A rally-concert took place in Ufa in support of the Governor of Bashkiria Radiy Khabirov

A two-hour patriotic concert was held in the center of Ufa in support of the head of Bashkiria, Radiy Khabirov. This event, according to the authorities, brought together more than 50 thousand residents of the republic. All these people decided to publicly unite around their governor after last Friday’s uncoordinated rally in support of Bashkir activist Fail Alchinov (listed as an extremist), convicted of inciting hatred.

On the Salavat Yulaev Square in Ufa, a two-hour concert was held in support of the head of the region, Radiy Khabirov, entitled “Strong Republic – Strong Bashkortostan.” According to information from the head of the administration of the head of Bashkiria, Maxim Zabelin, more than 50 thousand residents of the republic took part in the event. They were entertained from the stage by representatives of the Bashkir stage

As the Ufa mayor’s office recently announced, the initiators of the concert are “well-known social activists and cultural figures.” However, the press service of the city administration did not answer Kommersant’s question about who specifically organized the event, but made a reservation that the main goal of the rally was “to support Radiy Khabirov, who stands for the unity of the republic and the united multinational people of the region.”

Even before the event, many representatives of the Bashkir authorities publicly spoke out in support of it. “The people of Bashkortostan have always carefully preserved friendship and harmony. These are the main values ​​of our multinational republic. The upcoming concert is another proof of good neighborliness, the desire of residents for creation and unity,” said Gulnur Kulsarina, chairman of the regional branch of the “Assembly of Peoples of Russia”, deputy of the Kurultai of the Republic, from the pages of “Bashinform”. Her parliamentary colleague Salavat Khusainov also called for “showing their unity”: “Today the multinational people of the Republic of Bashkortostan want to express their support for the head of the republic and his policies in terms of countering extremist manifestations and on other issues.”

Apparently, the event was a response to uncoordinated actions in support of convicted activist Fail Alchinov (listed as an extremist).

On January 17, the Baymaksky District Court sentenced him to four years in prison in a general regime colony, finding him guilty of inciting hatred or enmity, humiliation of human dignity (Part 1 of Article 282 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). According to the court decision, in April 2023, Fail Alchinov made a speech “with negative content towards persons of Armenian, Caucasian and Central Asian nationalities.”

On the day of the verdict, more than a thousand people gathered near the district court building, as they wrote on social networks, coming from different parts of the republic. After refusing to vacate the square, dozens of them were detained by police. Two days later, an uncoordinated public rally took place on Salavat Yulaev Square in Ufa. According to unofficial data, it gathered more than 1 thousand supporters of the convicted activist. Just like last time, several dozen people were detained.

On Wednesday and Thursday, on the eve of the rally-concert, screenshots from various online chats were distributed on social networks, from which it followed that employees of state and municipal organizations and students were being gathered to participate in the rally-concert. On the square itself, they gathered in small groups under the flags of Russia, Bashkiria, various enterprises (for example, State Unitary Enterprise Bashavtrotrans) and regions of the republic.

In a conversation with a Kommersant correspondent, the protesters stated that they came on their own because they support the policy of the head of the region.

“We like how Bashkiria is blossoming under the leadership of our head. The salaries are satisfactory. Plus, we are also against extremism and Nazism,” said one of those who came. She refused to give her name and place of work.

Radiy Khabirov himself was at the event. At the beginning of his speech, he thanked the people who came to the concert. “There is another front – internal. In every society there are people who, for various reasons, are trying to split this society, split our republic, based on the principles of radical extremism. And today we have gathered here together to say: we will not give our Bashkortostan to anyone. And today I say that all those who break the law and raise their hands against our multinational unity will be punished to the fullest extent of the law,” the governor said from the stage.

The spiritual mentor of the Bashkir battalions, Father Victor, spoke in the same vein: “I thank God that I was born in the Republic of Bashkortostan. My entire childhood, youth and my whole life were spent in communication and friendship with children of different nationalities and religions. We did not divide people by nationality, but only into good and bad.”

Venera Khisamova, Ufa