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BBC HomepageSkip to contentAccessibility HelpYour accountLiveNotificationsHomeNewsSportWeatheriPlayerSoundsBitesizeMore menuMore menuSearch BBCHomeNewsSportWeatheriPlayerSoundsBitesizeCBBCCBeebiesFoodClose menuBBC NewsMenuHomeIsrael-Gaza warCost of LivingWar in UkraineClimateUKWorldBusinessPoliticsCultureMoreTechScienceHealthFamily & EducationIn PicturesNewsbeatBBC VerifyDisabilityWorldAfricaAsiaAustraliaEuropeLatin AmericaMiddle EastUS & CanadaSteve Rosenberg: What Navalny’s funeral tells us about Russia todayPublished6 hours agoShareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingRelated TopicsWar in UkraineImage source, ReutersImage caption, Alexei Navalny was one of Putin’s most outspoken criticsBy Steve RosenbergRussia EditorWe witness events, and we report on them. But in the age of 24-hour news, there is often precious little time for journalists to pause, take breath and take in the magnitude of what has happened. In the hours after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022, I was filing non-stop for TV, radio and the BBC news website. Only at 2am the following morning, after my last TV live of the day, could I stop and try to compute the enormity of the moment. It has been the same with Alexei Navalny. For two weeks I have been reporting on the death of Russia’s most prominent opposition leader in an Arctic penal colony. I talked about the problems his family had encountered as they tried to recover his body; I spoke to Muscovites laying floral tributes to him. On Friday I watched Navalny’s coffin being carried into a Moscow church. I saw thousands of Russians lining up to pay their final respects. This video can not be playedTo play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser.Media caption, Watch: “Nobody is scared” – crowds defiant at Navalny’s funeralI saw his supporters throw roses and carnations at the hearse before it headed to the cemetery. But only once I’d seen the dramatic images of his coffin being lowered into the grave did Navalny’s death finally, fully, hit home.Today the tributes continued, as Russians – including Navalny’s mother Ludmila – came to Borisov cemetery and laid flowers at his grave. I’ve been thinking about the extraordinary scenes I witnessed yesterday and about what they tell us – if anything – about Russia today.Considering the current wave of repression against dissenting voices, it was unclear how many Russians would come out to say goodbye to the Kremlin’s staunchest critic. Image source, ReutersImage caption, A steady stream of people laid flowers on Navalny’s grave at Borisovskoye cemeteryIn recent days hundreds of people had been detained by police across Russia at events commemorating Navalny.But, thousands came. When I talked to people, young and old, queuing outside the church, they spoke of the hope Navalny had given them of a better, brighter future for their country. They spoke in support of freedom, democracy, and peace. Image source, EPAImage caption, Lyudmila Navalnaya, mother of late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, mourns near her son’s grave at a cemetery on the outskirts of MoscowLater, the crowds chanted the kind of slogans unheard on Russian streets since the invasion of Ukraine, such as “Freedom to Political Prisoners!” and “No to war!”It struck me, here was a Russia who had been absent from public view for two years; a Russia which does not support Vladimir Putin, or the war in Ukraine, and wants to be a democratic country. Alexei Navalny: What we know about his death In pictures: Navalny’s years as a Putin criticIt stands in complete contrast to the Russia shown on state TV: Russia is rabidly anti-Western, pro-Putin, full-square behind the “special military operation” in Ukraine and embracing authoritarianism at home. The question I’m left with is this: were yesterday’s scenes the dying embers of liberal democracy in Russia, a “last hurrah” for freedom of expression before it is extinguished completely? Those in power here may well believe so. Image source, EPAImage caption, Russians gathered to try to pay respects to late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny during his funeralThey’ve certainly been working hard to achieve that, adopting repressive laws designed to silence and punish dissent. As a result, Russia’s most high-profile opposition figures have either