Recently, the Bakhmina case took a new turn. In September, a former classmate of Bakhmina's posted an open letter to President Dmitry Medvedev asking him to pardon Bakhmina. Several days later, an Internet petition was launched. By late October, the petition had more than 60,000 signatures. On Oct. 30, in a rare media breakthrough, the case was discussed in the television debate show "K barieru!" ("Challenge to a Duel"), with writer Maria Arbatova facing off against veteran dissident Valeria Novodvorskaya.
Some commentators suggested that Novodvorskaya, known for her anti-Putin tirades, was set up to discredit the "Free Bakhmina" movement as a cause of loony radicals. But her occasional extreme comments (such as comparing Bakhmina's treatment to Nazi killings of pregnant Jewish women) were overshadowed by the repulsiveness of Arbatova, whose quasi-feminist argument against special treatment for women quickly devolved into cruel jeers at Bakhmina and her defenders.
The call-in vote tilted in Arbatova's favor, by about 68,000 to 56,000 votes. Many Russian bloggers believe it was rigged, claiming that calls to the pro-Novodvorskaya line repeatedly got a busy signal but calls to the pro-Arbatova line went through at once. Even so, it was a fairly small margin for a pro-government position. Interestingly, in an October poll, only 16 percent of Russians approved of the denial of parole to Bakhmina while 37 percent disapproved and the rest had no opinion.
There are now more than 85,000 signatures on the Bakhmina petition - including professionals, managers, and college students as well as homemakers, workers, and police officers. The accompanying comments offer a fascinating slice of Russian life. Some people appeal to Medvedev's Christian mercy; others say that the request should be a demand. Some blast Medvedev and Putin as "vicious clowns" or "criminals," or refer pointedly to Medvedev's lack of true authority. Some angrily denounce the current regime and its injustices while others sound poignantly resigned: "How sad that we live in such a time," or simply, "God help us." (...)
Meanwhile, the movement for Bakhmina may become, in the words of writer Boris Akunin, "a seed of civil society." One petition signer, a Moscow mathematician, commented, "Svetlana, stay strong! With your help, Russians are opening their eyes!"
Sometimes, such unlikely heroes make history.
Seed of civil society? What nonsense! Mr. Akunin should stick to his day job.
63% of the population either approves of what is being done to her or has no idea who she is or couldn't care less. That's the same majority that put a proud KGB spy in power.
The other 37% (well, a tiny fraction of them) can muster the ability to sign an online petition. But can they stand behind a real political party, or someone like Oleg Kozlovsky? They cannot.
Indeed, they cannot even call for a reversal of her conviction, but only for a "pardon" based on pity, assuming she's guilty of serious crimes. It is revolting, and utterly Russian.
All that will happen if Bakhmina is released is that any modicum of civic energy the advocates have will dissipate and dissappear.
I think you are probably the only person who wants to keep this woman in prison even more than Igor Sechin.