump presents his war against Iran, and this is the case with the jihads of the Ayatollah and Hamas. Does this surprise you in the 21st century?
• Pope Leo XIV sharply criticised President Trump for his bombing of the civilian population in Iran, citing the Bible and God’s commandments. How did the Russian Orthodox Church react?– And Putin?
• Are there dissidents among Russian Orthodox priests? And if so, what is the situation with them?

20 March 2026

by Teresa Cherfas

Welcome to the second part of the 40th edition of the Russian-language podcast Then & Now with me, Teresa Cherfas 

Today, we continue Tanya’s story from Mariupol. In the first part, we left her with her granddaughter in Krasnodar. Many moves lay ahead before they finally found a more permanent refuge in England.

This podcast was recorded on 13 March 2026

• In the last episode, you told us how you and your granddaughter reached Krasnodar. How did you leave Russia? And how did you end up in England?
• Do you keep in touch with friends and neighbours who still live in Mariupol?
• Do you dream of ever returning home?
• What kind of future would you like to see for Ukraine?

Welcome to the 40th edition of the Russian-language podcast Then & Now with me, Teresa Cherfas

Our latest episode is devoted to the story of a grandmother from Mariupol, who left her home three days after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. At that time she thought the bombing would end and she’d be back home in a couple of weeks. Four years and counting, she still hasn’t been home. Our guest today will talk about those events and memories of her flight from Mariupol. Her name is Tanya. This podcast was recorded on 12 March 2026

• When Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began, you were living in Mariupol where you had spent your whole life. What happened that made you decide to leave your home of so many years?
• What are your most vivid memories of that time, after you left your home?

Welcome to the 39th edition of the Russian-language podcast Then & Now with me, Teresa Cherfas. Among the first guests on the podcast was Dmitry Oreshkin, the well-known political scientist. At that time we talked with him about the significance for Russia of that fateful day – 24 February – when Putin launched his war of aggression against the sovereign state of Ukraine.

Today, on the eve of the fourth anniversary of the invasion of Ukraine, we have invited Dmitry Borisovich on to the podcast again, this time to comment on the progress of Putin’s war and to talk about the current state of Russia against the backdrop of a rapidly changing world and shift in global politics.

A geographer by education, Oreshkin has extensive experience as a professional observer of the political, economic and social life of Russia today.

This podcast was recorded on 12 February 2026

1. A report published last month by the think tank Centre for Strategic and International Studies claimed that since February 2022, Russian troops have suffered nearly 1.2 million casualties, more than any major power in any war since World War II. What do Russians still in Russia think about how the war is going?

2. How is the war affecting people’s daily lives?

3. When Donald Trump ran for president of the United States, he promised to conclude a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine within 24 hours. A year later, how do you assess Trump’s efforts to reach a peace agreement?

4. The well-known Ukrainian Nobel Peace Prize laureate Oleksandra Matviichuk recently asked a question on social media: “ Why has Trump’s year of negotiations been the deadliest for civilians in Ukraine since the full-scale invasion? The number of deaths and injuries has increased by 31 percent compared to the previous year.

Why did Putin not allow himself such brutal strikes on civilian infrastructure under Biden, whom Trump calls ‘weak,’ but totally destroys peaceful cities and disregards the ‘strong Trump’?” How would you answer her?

5. The same think tank I mentioned earlier ranks Russia as a second or third world country in terms of its economy. Can Putin continue the war indefinitely without fear that the economic consequences will be devastating for Russia?

6. Trump’s indecisiveness regarding Ukraine contrasts sharply with the US operation to capture Venezuelan President Maduro a few weeks ago. How do you think Putin and the Kremlin perceived Trump’s boldness regarding Venezuela?

7. This was followed by Trump’s demand to incorporate Greenland into the US. How did the Kremlin react to Trump’s declamatory speech in Davos and his subsequent climb-down when he saw the strength of opposition to his plan?

8. Many believe Trump is not interested in helping Ukraine and thinks this conflict is a problem that America’s European allies should resolve. What would that mean for Ukraine?

9. If Europe does not unite decisively to defend Ukraine, will Putin continue, say, with an attack on the Baltic states?

10. The real rival of the United States today is, of course, China. How would you describe Putin’s relationship with President Xi Jinping? Do Putin’s nuclear weapons compensate for Russia’s economic weakness in its own relations with China?

