Jacobin Radio: Russia's Anti-War Political Prisoners

Jacobin Radio

Jacobin

Socialism, History, News, Left, Jacobin, Alternative, Socialist, Politics

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🗓️ 14 August 2024

⏱️ 66 minutes

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Summary

Russian dissident activists and scholars Ilya Budraitskis and Grusha Gilayeva last spoke to us after the Marxist critic Boris Kagarlitsky lost his appeal and was sent to a penal colony on a trumped-up charge of “justifying terrorism.” A few days later, Alexei Navalny died. Suzi talks to Ilya and Grusha to get their views about the complex multi-prisoner swap that happened at the start of this month and what it represents.

Kremlin spies, sleepers, and killers imprisoned in the west were exchanged for prisoners held in Russia’s penal colonies, including Americans Evan Gershkovich and Paul Whelan, British-Russian Vladimir Kara Murza, and Russians Ilya Yashin, Oleg Orlov and others. Sixteen have been exchanged. More than a thousand are still in prison. Millions remain in Russia. Of the Russian prisoners, Ilya Yashin was forcibly removed from Russia and exchanged against his will. Vladimir Kara Murza has vowed to return to Russia. We’ll hear more about the politically courageous Russians who were held (and now exchanged) for speaking out against Putin’s savage war in Ukraine like Yashin, Orlov, and Kara Murza. We’ll also ask what it means for Putin: will he continue to hold hostage human “assets” to be exchanged? Does the timing of the exchange signal Putin favors a Harris presidency over another Trump term?

Jacobin Radio with Suzi Weissman features conversations with leading thinkers and activists, with a focus on labor, the economy, and protest movements.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to Jacobin Radio. I'm your host, Susie Wiseman. On August 1st, Russia released 16 political prisoners from its
0:15.7	dungeons or penal colonies in a large and complex prisoner exchange involving
0:21.5	negotiations between Russia and American and German heads of state.
0:25.2	Americans Ivan Gerskovich and Paul Wheeling, British Russian Vladimir Karamursa and Russian Celia Jachen, Oleg Orlov and others were exchanged for the Russian assassin Victor Krasakov who was serving a life sentence in Germany for assassinating a Chechen target in Berlin,
0:46.4	as well as several Russian spies, some of whom had been monitoring the Russian opposition abroad.
0:51.7	It's impossible not to rejoice at the release of
0:54.4	16 political prisoners of Putin, but more than a thousand remain in prison.
0:59.1	Millions remain in Russia. Of the prisoners, Ilya Yashin was forcibly removed from Russia
1:04.9	and exchanged against his will. Vladimir Kanausa has vowed to return to Russia.
1:09.7	Though there had been a huge campaign by the Wall Street Journal to release their reporter
1:15.2	Gushkovich, it wasn't public pressure by international solidarity campaigns that secured
1:20.6	the release of Putin's political prisoners. That came about through complex
1:24.4	negotiations between states. What will this mean for those left behind? We'll ask
1:29.9	our guests Ilia Budraitskis and Grusha Galaiva.
1:34.0	We'll also ask for your support
1:36.0	when our program returns in just a moment. Welcome to Jacobin Radio. I'm your host, Susie Wiseman. On August 1st, Russia released 16 political prisoners from its dungeons or penal colonies in a large and
1:58.6	complex prisoner exchange involving negotiations between Russia and, and German heads of state.
2:04.7	Americans Ivan Gerskovich and Paul Wheeling, British Russian Vladimir Karamursa and Russian
2:12.1	Celia Jachen, Oleg Orlov and others were exchanged for the Russian assassin
2:18.4	Victor Krasikov who was serving a life sentence in Germany for assassinating a Chechen target in Berlin,
2:26.4	as well as several Russian spies, some of whom had been monitoring the Russian opposition
2:30.6	abroad and others.
	...

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