‘Carved on bodies and souls’: Ukrainian men face ‘systemic’ sexual torture in Russian detention centres; The Guardian, October 29, 2024

Emma Graham-Harrisonand Artem Mazhulin in Kyiv, The Guardian; ‘Carved on bodies and souls’: Ukrainian men face ‘systemic’ sexual torture in Russian detention centres

"The UN commissioner for human rights has documented hundreds of cases of sexual violence perpetrated by Russian troops since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Two-thirds of the victims are men and boys who were tortured in Russian jails.

Russia deploys systematic sexual torture against Ukrainians, both civilians and prisoners of war, in “almost all” detention centres where they are held, the UN found.

That includes “rape, attempted rape, threats of rape and castration, beatings or the administration of electric shocks to genitals, repeated forced nudity and sexualised humiliation”.

“The numbers in Ukraine are quite startling,” said Charu Lata Hogg, the executive director of the All Survivors Project, which supports men and boys who have endured sexual violence.

The organisation keeps a global database of cases that stretches back three decades, and the scale of new abuse recorded in Ukraine is unprecedented, she said. Sexual violence against men “happens all over the world, but the struggle is always getting documented cases”.

In Ukraine, the UN has recorded 236 incidents of sexual violence against men and two against boys in under three years."

Trump Suggests Abraham Lincoln Should've Let the South Keep a Little Slavery; Vanity Fair, October 18, 2024

 Bess Levin, Vanity Fair; Trump Suggests Abraham Lincoln Should've Let the South Keep a Little Slavery

"Donald Trump appeared on Fox News this morning, where, during a characteristically bizarre interview, he suggested Abraham Lincoln could have avoided the Civil War by cutting a deal with the South—which, as a reminder, wanted slavery to remain legal.

Asked by a 10-year-old who his favorite president was when he was “little,” Trump began by saying he “liked Ronald Reagan.” (Note: Trump was 34 when Reagan first took office, and 42 when he left.) Then he turned to Lincoln, who he believes was a great president—but could’ve been better if he’d “settled” the Civil War.

“Great presidents?” Trump said. “Lincoln was probably a great president, although I’ve always said, why wasn’t that settled? You know, I’m a guy that—it doesn’t make sense we had a Civil War…. You’d almost say, like, why wasn’t that [settled]? As an example, Ukraine would have never happened, and Russia, if I were president. Israel would have never happened; October 7 would have never happened, as you know.”"

Russian court jails US-Russian woman for 12 years over $50 charity donation; The Guardian, August 15, 2024

Associated Press via The Guardian; Russian court jails US-Russian woman for 12 years over $50 charity donation

"A Russian court on Thursday sentenced the US-Russian dual national Ksenia Khavana to 12 years in prison on a treason conviction for allegedly raising money for the Ukrainian military.

The rights group the First Department said the charges stemmed from a $51 (£40) donation to a US charity that helps Ukraine.

Khavana, whom Russian authorities identify by her birth name of Karelina, was arrested in Ekaterinburg in February. She pleaded guilty in her closed trial last week, news reports said.

Khavana reportedly obtained US citizenship after marrying an American and moving to Los Angeles. She had returned to Russia to visit her family."

‘They burned books, like the Nazis did 80 years ago’: Russia’s deadly attack on Ukraine’s biggest printing house; The Guardian, June 30, 2024

 Luke Harding , The Guardian; ‘They burned books, like the Nazis did 80 years ago’: Russia’s deadly attack on Ukraine’s biggest printing house

"Hryniuk said she did not know if the Russian military had deliberately targeted her workplace or had attempted to hit a train repair workshop next door...

In occupied areas, the Kremlin has forbidden the Ukrainian language, removed books from schools and imposed a patriotic pro-Russian curriculum. Statues of the Ukrainian poet Taras Shevchenko have been torn down. Vladimir Putin insists Ukraine does not exist. Its land, he says, is a part of “historical Russia”.

The strike on the factory wiped out 50,000 books. Among them were works of children’s literature and Ukrainian school textbooks – 40% of them were printed by Factor Druk – due to be sent to classrooms for the new September academic year...

