Sguir Dheth is Scottish Gaelic for 'Stop fighting.' Those words are often used by parents, teachers and well -wishers to put a stop to children arguing and fighting each other. But those words are not only appropriate and applicable to children—but also to adults at work, families facing discord and even at an international level where countries fall out.
Although homelessness is very complex, one of the main reasons why a person can find himself on the streets is following an argument or fight with members of their family. That is why StreetSense is against all kinds of fighting which leads to people being thrown out on to the streets. The aim is not to support fighting which leads to the destruction of homes and homelessness but building homes people can feel safe and at ease in!
At this present moment the United Nations have reported a staggering figure of 5 million displaced people in Ukraine. As many as 3 million refugees have fled to Western Europe and that is not to forget the millions of Russians in East Ukraine that have come to Russia. In just a few days since 24th February the lives of many Ukrainians and Russians have been turned upside down. Many people have been devastated by events. And a lot of those who are suffering are blameless. It is always the simplest people who bear the brunt of such a largely unwanted conflict.
Due to new laws passed by the Russian government on 6th March, we can't completely comment on what is now termed 'Special Military Operations' in Ukraine. Anyone who turns up at a demonstration with a placard bearing the words 'No War' or 'Peace to the World', are liable to be detained, and heavily fined. It is forbidden to describe the current conflict in Russia with the three-letter word 'war'. Uttering this very word is like committing a kind of blasphemy or using a swear word. It is just not done !
Under the law of article 20.3.3 of the Russian Legal codex 'Public action, directed at discrediting the actions of the armed forces of the Russian Federation in Russia who are defending international peace and security' can lead you to being subjected to fines ranging from 30 to 50,000 rubles. Under the law Article 280.3, activities aimed at public action, aimed at discrediting the armed forces, can mean you receive a 3 to 5 year prison sentence! At the worst, a vocal opponent could be sentenced to 15 years in prison. One young student who used such words was detained by the police. She was let go after paying a fine of 29,000 rubles. Evidently it is not the best time to be a hippy or pacifist in Russia. The enforcement of the law has led to comical situations which are surreal. One week ago a young woman was quickly arrested in the city center of Moscow for expressing her opposition to the conflict by displaying on a placard the three forbidden letters. She did this during an interview. The police quickly arrested her.
When the interviewer asked another woman about her views on the conflict, she answered she fully supported the Special Military Operations. However, it did not do her any good. She was also arrested. The point is you are not entitled to an opinion at all. The Russian state is also suspicious of anyone who over enthusiastically supports it. The moral is they should support the state but not overdo it!
But what are the implications of this law? If you were to enforce it according to the letter of the law you would have to remove all those toy Volkswagens with 'Make love, not war' painted over them. You can purchase such toy cars from Kiosks all over Moscow!
The police might also intervene to ban Orthodox Church services because in the Liturgy the priests chant 'peace to everyone ' again and again. By the way, some of those Orthodox churchgoers take those words very much to heart and practice the message. For them it is more than just a ritual.
And what are the results of the 'Special Military Operations ' in Moscow which began on 24th February? For many people this has come as a shock and they feel numbed in disbelief. Many people did not believe that such a conflict was imminent. They thought it just would not happen. A Russian journalist I had once spoken to 8 years ago told me that if such events happened it might spell 'political and military suicide.' He ruled out such a scenario. Soon after the bad news I recall travelling through the Moscow Metro. The mood of the passengers was somber, sullen and silent. I have witnessed such a haunting silence too many times before following horrific events such as terror acts in Moscow as well as the outbreak of war.
Some people are suffering from insomnia. A student told me "I can't sleep well. I'm worried that my younger brother might be called up for military service and sent to the Ukraine." On a walk I met a middle aged mother called Katya who looked very stressed out. A normally cheerful woman had anxiety written all over her face. She told me "I am worried that my son is going to be sent to Ukraine. He is twenty! He has already been sent some “call up papers” even though he has a bad heart condition.’ Her son was a former student of English of mine. I later learnt that often unsuitable candidates were being thrust into the army despite their poor physical condition. I thought that surely their medical condition would render them unfit for the army but I have been informed that this can be irrelevant.
My wife Svetlana told me that three of her school mates died in Afghanistan after being called up. She still feels angry about this. That war must have been one of the most futile and pointless projects. Young men were dying to bolster the vanity of old politicians. And in the end, the Russian government withdrew from Afghanistan as did the subsequent British and American forces.
It is difficult to estimate how many Russians are actually against those Special Military Operations. After three days of the border crossing as many as 821 674 people signed a petition calling for the cessation of operations. One poll claims that 60% of people in Moscow are opposed to such operations but another recent poll claims that as many as 70% of Russians support Special Military Operations. Society has become deeply polarized. Many people do believe that there is no war in Ukraine but only Special Military Operations aimed at freeing Russia from the threat of an invasion by Ukraine, denazification and at halting future attempts by N.A.T.O. to advance to their border. State propaganda is very ubiquitous here. It is in all the newspapers sent to apartments, televisions channels and on the streets. While the older generation are often taken in, younger people tend to be more questioning as they have access to more information via social networks and some have traveled abroad.
For many people who do business abroad, current conflict it has hit their work very hard. The plunge in value of the ruble to as low as 104 to the dollar has meant the values of savings and salaries have been depleted overnight. Nevertheless the western reports of panic where people have raced off to banks or bought up extra supplies of buckwheat and toilet paper are absurd. Those reports are often exaggerated or nonsense. The supermarkets are still full of food items. The real devastation seems to be psychological.
People feel helpless or a loss of control over events of an increasingly uncertain future. For instance many students who planned to go abroad to study have suddenly dropped their plans. They also fear a rising anti-Russian mood which has been stoked up in Europe. A businessman called Yevgeni told me how he had a friend whose six year old daughter who attended the British International School was coming home every day in tears. Her classmates were bullying her because of the events in Ukraine. A German friend of my wife told me how a Russian school had been burnt down in Germany. It is likely that those acts and the indiscriminate form of sanctions where Russians are blacklisted from work, banned from performing at concerts and being constantly insulted will have the opposite impact: it will bolster Russian support for the state. Such activity will create fertile soil for the growth of bitter resentment and anger against the West who will be perceived as bullies. Nobody likes to be insulted, humiliated and abused. This is especially true of people who don't even support recent actions in Ukraine. They might even end up supporting such action.
When this conflict will end is anyone's guess. A saying goes 'That only a fool predicts what will happen in Russia.' Some people state it might end in a few weeks, others that the conflict could go on for years. My guess is that it is likely to finish in late April to the beginning of May. Ending the conflict in time for 'The Day of Victory' celebrations would be used by the state as a shrewd public relations exercise.
But the longer this conflict lasts, the worse it is for both sides. Both sides have just lost too much. The sides have already reached an agreement where Ukraine would not join N.A.T.O and would remain neutral. However, stumbling blocks to an agreement appear to be Ukraine refusing to recognize the Crimea as belonging to Russia and the status of Donbass. And the state has their own geo-political agenda which perhaps has other unmentioned aims. There is also lingering controversy over the status of the Russian language and Russian schools in Ukraine.
Many of the Russians I am speaking to are asking, 'When is this conflict going to end?' and 'When can we return back to living normal lives?' For them, peace can't come soon enough!