Michael Сampbell-Thomson, Toronto.
On the first day of spring, anywhere from 500 to 700 people came out in Toronto to march from Nathan Phillips Square to the Russian Consulate. Initially it was set up as an event to coincide with an opposition march in Moscow and a dozen of other cities around the world. It later became a commemoration of the life of Boris Nemtsov, a prominent Russian opposition figure critical of Putin, who was slain in cold blood with four bullets to the back just 300 meters away from the Kremlin on the eve of the event.
Nemtsov’s death, as shocking as it is, is just another grim reminder that The Kremlin regime poses a threat to everybody including Russians. Boris Nemtsov was a brave man that inspired the diverse Russian opposition, his voice was always heard. He protested the corruption, aggression against Georgia, annexation of Crimea and the kidnapping of the Ukrainian MP Savchenko. He reportedly was about to publish a report on the involvement of Russia’s military in the war in Ukraine.
The scene which I witnessed in Toronto on Sunday was completely opposite to what I had been accustomed to in Russia. There was a jovial atmosphere and a sense of unity, solidarity and dignity. I was surprised at how much media coverage was bestowed both from local media outlets as well as from the CBC. The event was organized by the Russian community of Toronto but many Ukrainians, Tartars, Belorussians, Canadians and many others took part.
The organizers did a wonderful job of getting everybody together via facebook and other social media, creating the signs and posters and planning the event with the police and city authorities. I was most impressed at how well the Canadian police did their job in a friendly and professional way and how safe I felt with them nearby. Meanwhile in Moscow, the massive presence of the police did not make those, who wished to pay their respects to Boris Nemtsov, safe, in fact more than a dozen people were detained.
The column made its way up until Bloor Street and towards the consulate of the Russian Federation and speakers began to take the stage. Much was said about Nadiya Savchenko, the Ukrainian hero who is on hunger strike, locked up in Russian jail; about Crimea and the state of democracy in Russia. It was a big surprise when Chris Alexander – Canada’s federal minister for citizenship and immigration made a speech commemorating his friend Boris Nemtsov.
This antiwar rally was a sign of hope that people from different nations are able to stand together as a single community against a common threat to fight for the freedom of those who have none and defend the hard-won freedom of others.
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