“For me it’s so symbolic. They burned books, like the Nazis did 80 years ago. We have so many historical examples of Russia trying to kill off Ukrainian culture,” said Oleksiy Sobol, the head of the pre-press department. The Russian empire banned Ukrainian-language texts from the 17th century onwards, with follow-up edicts. Under Stalin, in the 1930s, Ukrainian poets and writers were shot – a generation known as the “executed renaissance”.

Since 2022, Russia has erased 172 libraries and nearly 2m books, according to the Ukrainian Book Institute...

Emily Finer, who heads a research team working on Ukrainian children’s literature at the University of St Andrews, called the attack a tragedy. “The priority given to publishing trauma-informed children’s books in wartime Ukraine is unprecedented,” she said. “Over 120 picture books in Ukrainian have been printed since 2022 to help children cope with their wartime experiences now and in the future.”

The strike took place a week before the Arsenal book festival, Kyiv’s biggest literary event. Many of the destroyed books were due to be sold there...

The Howard G Buffett Foundation, meanwhile, last week pledged €5.1m (£4.3m) to restore the printing house. “They can destroy books but not Ukrainian resilience and commitment,” said Buffett, the son of the billionaire US investor Warren Buffett."

What Elizabeth Gilbert's publication delay reveals about the ethics of writing fiction; CBC, June 15, 2023

 Jen Sookfong Lee and Laisha Rosnau , CBC; What Elizabeth Gilbert's publication delay reveals about the ethics of writing fiction

"Elizabeth Gilbert, the bestselling author of Eat Pray Love, is delaying publication of her latest novel after facing a backlash from some Ukrainians who said it's the wrong time to put the novel — which is set in Russia — into the world.

Authors Jen Sookfong Lee and Laisha Rosnau unpack Gilbert's decision, and get into the real-world ethical dilemmas facing fiction writers today."

‘Our mission is crucial’: meet the warrior librarians of Ukraine; The Guardian, December 4, 2022

Stephen Marche, The Guardian; ‘Our mission is crucial’: meet the warrior librarians of Ukraine

"The work of the state archivists during the course of the Ukrainian war is simple – to keep what they have out of Russian hands and in existence. “Our mission is crucial because the destruction of archives can be seen as part of cultural genocide,” Khromov says. Russians have destroyed more than 300 state and university libraries since the start of the war. In May, the National Library conducted an online survey on the state of its system. By then, 19 libraries were already completely destroyed, 115 partially destroyed and 124 permanently damaged. The Russians have destroyed libraries in Mariupol, Volnovakha, Chernihiv, Sievierodonetsk, Bucha, Hostomel, Irpin and Borodianka, along with the cities they served. They have destroyed several thousand school libraries at least."

Call Number Podcast: Support for Ukraine; American Libraries, August 12, 2022

American Libraries; Call Number Podcast: Support for Ukraine

Episode 74 highlights efforts to preserve information, raise funds, and help refugees

"Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has dominated headlines this year. The ongoing war has affected people globally, including American librarians and their work. In Episode 74, the Call Number podcast team looks at the ways the profession is supporting Ukraine.

First, Call Number host Diana Panuncial speaks with Kristin Parker, lead curator and manager of the arts at Boston Public Library. Parker is part of a network of first responders working against the clock to preserve Ukraine’s cultural history and provide preservation advice to library workers on the ground.

Next, American Libraries Editor and Publisher Sanhita SinhaRoy speaks with Michael Dowling, director of ALA’s International and Chapter Relations Office, about the Association’s Ukraine Library Relief Fund and how donations are being used.

Finally, Panuncial talks to Millicent Mabi, director of community engagement and programming at Regina Public Library in Saskatchewan, about how her institution is helping Ukrainian refugees—from teaching them English to improving their literacy to connecting them with community resources." 

Ukraine’s information war is winning hearts and minds in the West; The Conversation, May 12, 2022

 Michael Butler,Associate Professor of Political Science, Clark University, The Conversation; ; Ukraine’s information war is winning hearts and minds in the West

"Weaponizing information

Russia’s use of propaganda and symbols during the conflict, most recently in the “Victory Day” celebrations attempting to draw its own distorted parallels to World War II, has gotten a lot of attention. In the process, Ukraine’s skillful use of information warfare should not be overlooked. 

Information warfare entails one party denying, exploiting or corrupting the delivery and function of an enemy’s information. It is used both to protect oneself against the enemy’s information and to create a favorable environment for one’s own information.