fled abroad or are in prison at home. With the death of Navalny, the opposition has lost its most charismatic leader.In two weeks time, President Putin will face no serious challenge in Russia’s presidential election – his fiercest critics are not on the ballot. Image source, ReutersImage caption, President Vladimir Putin is widely tipped to win a fifth term in office, as Russians go to the polls in the country’s presidential electionAfter what is expected to be declared a “landslide” victory, the authorities will portray President Putin and his policies as super popular and dismiss his critics as a tiny minority of the Russian public. But, here’s the thing. Very often Russians who vote for him tell me they do so not because they’re excited by his policies or his vision of Russia: they simply see no alternative. That’s exactly what the Kremlin has sought to achieve by removing all serious rivals from the political stage.What I saw on the streets of Moscow, on the day of Mr Navalny’s funeral, was very different: a genuine outpouring of support for a politician who had inspired a section of the Russian public with an alternative vision for Russia. Mr Navalny is dead. But for these people, their desire for a different Russia is very much alive.Related TopicsEuropeWar in UkraineRussiaAlexei NavalnyVladimir PutinMore on this storyAlexei Navalny, Russia’s most vociferous Putin criticPublished16 FebruaryNavalny’s widow fears arrests at husband’s funeralPublished3 days agoAlexei Navalny: What we know about his deathPublished20 FebruaryCrowds chant anti-Putin slogans at Navalny funeralPublished1 day agoTop StoriesGaza receives first airdrop of US humanitarian aidPublished40 minutes agoFergal Keane: Aid convoy tragedy shows fear of starvation haunts GazaPublished6 hours agoFather wants cyber-bullying law after Mia’s deathPublished8 hours agoFeaturesBiden treads carefully through Middle East minefieldWhat Navalny’s funeral tells us about Russia todayFaisal Islam: Why this won’t be the Budget that Jeremy Hunt wantedBad blood over Singapore Taylor Swift tour subsidiesKiller whale vs shark: Solo orca eats great white. VideoKiller whale vs shark: Solo orca eats great whiteHow did the viral Willy Wonka experience go so wrong?What video and eyewitness accounts tell us about Gazans killed at aid dropThe two faces of Robert F Kennedy JrNo snow, no tourists – death of a Swiss ski resortElsewhere on the BBCWill this elite boarding school fit around them?Five black inner-city teens must leave their old worlds behind…AttributioniPlayerHair-pulling, wrestling and kicking!Watch the moment a violent brawl unfolded in the Maldives ParliamentAttributioniPlayerThe mysterious deaths of Nazi fugitivesThree brothers investigate whether a family connection may explain the truthAttributioniPlayerWhy do people behave the way they do on social media?Marianna Spring investigates extraordinary cases of online hate to find out…AttributioniPlayerMost Read1Two women shot by gun dropped during moped pursuit2Russia publishes German army meeting on Ukraine3Scargill marks 40th anniversary of miners’ strike4Horner refuses to comment on leaked messagesAttributionSport5Bad blood over Singapore Taylor Swift tour subsidies6Gaza receives first airdrop of US humanitarian aid7UK-owned ship hit by Houthis sinks off Yemen coast8Killer whale vs shark: Solo orca eats great white9No snow, no tourists – death of a Swiss ski resort10Father wants cyber-bullying law after Mia’s death
[ad_1] Were the chanting crowds a last liberal hurrah. or are dreams of democracy still alive, asks Russia editor Steve Rosenberg.
![BBC HomepageSkip to contentAccessibility HelpYour accountLiveNotificationsHomeNewsSportWeatheriPlayerSoundsBitesizeMore menuMore menuSearch BBCHomeNewsSportWeatheriPlayerSoundsBitesizeCBBCCBeebiesFoodClose menuBBC NewsMenuHomeIsrael-Gaza warCost of LivingWar in UkraineClimateUKWorldBusinessPoliticsCultureMoreTechScienceHealthFamily & EducationIn PicturesNewsbeatBBC VerifyDisabilityAsiaChinaIndiaBad blood over Singapore Taylor Swift tour subsidiesPublished1 hour agoShareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingImage source, EPAImage caption, The Singapore leg of the Eras tour has Swifties flying in from around the regionBy Frances Maoin SingaporeIn the glitzy Asian city-state of Singapore, the sequins are out, limousines polished and hotel pillows plumped.The city’s hosting Taylor