Opposition activists and ordinary citizens in Russia have been increasingly risking their lives in order to escape from the authoritarian rule of President Vladimir Putin and the war in Ukraine. Olesya Krivtsova, a 20-year-old pacifist, was charged with terrorism for her opposition to the war, yet managed to escape her home in Arkhangelsk disguised as a homeless beggar. She swapped cars three times and crossed an official border point into Lithuania where she unclipped her electronic ankle bracelet and tossed it away with a mischievous sideways glance.
Krivtsova is not the only one to successfully escaped from the Russian authorities. Members of the activist music group Pussy Riot disguised themselves famously as food delivery couriers and escaped from Moscow. Marina Ovsyannikova, the state television editor, was able also to flee with her daughter, dragging two small suitcases over a kilometer of cross-country terrain. All these successful escapes were made possible by exploiting weaknesses in the system and by receiving help from underground Russian groups and external rights groups, who provided routes, drivers, visas, money, and safe houses.
In response to such acts of opposition, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for Putin for alleged war crimes in Ukraine. This means that he is unable to travel to two-thirds of the globe without risking arrest in the 123 countries that are parties to the United Nations Treaty underpinning the court's operations. The warrant has been supported by Germany, France and Britain, although countries such as Hungary, Serbia and Armenia have condemned it.
Krivtsova advises that those planning an escape should contact human rights groups for help. Despite the risk of arrest, more and more people are finding a way to stand up and flee persecution from the oppressive regime.