With the charismatic President Volodymyr Zelenskyy leading the way, Ukraine’s savvy use of traditional and social media as well as direct appeals to the U.S. Congress, European Parliament and the court of world opinion have provided a clear and compelling framing of the war. 

That frame is structured around five affecting themes: the inherently just cause of Ukrainian self-defense; the tenacity of Ukrainian resistance; the barbarity of Russian conduct; Russia’s flawed military strategy and general ineptitude; and Ukraine’s desperate need for more, and more sophisticated, military hardware. 

Ukraine’s successful strategy in the battle over information demonstrates the connection between armed conflict and information warfare. Ukraine has forged a stalemate with Russia by stressing these themes of a just war for national liberation using not only traditional tools of warfare – bullets, missiles, tanks – but also by shaping the Western public’s perceptions of the war."

The Information War in Ukraine Is Far From Over; The New York Times, May 5, 2022

 SERGE SCHMEMANN, The New York Times; The Information War in Ukraine Is Far From Over

"As a former K.G.B. agent, Mr. Putin sees the world as a battleground of conspiratorial maneuvers. In his speeches, the color revolutions in Ukraine and other former Soviet republics and the Arab Spring and other global upheavals are machinations to bolster American domination. As an heir to the Soviet worldview, he believes more than many Western leaders do in the importance of information warfare, both to give his regime a veneer of legitimacy and to challenge liberal democracy. On this battlefield, lies are ammunition in Mr. Putin’s long and increasingly personal struggle to stay in power.

As the war enters a new phase, as the images and horrors become familiar and the costs rise, it will become ever more difficult for the Biden administration and for Mr. Zelensky to sustain their early lead in the information war. That makes it all the more imperative for the West to press the message that this is not a war Ukraine chose and that the cost of allowing Mr. Putin to have his way in Ukraine would be far higher than the sacrifices required to block him."

Russian artist faces jail over peace protest using supermarket price labels; The Guardian, April 13, 2022

AFP in Saint Petersburg , The Guardian; Russian artist faces jail over peace protest using supermarket price labels

"A Russian court has ordered an artist to be held behind bars for allegedly replacing supermarket price labels with messages protesting against Moscow’s military campaign in Ukraine.

Alexandra Skochilenko faces up to a decade in jail for her stealth protest, after she was charged under a new law banning “fake news” about Russia’s armed forces...

Investigators accused her of “putting fragments of paper in place of price tags, containing knowingly false information about the use of the Russian armed forces” in a Perekryostok supermarket on 31 March.

They described her motive as “political hatred for Russia”, which means she faces a harsh sentence if found guilty, ranging from a fine of 3m roubles (£27,000) to between five and 10 years in jail."

Ominous rhetoric gains grounds in Russia as its forces founder in Ukraine; The Washington Post, April 13, 2022

Robyn Dixon, The Washington Post; Ominous rhetoric gains grounds in Russia as its forces founder in Ukraine

"In late March, the head of Russia’s Investigative Committee launched a probe into whether Ukrainian students’ textbooks “target children with hatred of Russia and the Russian language” and “distort history.” There already is evidence, Finkel noted, of Russian soldiers in Ukraine going through libraries and schools and destroying books in Ukrainian or those about the country’s history and struggle for independence.

“I think there is a clear indication that [the Russians] are targeting quite deliberately everything and everyone that is associated with Ukrainians as a national identity,” he said."

Open source intelligence observers gain growing role in how war is viewed; Stars and Stripes, March 29, 2022

 ALISON BATH, Stars and Stripes ; Open source intelligence observers gain growing role in how war is viewed

"Citizen intelligence analysts are spotlighting the Russian navy’s role in its war on Ukraine, using publicly available information to report on missile launches, blockades and other actions in the Black and Mediterranean seas.

The information gathered using open-source intelligence, or OSINT, offers a glimpse into Russia’s maritime war activities and sometimes challenges information released by government sources.

Dozens of private citizens are parlaying their prior military experience, specialized knowledge of the Russian navy and online information-mining skills into robust, almost-real-time coverage of Russia’s full-scale invasion, which began Feb. 24."

Names on a list: Fleeing Mariupol, one checkpoint at a time; Associated Press, March 21, 2022

MSTYSLAV CHERNOV, Associated Press; Names on a list: Fleeing Mariupol, one checkpoint at a time

"The absence of information in a blockade accomplishes two goals.