Swift’s Eras tour this week – an honour, but one that has come at a cost.That cost was initially reported to be as high as S$24 million (£14m; $18m) for the six shows to be exclusive to South East Asia.Culture minister Edwin Tong has since told Singapore’s CNA the figure was “nowhere as high” – although he still refused to be drawn on the exact figure. The broadcaster, however, suggested it may have been just $2m for all six.But the fact any money had been spent only came to light after an outburst from the prime minister of Thailand, who accused Singapore of paying concert organisers US$2-3m per night.That triggered criticism across the region. In the Philippines, a lawmaker criticised the move, saying “this isn’t what good neighbours do” – and called for a formal protest against the grant.But while governments are seeing red – it’s the fans who are paying the price, literally.Swift is heard everywhere across South East Asia, home to roughly 700 million people – from alleyways in Ho Chi Minh to taxi cabs in Bangkok. So for many it was a punch in the guts to learn all six shows would be held in the region’s most expensive city.Singapore’s currency – one of the strongest in Asia – has long been a deterrent for visitors. But for a chance to see their idol, many of her fans are willing to grin and bear it.Look what you made me doFlight-loads of fans have been touching down at Singapore’s Changi Airport all week, many coming from China and its territories.Swift isn’t playing in China so Singapore is the next best thing for many.One woman flying in from Shenzhen told the BBC she and her friend had spent S$1,200 each on tickets alone. They’ve resorted to camping at a friend’s house after hotel rates across the city surged.Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Taylor Swift in Sao PauloOn the luxe end of things, the city’s landmark hotel Marina Bay Sands has sold out of its S$50,000 Swift packages which included four VIP tickets and a three-night stay in a suite.Then there’s 22-year-old Allen Dungca in the Philippines, who scraped together his wages to take him and his mother to Singapore.This Thursday, they’ll take a four-hour bus ride to Manila, stay at an airport motel for the night, then grab their dawn flight the next day.The enterprising student snapped up the travel package back in July. He eventually tracked down the tickets on a resale night, after weeks of desperate hunting.”I am very lucky,” he says of the S$400 outlay for seats in the nosebleed section. “The seller was kind and not a scalper.” Resales now are going for thousands. And he had almost fallen for a scam, a shady character named Pat Steve, later exposed online. He estimates the whole endeavour is costing him S$2,000 – the monthly income of an upper-middle class family in the Philippines, a country where a fifth of the population lives under the poverty line.”Right now, I’m a student with a part-time job and I can afford my wants and needs. But it’s sad, other Swifties don’t have any means or budget to watch her overseas and I know most Filipino Swifties love her so much.”The Philippines arguably has the most ardent Swift fan base – Spotify data showed Quezon City in Manila had played the most streams of the singer last year.The Filipino Swiftie drag queen dazzling AsiaThe pop star has toured in the Philippines before – but the bag of money from Singapore undoubtedly sweetened the deal, say analysts.Clean, modern Singapore has long been seen as a base in the region for big events. It has the infrastructure, the transport links and a high-earning, expat-heavy population. Image source, EPAImage caption, Swift-themed water and light shows on the bay are among the city’s Swiftie attractions this weekIt’s also seen as reliably stable in a region which has experienced political chaos. A decade ago Swift cancelled her shows in Thailand because of the military coup and resulting protests.Still, while it’s common for governments around the world to give out subsidies and tax breaks to bring in events, the reported spend goes beyond anything else publicly known in Singapore.Samer Hajjar, a marketing lecturer at the National University of Singapore, says it’s “above average” even for the city-state.And fans are quite blunt. “It’s kinda greedy,” says Mr Dunga. “But it’s wise… because their economic response will be way more than that.”But will it be though?Show me the moneyIn Australia, the