Political refugee from the Russian Federation: If the West presses Kremlin security officers, they will bring Putin's head on a tray, telling people that he had died of cancer
The artist from Perm Anton Myrzin who is hiding from the Federal Security Service in Kiev said in an interview to the GORDON about who really rules the Russian Federation, about homosexual compromising evidence of special services against politicians and oligarchs, about "genetic slavery" of Russians and about why it is dangerous for him to remain in Ukraine.
By Natalya Dvali
The exhibition "100 best Ukrainian patriotic posters" was held at M17 Center of Modern Art in Kiev in early December; it ended with a charitable auction whose proceeds were transferred to Ukrainian serviceman who got wounded in the ATO zone. The exhibition included 45 works of the Russian artist and blogger Anton Myrzin who became famous in the Internet under the alias of Paperdaemon Chaognostic.
Myrzin is an ecologist by training and a native of Perm. To be more precise, he was it until the Administration of the Federal Security Service (FSB) in Perm Krai instituted a criminal case against him for public appeals to extremism. The case was brought in after the deputy of the State Duma from the United Russia faction Alexander Hinstein had made an appeal to the prosecutor's office. The Russian mass media immediately picked up a subject, having shot a series of reports about "the Perm russophob artist urging to kill supporters of Russia".
A few days before the persecution Myrzin managed to move from Russia to Ukraine. The artist said in an exclusive interview to the GORDON edition about the total fear that seized the Russians, about the fight of the Kremlin clans, that the Russian President is not an independent politician, but rather a puppet in the hands of oligarchs, about secret arrangements of the West with the Kremlin and about who "will bring Putin's head on a tray" and under what circumstances.
It may be unsafe in Ukraine, the infiltration of Russian agents is too high
– If you remained in Russia, what would have threatened you?
– Article 280, part 2 "Public appeals to implementation of extremist activity made with the use of mass media or information and telecommunications networks, including the Internet". It is punished by imprisonment for up to five years. Knowing the realia of Russian prisons and general attitude towards me after the Kiev exhibition, I perfectly understood that it was a death sentence. It is a cinch to kill one in prison in Russia.
I was sure that I will be persecuted after the Kiev exhibition. I received hundreds of text messages with physical threats. Relatives and friends told me at once, "You should make off asap". The decision to leave was very hasty; as a result, I was in Kiev within six hours’ time. I had one banal purpose – to survive and not to fall into Putin’ KGB clutches.
Propaganda poster "Russian h..lo crept to our resort". Author: Anton Myrzin
– What is your status in Ukraine?
– I am an emigrant expecting further decision on my status. I did not seek a political asylum in Ukraine. A familiar Italian journalist working in your country recommended I should seek a political asylum at a Western embassy.
– Why?
– With all due respect, it may be unsafe in Ukraine, infiltration of Russian agents is too high. I arrived in Kiev on December 7, after the exhibition was over. I have the right to stay here for 90 days, then my status may be prolonged.
– You took a hard pro-Ukrainian line more than a year ago, since the beginning of Euromaidan. Why was it only now that the prosecutor's office notice you?
– These are features of the Russian national hunt for people. The system is very inert, security officers will not move a finger without a kick from above, even to fight against "the public enemies". If there is no order from above, law enforcement authorities turn a blind eye on much graver offenses than mine. Besides, my art is guaranteed de jure by the constitutional right for the freedom self-expression. In fact, my work was subject to strict censorship because my criminal case was supposed to become a demonstrative process.
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– According to the Russian authorities, what did your offense consist in?
– I became notorious as the creator of propaganda posters with comic contents. A little more than a year ago, when the events in Ukraine started developing, I started creating political posters on acute ideological topics. This is my hobby, though the Russian politics is a staged performance all over, a chapiteau circus with freaks and clowns, including the so-called opposition.