Chaos is the first. People don’t know what’s going on, and they panic. At first I couldn’t understand why Mariupol fell apart so quickly. Now I know it was because of the lack of communication. 

Impunity is the second goal. With no information coming out of a city, no pictures of demolished buildings and dying children, the Russian forces could do whatever they wanted. If not for us, there would be nothing.

That’s why we took such risks to be able to send the world what we saw, and that’s what made Russia angry enough to hunt us down. 

I have never, ever felt that breaking the silence was so important."

Ukrainian President Zelenskyy says US businesses should pull out of Russia, calls for more aid; USA Today, March 16, 2022

Joey GarrisonCelina TeborLedyard KingJohn BaconRick RouanMatthew Brown, USA Today; Ukrainian President Zelenskyy says US businesses should pull out of Russia, calls for more aid

""Being the leader of the world means to be the leader of peace," he Zelenskyy said in remarks livestreamed at the U.S. Capitol. He added, “I call on you to do more."

In the War Over Ukraine, Expect the Unexpected; The New York Times, March 15, 2022

Thomas L. Friedman, The New York Times; In the War Over Ukraine, Expect the Unexpected

"I am always amazed by the courage that seemingly average people manifest in war — in this case, not only by Ukrainians, but also by Russians who refuse to buy Putin’s lies, knowing that he is turning them into a pariah nation. So I marvel at the breathtaking courage demonstrated on Monday evening by Marina Ovsyannikova, an employee at Russia’s Channel 1, a state-run television channel, who burst into a live broadcast of Russia’s most-watched news show, yelling, “Stop the war!” and holding up a sign behind the anchorwoman saying, “They’re lying to you here.” She was interrogated and, for the moment, released — probably because Putin feared making her into a martyr.

Marina Ovsyannikova — remember her name. She dared to tell the czar that he had no clothes. What courage.

And finally, wars also reveal extraordinary acts of kindness."

Ukraine's libraries are offering bomb shelters, camouflage classes and, yes, books; NPR, March 9, 2022

 Bill Chappell, NPR; Ukraine's libraries are offering bomb shelters, camouflage classes and, yes, books

"Libraries are playing vital roles in supporting Ukraine's war effort from giving families shelters during Russian bombing raids to making camouflage nets for the military and countering disinformation. 

"It's really scary when schools, libraries, universities, hospitals, maternity hospitals, residential neighborhoods are bombed," Oksana Brui, who is the president of the Ukrainian Library Association, told NPR...

Even in peacetime, Ukraine's libraries try to counteract the influence of disinformation, training people in media and information literacy. But this is war, and everything about life in Ukraine is now different. The country's librarians are hard at work trying to keep their collections safe — and making sure people can access books and other materials.

"Today Ukraine is fighting not only for its own independence and the future of its children," Brui said. 

She stressed that Ukrainians are fighting — and dying — for European values. She urged everyone to support Ukraine, to establish a no-fly zone, and unite to stop the war started by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

"Today it is destroying Ukraine, and tomorrow it could be any other country," Brui said." 

Opinion: Travels with Milley: The general brings his ‘big green map’ to NATO’s flank; The Washington Post, March 8, 2022

David Ignatius, The Washington Post; Opinion: Travels with Milley: The general brings his ‘big green map’ to NATO’s flank

"On the eve of Russia’s Feb. 24 invasion, Biden ordered Milley and Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines to brief Congress on what the map showed — and then to give the same briefing, on “deep background,” to the Pentagon press corps. This was a declassified version of code-word intelligence, drawn from communications intercepts, surveillance satellites and spies on the ground. America’s best weapon against Putin, Biden decided, was the truth. The administration had found a way to weaponize intelligence."

Russia Takes Censorship to New Extremes, Stifling War Coverage; The New York Times, March 4, 2022

Anton Troianovski, The New York Times; Russia Takes Censorship to New Extremes, Stifling War Coverage

"Mr. Putin signed a law that effectively criminalizes any public opposition to or independent news reporting about the war against Ukraine. Taking effect as soon as Saturday, the law could make it a crime to simply call the war a “war” — the Kremlin says it is a “special military operation” — on social media or in a news article or broadcast."