leg of the tour preceding Singapore, officials suggested the tour had provided a A$145m “uplift” in consumer spending. More than 570,000 tickets were sold across seven nights in Sydney and Melbourne, nearly double the number sold for Singapore’s six shows.But not all of that money counts, says economists.More than 90% of show-goers were probably local, estimates KPMG’s chief economist Dr Brendan Rynne, so their dollars would be “just a transfer from one category of spending (or saving) to another”.Only foreign visitors would have been adding to the books – and they accounted for just 2% of visitors, he estimated. After doing the maths he projected Swift had added only A$10m (£5.1m; $6.5m) to GDP.Still, Australia didn’t use public funds to have Swift play in the country, state government officials confirmed to the BBC. Neither did Japan, the only other Asian stop on the tour.What does Taylor mania mean for the globe? Singapore has said Swift’s tour will bring certain economic benefits to the country.But just how much net gain will be generated is unclear. The BBC has reached out to Singapore’s tourism board but they have refused to reveal foreign visitor estimates or other modelling. A local bank, Maybank, has suggested that consumer spending may top S$350m – but that’s based on the very optimistic prediction of 70% of attendees being from out of town.Even Singapore’s Formula One Grand Prix only saw 49% of spectators from overseas in 2022, with a record 300,000 crowd.Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Singapore’s F1 Grand Prix brings thousands of overseas visitors each yearWhen pressed on the numbers, Maybank’s economist Erica Tay could not provide specifics, saying the 70% rate was based on Singapore’s “potential catchment” and the bank was not interested in estimating net profit.”Six concerts may not move a nation’s economic growth materially, but the strategic value of Taylor Swift’s endorsement of Singapore as a tourism destination outweighs that one-off boost,” she said.But business professor Julien Cayla from Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University points out that public spend should be scrutinised – especially when it’s only revealed to citizens by another country’s government.And in a country where welfare benefits are relatively limited – it could be seen as a fraught spend.”To justify spending [reportedly] S$24 million on something that on the surface might not seem that critical to the economic health of the country over spending on people and public services… there’s a tension there,” Prof Cayla said.Nonetheless he and others say that when it comes to planning tourism, governments have mandate to throw around money and Singapore isn’t an exception. “They don’t necessarily like to advertise it. But the minute the government sees something that fits into a long-term strategy, it will sink government money in to support that,” he says.In a way, Singapore has just brought in Swift the same way it currently attracts huge multinational corporations.”What’s different here is that Taylor Swift as a business, is a very emotional business,” he said.”It’s dealing with the emotions of 10-18 year olds, who are very sad to not see the concert happening in Bangkok or Jakarta.”And in the words of the songstress herself, that’s caused a lot of bad blood.Related TopicsSingaporeTaylor SwiftAsiaPop musicUnited StatesMore on this storyWhat does Taylor mania mean for the globe?Published12 FebruaryThe Taylor Swift drag tribute dazzling AsiaPublished22 FebruaryWhat’s next for Taylor Swift in 2024?Published27 December 2023Super Bowl most watched US show since Moon landingPublished13 FebruaryDisney boss bets on Taylor Swift and FortnitePublished8 FebruaryTop StoriesHow more than 100 Gazans were killed at a food aid dropPublished5 hours agoSeven hostages killed in Gaza, Hamas saysPublished3 hours agoHow worried is Labour after losing Rochdale?Published8 hours agoFeaturesHow worried is Labour after losing Rochdale?Listen: Sunak’s Surprise Downing Street Speech. 