Podcast Then & Now #26 – Teresa Cherfas in conversation with Irina Shcherbakova [Part 2]

Welcome to the twenty-sixth edition of our Russian-language podcast Then & Now with me, Teresa Cherfas. In this episode, you can hear the second part of my interview with Irina Shcherbakova, one of the founders of “Memorial”. I first spoke to her in October of this year [you can listen to podcast #24 on our website here, where you can also find links to our YouTube channel and other platforms]. Since we last spoke, there has been another blow to the impartial study of Russian history. On 14 November, the Moscow Museum of the History of the Gulag was shut. The official reason given was that it was a fire risk. This would seem to be the most recent link in the chain that has seen the shutting down of unauthorised interpretations of Russian history. Before that, the Perm-36 museum was declared a foreign agent and then seized by the local authorities; “Memorial” was declared a foreign agent and then closed in 2021; and, in parallel, the authorities took control of all public initiatives, such as the Immortal Regiment, honouring the memory of war victims. The main theme of our conversation today is: what role does insistence on the ‘correct’ interpretation of history play in the political and social life of Russia – and why is controlling the historical narrative so important for the Putin regime? This podcast was recorded on 18 December 2024.

My questions:

• What were the Putin regime’s first attempts to take over control of Russia’s history? This process seems to have begun almost immediately after the mass protests of 2011-12. What was its purpose?
• Particularly pronounced in President Putin’s third term, was the appearance of articles by various Russian scholars devoted to promoting an ‘authorised’ interpretation of history. In 2014, an article of the criminal code penalising the rehabilitation of Nazism was adopted, which also banned the dissemination of ‘information known to be false’ about the activities of the USSR in World War II. What are the goals of these initiatives from the point of view of the authorities? Was Memorial’s work directly affected by these new laws? Were you personally affected by them in your own work?
• Why is the Great Patriotic War of such importance for Putin’s goals regarding the country’s history? When did it become such a significant part of the regime’s policies?
• The Immortal Regiment was a very interesting civil society initiative to preserve the memory of those who died in the Great Patriotic War. How have the authorities used this in their favour? And why?
• In 2021, Memorial was forced to suspend its activities. The following October, Memorial received the Nobel Peace Prize. Tell us about your emotions and memories of that time.
• How do you explain why it was that Putin needed to close down Memorial? After all, a couple of months later his full-scale invasion of Ukraine began.
• Do you remember how you learnt about the invasion of Ukraine by the Russian army? Did it take you by surprise?
• How did you make your decision about whether to stay in Russia or to leave?
• There are new history textbooks for schoolchildren now in Russia, access to archives is limited, and the state closely monitors how the country’s history is interpreted, especially in the public arena. What independent sources of historical information remain accessible in Putin’s Russia?
• What happened to Memorial’s invaluable archives after the organisation was shut down?
• How do you see the future for Russia? Under what circumstances would you consider returning to your homeland?