Statements of Solidarity with Colleagues in Ukraine by Archive, Library, and Other Organizations; Info Docket, Library Journal, February 27, 2022

 Gary Price, Info Docket, Library Journal; Statements of Solidarity with Colleagues in Ukraine by Archive, Library, and Other Organizations

"Statements of Solidarity and Support (Latest Entries in Bold)

• American Historical Association: Historians Condemn Russian Invasion of Ukraine (February 2022)
• AUPresses: On Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine
• 15 Member Societies (ACLS) Sign On to American Historical Association Statement Condemning Russian Invasion of Ukraine
• American Library Association (ALA) Stands with Ukrainian Library Community
• Association Research Libraries (ARL) Statement on Ukraine
• Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) Statement on the Situation in Ukraine
• Canada: On Behalf of the Ex Libris Association: Statement of Solidarity With Our Professional Colleagues in the Ukraine
• Canadian Library Community Expresses Support for Ukraine (via CFLA)
• Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) Statement on Ukraine
• Danish Library Association: Libraries Can Help Ukraine in the Fight for Truth
• Committee on Data of the International Science Council (CODATA) Statement on the War in Ukraine
• Digital Preservation Coalition Statment (DPC) on the Invasion of Ukraine, February 2022
• Elsevier Condemns Russian Invasion of Ukraine
• European Bureau of Library, Information and Documentation Associations (EBLIDA) Statement on Ukraine
• Federation of European Publishers (FEP) Condemns Russia’s Attack on Ukraine
• International Association for the Humanities (MAG) Statement on the Russian Invasion (via ACLS)
• International Council on Archives (ICA): Solidarity with Ukrainian Archives and Records Professionals
• International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) Statement on Ukraine
• International Council on Museums (ICOM) Statement Concerning the Russian Invasion Into Ukraine
• International Publishers Association (IPA) Response to Ukrainian Publishers and Booksellers Association
• International Science Council (ISC) Statement on Ukraine
• Joint Statement by the National Academies of the G7 States on Russia’s Attack on Ukraine
• Library Association of Latvia Statement to Ukrainian Librarians and Citizens
• Metropolitan New York Library Council (METRO) Statement of Support for Ukraine
• NASEM: ‘We Stand With Our Colleagues in Ukraine,’ Say U.S. National Academies Presidents
• OCLC Stands in Solidarity With Ukraine
• ORCID: A Special Message About Ukraine
• PEN Statement on Ukraine (PEN America)
• Society of American Archivists (SAA): Solidarity with Ukrainian Archives and Archivists
• Society of College, National and University Libraries (SCONUL) Statement of Solidarity With Library Professionals in Ukraine
• SPARC Europe: Ukraine, We Stand With You
• Springer Nature Condemns Russian Invasion
• Taylor & Francis Statement on the Russian Invasion of Ukraine
• UK Community of Librarians, Archivists and Information Professionals Issue Statement of Solidarity and Support with Ukrainian Colleagues (via CILIP)
• UMass Libraries Stand with Ukraine
• Wikimedia Foundation Calls for Continued Access to Free and Open Knowledge as Ukraine Crisis Continues
• The Wiener Holocaust Library’s Statement on Ukraine)"

BBC, CNN and other global news outlets suspend reporting in Russia; The Guardian, March 4, 2022

Harriet Sherwood, Dan Milmo and agencies, The Guardian; BBC, CNN and other global news outlets suspend reporting in Russia

"The new law, passed on Friday, makes intentionally spreading “fake” or “false” news about the Kremlin’s war in Ukraine a criminal offence. President Valdimir Putin approved the new law on Friday evening, according to the Tass state news agency.

It came after the Kremlin accused the BBC of playing a “determined role in undermining the Russian stability and security”.

Davie said: “This legislation appears to criminalise the process of independent journalism. It leaves us no other option than to temporarily suspend the work of all BBC News journalists and their support staff within the Russian Federation while we assess the full implications of this unwelcome development.

“Our BBC News service in Russian will continue to operate from outside Russia.

“The safety of our staff is paramount and we are not prepared to expose them to the risk of criminal prosecution simply for doing their jobs. I’d like to pay tribute to all of them, for their bravery, determination and professionalism.

“We remain committed to making accurate, independent information available to audiences around the world, including the millions of Russians who use our news services. Our journalists in Ukraine and around the world will continue to report on the invasion of Ukraine.”"