Russian soldiers' wives: 'Bring them home'

Relatives of mobilized Russians sent to fight in Ukraine have come together to form a movement. They are organizing vigils and flash mobs, and appealing to the Russia's president, Vladimir Putin, demanding the return of their husbands and sons from the front. The authorities are trying to put a stop to their actions; they are worried the protests could escalate.

However, the authorities have also acknowledged that mobilization in Russia remains in force until it is ended by the president. Conscripts can thus be kept at the front indefinitely; there is no provision to rotate them.

The mood of protest has intensified following the news that President Putin has pardoned another criminal convicted of a serious offense, simply because he participated in the war against Ukraine.

Anticipating Putin's televised Q&A

Vladimir Putin's big annual televised question-and-answer session, "Direct Line," is scheduled to take place on December 14. The Telegram channel "Put' domoi" ("Way Home"), which has 30,500 users and focuses on issues around mobilization, reports that the broadcaster has been deluged with questions from desperate relatives of mobilized Russian men.

"My husband and brother are at the front. They were called up at the start of the mobilization, and they haven't had any leave in nine months — they have to stay in the combat zone," says Tatiana. "My son is asking why only his father has to fight. Of all the fathers of kids his age, his was the only one called up."

Tatiana agreed to speak to DW, but she didn't want to disclose any personal information, and her name has been changed. "It's not me I'm afraid for, it's my husband and brother — it could put them in danger," she emphasizes.

Tatiana says representatives of the governor of her region offered her husband and brother contracts with the Russian army.

"But that makes no difference. All of them are tired, exhausted; they have no strength and no motivation," she says, without passing judgment on Russia's war against Ukraine. Her inquiries to the authorities have all gone unanswered.

Meanwhile, the media are reporting that leading Russian military officials are trying to achieve successes on the front line before Putin's big TV appearance next week.

Relatives of Russian soldiers serving in Military Unit No. 95411 (Western Military District) claim wounded conscripts with minor to moderately severe injuries were among the soldiers sent to storm the city of Avdiivka, near Donetsk, in November. After this, more than 100 people signed a letter to Putin appealing to him to withdraw their relatives from the front.

Vigils, flash mobs and intimidation

In September 2023, a year after the mobilization began, family members of military personnel in many regions of the Russian Federation started attracting the attention of the authorities. They voiced criticism of what they described as "indefinite mobilization," and called for soldiers to be rotated. In Krasnoyarsk, Novosibirsk, St. Petersburg, and Moscow, the authorities banned women from holding rallies; in Chelyabinsk and Nizhnevartovsk they promised to forward their demands to the federal authorities.

A number of women took advantage of the Communist Party's traditional demonstration at the Karl Marx monument in Moscow on November 7 to hold separate vigils in Moscow without waiting for a permit. Photos of the women holding placards spread quickly on social networks.

Then women in Ulyanovsk organized a flash mob. They covered their cars with posters expressing their discontent and demanding the return of their husbands, sons, and sons-in-law. Again, photos of the protest sparked intense discussion on social networks, but the authorities prevented the women from staging any further actions. Some of them were summoned by the deputy governor and told to remove the photos. Four others were visited by the police, who warned them that "discrediting the army" was a punishable offense.

This did not, however, put a stop to the demobilization movement overall. A manifesto and petition was published on the "Put' domoi" Telegram channel in November, after which regional chat channels with the "Put' domoi" name were heavily targeted by Kremlin-friendly bloggers. The bloggers spread claims that these groups of female relatives of draftees were set up by employees of the imprisoned opposition figure Alexei Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK), with the aim of stirring up protest in Russia.

Vladimir Solovyov, a Kremlin propagandist, published a list of chat channels which he alleged were run by "foreign intelligence services." The "Put' domoi" channel was eventually labelled "fake," but Telegram has not explained why.

In Novosibirsk, family members of mobilized men managed to reach an agreement with the authorities and hold a meeting at the local cultural center, though without independent journalists present. People were, however, allowed to take photos on cell phones. About 30 people attended the meeting. In a video, one of the women addresses Vladimir Solovyov, saying, "We are not enemies of the people; we are the people. Our sons and husbands at the front are the people, too."

What are the anti-war movement's chances?

The Russian opposition figure Leonid Gosman believes the protest is a tricky issue for the Kremlin, and one that could result in political changes in the country. However, he does not expect the authorities to yield to the women's demands, as this would be perceived as a weakness of state power.

"If the state were to comply with their wishes, other women would also demand their husbands' return. If it doesn't comply, there won't be mass protests, but the reputation of the central government will continue to suffer," Gosman says.

Many of the mobilized men are now experiencing their second winter at the front. This will further intensify discontent, according to the lawyer and blogger Nikolai Bobrinsky. He sees the actions of the women as an opportunity to increase awareness of the anti-war movement in Russia. Bobrinsky also points to the upcoming presidential elections in Russia next spring.

"It's important not to miss out on the elections," Bobrinsky says. "Even if the official result is pre-determined, it can still be a time of impetus in society, and also makes it possible to hold rallies safely — if, that is, candidates are willing to speak about the mobilization at all."

From September 2022 onward, a "Council of Mothers and Wives" of military personnel held vigils near the Military Prosecutor's Office and the headquarters of the Western Military District in St. Petersburg. The women demanded the withdrawal of their sons, who were doing their military service, from the Russian region of Belgorod, which had come under attack. The leader of the organization, Olga Tsukanova, was arrested several times, and in July 2023 was branded a "foreign agent" by the Russian justice ministry. After that, the organization was forced to close down.

Olga Katz, the administrator of the Telegram channel "Vernyom Rebyat" (Let's Bring Our Boys Back) with 30,000 users, wrote in November of a "fragile dialog with the authorities."

She was trying to convince officials and lawmakers that the service period for mobilized soldiers should be a limited one. However, the last post on her Telegram channel, by Katz herself, was left on November 20: Her 25-year-old brother Alexander, called up during the mobilization, had been killed at the front.

This article was originally published in Russian.