11. Many people are talking about the collapse of the rules-based old world order. Do you agree with this interpretation? How do you think the situation will develop over the next few years? How will this affect Putin’s future actions?

by Teresa Cherfas

Welcome to the 38th edition of our Russian-language podcast Then & Now with me, Teresa Cherfas. 

My guest today, Mikhail Fishman, is known to viewers of the independent television channel TV Rain as the host of his own weekly political programme, I Tak Dalee [‘And So On’]. Since the late 1990s, he has served as editor-in-chief of the Russian edition of Newsweek and also worked for The Moscow Times, where he covered the turbulent political developments of the newly created Russian Federation. In 2022, his book Preemnik [The Successor] about the life and times of Boris Nemtsov was published in Russia. The book became a bestseller. Fishman was motivated to write his book after collaborating with documentary film-maker, Vera Krichevskaya, on her 2016 film about Boris Nemtsov, The Man Who Was Too Free. Four years on, it has now been published in English translation under the title The Successor. Mikhail Fishman is with me today to talk about his book. 

This podcast was recorded on 19 January 2026.

• First of all, congratulations on the publication of The Successor in English. Rereading the book in preparation for its English-language publication, how did it strike you after everything that has happened in the seemingly short time between the Russian and English editions? Did you have to rewrite parts of the text to reflect the new realities?
• Although the book is about Boris Nemtsov, it is in many ways more like a chronicle of democratic changes that took place in Russia – and their complete collapse. In your opinion, what were the most dangerous threats to Russia’s democratic transformation during Yeltsin’s time?
• How do you assess the events of autumn 1993, when dissident deputies holed up in the White House and government soldiers fired at the building?
• To what extent did Yeltsin’s character influence the implementation of democratic reforms in the 1990s? When was this most evident?
• Your book is called The Successor. Why did you choose this title, given that it refers to such a short period of Nemtsov’s political career? Do you think Nemtsov could have become president of Russia?
• On the eve of the 21st century, Yeltsin appointed Putin as his ‘successor’. Do you remember your own reaction when you first heard this news?
• Relatively recently, Putin began to describe the Yeltsin era as the ‘wild 90s’, a time of poverty, humiliation and corruption for Russians. You were already working as a journalist and covering the main political events in Russia. How do you feel about this description of the Yeltsin era? How did you experience the impact yourself of what is described in the book as an existential crisis for Russia?
• Tell us about Nemtsov’s role in the opposition to Putin. Did he have moral authority in the eyes of Russian society?
• Did Nemtsov’s relationship with Ukraine have any special significance? Why did Ukraine in his view become a litmus test for the fate of Russia, not to mention for Ukraine itself?
• The book states that ‘in Russia, the democratic experiment ended with Nemtsov’s murder in February 2015’. But in reality, it happened much earlier, didn’t it?
• What do you think was the main reason for Nemtsov’s murder?
• Aleksei Navalny also appears in the book. He and Nemtsov were acquainted, but Navalny was a generation younger. How would you describe them, as political figures, as leaders of the opposition?
• In the book, you write that when Navalny was preparing to return to Russia, he did not take into account Putin’s intentions to invade Ukraine. Were Putin’s intentions regarding Ukraine already known in January 2021?
• We will soon be marking the fourth anniversary of the Russian army’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. How do you remember that first day of the war?
• You wrote that on that day Russia became a full-fledged dictatorship.  What had changed? Was it only then possible to describe the political regime in Russia in this way?
• The American poet Robert Frost wrote a poem called ‘The Road Not Taken’ about how an individual’s life could have taken a completely different turn, had they chosen a different path when the choice confronted them. Do you think that Russia had a ‘road not taken’?

3 December 2025

by Teresa Cherfas

Welcome to the 37th edition of our Russian-language podcast Then & Now with me, Teresa Cherfas.

Maria Alekhina, is a founding member of the Pussy Riot art collective. Pussy Riot’s performance, in February 2012, when they sang their Punk Prayer in the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, led to the arrest of three of them, including Alekhina herself.  They were sentenced to two years in a penal colony.

Olga Borisova, is also a member of Pussy Riot, but joined much later. 

Political Girl:Life and Fate in Russia is Maria Alekhina’s account of the years since her release in 2014 up until she left Russia shortly after the invasion of Ukraine.  Olga Borisova helped in the writing of it.  Their book was recently published in English translation in the United Kingdom. 

We are indebted to Emily Eccles, the translator of Political Girl, for facilitating this podcast with Maria and Olga.

