Russians Celebrate Number One Political Prisoner's Birthday

Nearly 10 years after his arrest and conviction, Russian society remains largely apathetic about Khodorkovsky. Those who do care are divided about both his guilt and its consequences.

The End of Dual Citizenship in Turkmenistan?

Being a Turkmen citizen is big on drawbacks and small on benefits, which is why many Turkmen citizens took advantage of a 1993 agreement between Turkmenistan and Russia that enabled them to hold passports belonging to both countries. But with the government releasing a new version of the country's main travel document, dual passport holders may be forced to choose their side.

Russian NGOs Learn to Invest in Paper Shredders

At 3AM, last Saturday, Russian riot police and private security raided the offices of one of the country's oldest human rights organizations. Those inside, including the group's leader, Lev Ponomarev, were forcibly evicted from the premises. Later, allegations arose that the group was involved in certain "unpatriotic" activities.

Environmental Issues Drive Russians to Demand More of Their Leaders?

Over the last year, “Save Khoper” has held a series of protests to bring attention to a cause against a mining project outside Voronezh. On June 22, the latest demonstration turned violent, after a splinter group of protestors set fire to two drill rigs and other geological survey equipment.

The Kremlin's Kitchen Serves Up Russia's Free Press

Novaya Gazeta has implicated Vladimir Putin’s favorite restaurant owner in a bizarre scheme to defame several of the country’s most prominent news publications, involving a conspiracy to plant false information in different newspapers, in order to convince Russians that the news is for hire.

Tajikistan Leader's Visits Force Road Repairs

Khujand [Sughd's capital] prepares to welcome the president again. Banners, posters, and fixed roads [are there] again. I can only be happy about the latter! I would love to see the president come to Khujand as often as possible - this would force the authorities to fix the roads. It is a pity, however, that only part of the city's roads are fixed - that part along which the president's cortege will travel. The rest of the roads have been neglected for years.

Disabled Persons ‘Disrespected’ in Kyrgyzstan

Blogger Dmitry Efremov writes [ru] about the negative attitudes that people with disabilities confront in the Central Asian nation of Kyrgyzstan: It is terrible to realize that some people among...

Russia’s Bid For International Prestige: A White Elephant?

As Putin continues to pursue his policy of using international events like the Winter Olympics to show that Russia is worthy of investment, the country's taxpayers are coming to realize that they are the ones footing the bill.

Russians See Themselves in Turkish Protests

As Turkish protests continue, Russians draw parallels between events in Turkey and their own protest movement and hard-line political leader.

Vladimir Putin: Lord of the (Super Bowl) Rings

Did Vladimir Putin steal New England Patriots' owner Robert Kraft's Super Bowl ring when they met in 2005? Many Russian bloggers are asking that very question, after Kraft claimed in a June 14, 2013, New York Post interview that he had in fact not given the ring as a gift.

Orphaned in US, SOPA Finds Home in Russia

America’s controversial Stop Online Piracy Act is back—and it’s poised to become law in a matter of weeks. SOPA, however, isn’t coming to the US, where a wide coalition defeated the legislation in January 2012. A law that creates similarly harsh penalties for online copyright violations is on the cusp of finding a home in Russia.

Kazakh Minister Fired as Netizens Criticize Pension Plans

A Facebook-driven reaction to the government's attempt to ram through a pension reform without public discussion has given people approaching retirement age in Kazakhstan a rare voice. The republic's Social Affairs...

Tajik President is ‘A Real, Normal Man’

On the video from [his son's] wedding, Emomali Rahmon shows himself as a real, normal man - he has fun, dances with joy, and encourages everyone else to do the same. Don't all our men behave the same way at their sons' weddings?

More Violence for Russia's Gays, Supporters

These days supporting LGBT rights in Russia can earn you a trip to the hospital.

Russia's Commodification of Political Prisoners

Russia’s blogosphere comments on the unexpected release from prison of businessman Alexey Kozlov.

PRISM Infects Russia with Cyberwar Scare

Since last week, when the world learned about PRISM, Russian state officials have expressed renewed concerns about foreign social networks posing a national security threat. Deputy Prime Minister Dmitri Rogozin recently told reporters that websites like Facebook and Twitter are elements of a larger American campaign against Russia.

Should Kyrgyzstan Ban Tablighi Jamaat?

Following the lead of neighboring countries, Kyrgyzstan is debating banning the activities of Tablighi Jamaat, a controversial non-political movement which aims to bring Muslims towards a deeper embrace of Islamic religious practices. The issue of Tablighi Jamaat has divided political and religious leaders as well as ordinary people in the country.

Russia Eyes Another Orphan Experiment

Pavel Astakhov's idea of sending Russia's highly-politicized orphans to the restive North Caucasian Republics as a kind of social "experiment" was overwhelmingly condemned by netizens of all political stripes.

“Give-a-Tree.rf”—Russia's Collective Reforestation Project

In a recent interview with Evgeny Voropai of Social Technologies Greenhouse, Sergey Skorobogadov, head of "Podari-Derevo.rf" (Give-a-Tree.rf) explained how a socially-conscious project can bring a profit and how quantitative indicators can stimulate activity in people.

Pavel Durov, Founder of Russia's #1 Social Network, Is Not Going to Prison (For Now)

It looks like Pavel Durov can finally return to Russia without a prison sentence threatening from overhead. That seems to be the case, now that Petersburg detectives have closed their inquiry into Durov's alleged involvement in an April 5 traffic accident that forced "Russia's Zuckerberg" to flee the country two months ago.

Putin Loses His First Lady & RuNet Snarks

A three-person TV crew from Russia 24 standing in an empty Kremlin hallway, the black-suited reporter with her arms awkwardly crossed—that was the initial audience to Vladimir Putin’s announcement today, that he and his wife Lyudmila have split.