Letter From the Editors
Many stories and viewpoints in this Digest issue seem to confirm Newton’s first law of motion: A body remains at rest, or in motion at a constant speed, unless acted upon by a force. Take the governments of African countries: Yury Sigov reports that 83-year-old Alassane Ouattara has been elected president of Côte d’Ivoire for the fourth time, and his counterpart in Cameroon, Paul Biya, achieved that mark for the eighth time at age 92, becoming the world’s oldest ruler. Sigov adds that these men are typical of African leaders, who retain power by what looks like popular vote: “The elections are held, the winner is known in advance, the observers do not record any violations, and everything remains as it was in bygone times.”
Leaders in Japan do change periodically, but Roman Perl writes that the country’s “political backbone,” the Liberal Democratic Party, has ruled the country almost continuously since 1955. Perl explains that the LDP “has managed to accumulate powers under the guise of democracy” by embracing a broad network of factions, from moderate centrists to hawkish nationalists. Its newest leader and first female prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, hosted Donald Trump during his trip to Asia.
The final stop on the tour was Seoul, where Trump met with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Dmitry Laru notes the contrast between the two personalities: “Trump and Xi represent two entirely different archetypes of leaders. While the former is eccentric, emotional and spontaneous, the latter is calm . . . and quite reserved.” Despite the stylistic difference, Laru reports, the tone of the conversation was friendly: “We even got some of that flowery language that Asians are famous for.” Xi assured his American counterpart: “You and I are at the helm of China-US relations. In the face of winds, waves and challenges, we should stay the right course, navigate through the complex landscape and ensure the steady sailing forward of the giant ship of China-US relations.”
According to Newton’s law, that ship should stay smoothly in motion, as long as there are no forces acting on it. In Russia, however, there are at least two forces rocking the boat. Andrei Pertsev quotes an anonymous political strategist who says that the long-marginalized Yabloko party “creates risks” for the Kremlin by taking a stand on sensitive issues, particularly the Ukraine war. “People are tired of it, and if [Yabloko] openly campaigns on peace, that will inevitably attract voters.” According to the strategist, the party stands a chance of clearing the 5% election threshold.
While Yabloko may be quietly rising, a lot more noise has been made by the Gen Z members of Stoptime, a St. Petersburg street band that has been covering songs by anti-Kremlin Russian artists. In August, an Instagram video of the band performing “Eto bylo v Rossii” (“It was in Russia”), a wistful ballad by now-exiled singer Monetochka, with dozens of spectators singing along. The video quickly gained more than half a million views and 80,000 likes.
It didn’t take long for the authorities to respond. All three members of Stoptime are now serving two-week jail sentences for “organizing a rally” that violated public order. Frontwoman Diana Loginova (stage name Naoko) defiantly explained: “Right now, art is the only language – at least in Russia – through which you can express what you think. . . . I don’t want to speak any other: I speak the language of art.”
The Stoptime case has provoked an outpouring of sympathy, even within today’s protest-wary Russia. Leaflets and posters calling for the musicians’ release have appeared on the streets of major cities; other street musicians are performing banned songs in solidarity; and countless messages of support have been posted online. Novaya gazeta Europe editor Kirill Martynov describes these reactions as “a virtual rebellion led by Russian youth against the war and against Putin.” Will this force prompt a change of course? Stay tuned!