This podcast was recorded on 30 November 2025. Photo credit: Pussy Riot.

Teresa's Questions:

• How did you become a “Political Girl”? Were you born a “political girl,” or did life make you one?
• Olga, what about you? Tell us about your path to Pussy Riot. (How did you become friends with Masha?)
• Masha, is it true that you and your two other Pussy Riot offenders were the first political prisoners in Putin’s Russia? Was it a shock for you to be arrested and sentenced?
• Why is feminism such an important element of Pussy Riot’s philosophy? And why is it so threatening to an authoritarian regime? (Feminism is a ‘mortal sin,’ according to the judge at your trial.)
• Masha, you wrote that when you were released from prison a couple of months early, thanks to Putin’s amnesty before the Olympic Games in Sochi, you found yourself in a different country. Please explain.
• Tell us about your performance in Sochi with other members of Pussy Riot, very soon after your release. 
• Masha, you travelled to Kyiv to show solidarity with the Maidan protesters in 2014. How do you explain the difference between Ukrainians and Russians — why is it that Russians seem more passive and don’t protest en masse?
• Your book describes the constant surveillance, humiliation, persecution, and repression that accompanied you everywhere and always. Where did you find the strength to continue resisting the authorities?
• Do revolutionaries have special qualities? Would you describe yourself as a ‘revolutionary’, Masha? What about you, Olya?
• What is it that motivates you and makes you willing to sacrifice so much for? 
• I hadn’t realised that Pussy Riot created Mediazona, an independent media outlet. How does it differ from other independent media outlets? What is its mission?
• You have often said that Putin’s third term as president was a point of no return for Russia. How did this happen, in your view?
• Your book is in English and seems to be written for a Western readership. What are the main things you wanted to convey or communicate to the West? 
• The book has an entire chapter about the seemingly endless cycle of arrests and detentions you experienced. (You found both “good” and “bad” people among those who guarded you.) You have said that the whole of Russia can be found in these detention centres. What did you mean by that?
• When did you realize that there would be a full-scale war with Ukraine? Tell us about your thoughts in February 2022. 
• How did you decide whether to stay or leave?
• It has been more than three years since you arrived in the West. How do you perceive the actions of Western countries towards Russia?
• And how do you see their actions to defend their own democracy?
• Do you believe in change in Russia? What kind of change?
• Exactly ten years after your performance of the “Punk Prayer” in the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, Putin announced the ‘special military operation’ in Ukraine. It seems that the Pussy Riot affair became a marker of what could be expected from Putin’s Russia: first there was the illegal annexation of Crimea, then increasingly harsh punitive measure against any dissent from the regime, and finally the full-scale war against Ukraine. What does it feel like to be a historical figure?

• Manon, let’s start with you—is this a very significant film for you? After all, in your voiceover at the beginning of the film you say: “Russia is my beloved country, the country I chose when I was 20 years old…” In what sense did you “choose Russia”? To what end?
• Tell us about the process of making the film. What was it like?
• I understand that meeting Katya was key. Tell us about your first meeting.
• What did you want to show the viewer or convey to them about the situation in modern Russia?
• The film says that it was important for you, Katya, to bear witness to what happened in Russia. How did you understand this for yourself?
• Katya, were there any moments in your professional or personal life that inspired you in your choice of career?
• Manon, what tasks did you set for Katya? Were they achievable?
• What did you think, Katya? How did you react?
• What measures did you take to keep Katya safe?
• Tell us about your collaboration, how did you work together remotely?
• Tell us briefly about the people are showcased in the film. What guided you in your choice? Did you already know some of them?
• Katya, did you use your phone to film or a proper film camera?
• How did that work, given that there was a risk of the video being confiscated or something even worse? Were there moments when you were afraid?
• Katya, at one point in the film you suggest filming a group, set up by some of your friends, who are writing letters to political prisoners. Tell us how that happened. It’s amazing that they continue to meet to write letters to prisoners to this day. Or has something changed?
• What kind of feedback did you get about the film?
• Manon, at the beginning of the film, you mention the horrifying number of political prisoners in Russia today. In the credits, you write that the film is dedicated to Belarusian political prisoners and Ukrainians in Russian prisons. The credits are accompanied by photos of many people, political prisoners who are still serving time for their political views. Were there any people you wanted to talk about but couldn’t reach?
• What are your plans for the future? Both for yourself and for the film? Manon? Katya?