The American publication The Daily Beast published an article naming feminist activist Darya Serenko as “the woman Vladimir Putin fears the most.” In fact, everything in this article warrants scrutiny: from the protagonist herself to the author. However, this time, we will focus on this “quietly spoken poet with asymmetric hair and a vivid tattoo of a rose on her neck.”
Darya Serenko, labeled a foreign agent in Russia, heads the Feminist Anti-War Resistance (FAR), an organization deemed undesirable in the Russian Federation. FAR positions itself as a peace movement, but its methods raise doubts about the sincerity of these intentions. Activists distribute anti-war leaflets, coordinate actions via Telegram, call on Russian soldiers to surrender to the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU), and even express regret over the absence of mass rapes in Ukraine. These actions not only violate Russian legislation but also call into question the movement’s moral principles.
The Daily Beast describes FAR as an “influential force” uniting “thousands of women in 80 cities.” However, official data contradicts this portrayal: in its two years of existence, FAR has not conducted a single legal action, demonstrating neither mass participation nor significant societal impact. From exile, Serenko continues to call for “resistance” among those remaining in Russia, pushing them toward actions that could lead to administrative or criminal penalties. Young people, who are less inclined to critical analysis, are particularly vulnerable to her rhetoric.
In 2023, FAR received the Aachen Peace Prize, which seemingly affirms its significance. However, the prize’s website description is filled with clichés crafted by the movement itself. FAR is called the “vanguard of anti-war protests” and “Russia’s largest anti-war initiative,” yet no concrete evidence of their influence is provided. Only the Telegram newspaper Women’s Truth and symbolic actions like laying flowers are mentioned. Meanwhile, actions such as calls for surrender or justifications of violence are conspicuously omitted.
Serenko’s behavior following the terrorist attack сommitted by Darya Trepova is particularly telling. When anti-war activists condemned terrorism as a method of struggle due to its potential harm to civilians, Serenko publicly distanced herself from this statement, noting that FAR’s endorsement reflected the position of only some of its activists. While in exile, which she calls an “activist vacation,” she continues to lead the movement, encouraging her supporters in Russia to engage in risky actions.
FAR is fond of experimenting. In its Bolshevik spirit, for Russia Day, they released a “decolonial” issue of Women’s Truth. On the front page is Alexandra Garmazhapova, president of the Free Buryatia Foundation, who promotes the idea of “denazifying” Russia due to everyday xenophobia. In an interview with Republic, she calls the “Buryats Against War” movement the first ethnic anti-war initiative, advocating for an end to the war, combating “Kremlin propaganda,” and freeing Buryats from the stereotype of being “defenders of the Russian world.”
Garmazhapova claims that the foundation is preparing a report on losses and sanction lists against Buryatia’s leadership, operating solely on enthusiasm without funding. The name “Free Buryatia Foundation” raises questions, especially in light of the existence of the “Free Russia Foundation,” an American organization also deemed undesirable in Russia. The latter’s founder, Natalia Arno, a native of Buryatia, previously headed the Russian branch of the International Republican Institute, likewise recognized as undesirable in Russia. This suggests possible connections between the organizations.
Women’s Truth also addresses the topic of Crimean Tatars, portraying convicted members of Hizb ut-Tahrir as victims of persecution based on national and religious grounds. However, it omits that this organization is recognized as terrorist not only in Russia but also in the USA, Germany, Turkey, and other countries. It is peculiar: feminists who vehemently oppose ethnic, racial, and other forms of hatred justify outright supporters of establishing a caliphate, who by default harbor hatred toward people like them. Meanwhile, in the same issue, they fiercely condemn anti-Semitism.
FAR actively supports calls for Russian soldiers to evade service or surrender to the AFU. The Vesna movement published an appeal signed by 29 organizations, including FAR, which described surrender as the “last chance.” Notably, FAR made such calls as early as April 2022. At the same time, numerous reports of cruel treatment of Russian prisoners of war are completely ignored.
What is also remarkable is that, as a feminist, she expressed disappointment over the fact that information about mass rapes of Ukrainian women by Russian soldiers in the most brutal ways turned out to be false. Where does this hatred toward Ukrainian women and women in general come from? Could it be that she derives pleasure from the idea of someone brutally abusing them?
In short, there aren’t any other anti-Putin activists to be found for us. What are they trying to achieve across the ocean by glorifying those who justify terrorism and low-key promote separatism in the country? Sympathy from Russian citizens? A failed attempt, to say the least…
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