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![BBC HomepageSkip to contentAccessibility HelpYour accountLiveNotificationsHomeNewsSportWeatheriPlayerSoundsBitesizeMore menuMore menuSearch BBCHomeNewsSportWeatheriPlayerSoundsBitesizeCBBCCBeebiesFoodClose menuBBC NewsMenuHomeIsrael-Gaza warCost of LivingWar in UkraineClimateUKWorldBusinessPoliticsCultureMoreTechScienceHealthFamily & EducationIn PicturesNewsbeatBBC VerifyDisabilityWorldAfricaAsiaAustraliaEuropeLatin AmericaMiddle EastUS & CanadaIgor Girkin shot down a passenger jet, then insulted Putin. Which one put him in jail?Published1 hour agoShareclose panelShare pageCopy linkAbout sharingRelated TopicsWar in UkraineImage source, MAXIM SHIPENKOV/EPA-EFE/REX/ShutterstockImage caption, Igor Girkin has escaped justice for downing flight MH17 but is going to jail after criticising Vladimir PutinBy Steve RosenbergRussia Editor, MoscowThe last time I saw Igor Girkin was five years ago in the stairwell of a Moscow news agency.”Would you consider giving me an interview?” I asked. “No,” he replied sharply and scurried away.I saw him again today. No stairwell. This time, Girkin was in a caged dock surrounded by police in the Moscow City Court. Along with other media we were allowed in to film him for just one minute before the end of his trial. A police dog kept barking. Girkin found that amusing. The verdict less so. Minutes later he was found guilty on extremism charges and sentenced to four years in a penal colony. This wasn’t his first conviction. In The Hague in 2022, in absentia, Girkin was found guilty of the murder of 298 people: the passengers and crew of Malaysian Airlines flight MH17. The Boeing jet had been shot down over eastern Ukraine in 2014 by Russian-controlled forces in the early stages of Russia’s war there. Girkin was one of three men sentenced to life imprisonment. A judgement he ignored.A year after we’d met in the stairwell, I managed to get through to Girkin on the phone and ask him about the Hague. “I do not recognise the authority of the Dutch court on this matter,” he told me. “I am a military man and I am not going to accept that a civilian court in a foreign country has the authority to convict a person who took part in someone else’s civil war, only because their civilians were killed.”Do you know who shot down [the plane]?””The rebels didn’t shoot down the Boeing. I have nothing more to say.”This video can not be playedTo play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser.Media caption, Russian rebel commander Igor Girkin told the BBC in 2020 he did not recognise the court’s authority”If it wasn’t the rebels, then was it Russian soldiers?” I asked.”That’s it. Goodbye.” He hung up. Now he is going to prison. But not for mass murder. And not for life. So, who exactly is Girkin – also known under his pseudonym as Igor Strelkov – and why has a Moscow court sent him to jail?He is a former FSB officer in Russia’s domestic security service. In 2014 he played a key role in the fighting in Ukraine’s Donbas region: a conflict engineered and orchestrated by Moscow.He organised and commanded pro-Russia militias in eastern Ukraine. The Dutch court would later rule that Russia had been in control of the separatist forces fighting in eastern Ukraine and that Girkin had helped to bring the Buk missile system into Ukraine that was used to shoot down flight MH17. Three guilty of downing airliner over UkrainePutin critic Girkin wants Russia presidential runFollowing Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, ultranationalist Girkin became a prominent pro-war blogger. He became increasingly critical of the way the Russian authorities were waging the war: not hard enough, in his view. He founded a hard line nationalist movement called The Club of Angry Patriots. His problems began when he started to take that anger out on President Vladimir Putin. Public criticisms of the Russian president turned to insults. In a post last year, Girkin described Putin as “a non-entity” and “a cowardly waste of space”. A few days later he was arrested. Now he’s been tried and convicted. Of course, a four-year prison sentence is mild in comparison to other recent punishments delivered by Russian courts. Last year pro-democracy activist Vladimir Kara-Murza was sentenced to a quarter of a century behind bars after being convicted of treason, a case he and his supporters insist was politically motivated.Putin critic jailed for 25 years in Russia’Send back our husbands’ – Russian women in rare protestHow would the “Angry Patriots” react to Girkin’s prison term? Would they pour on to the streets in protest? Image source, MAXIM SHIPENKOV/EPA-EFE/REX/ShutterstockImage caption, Some of Girkin supporters were detained outside the court in MoscowNot exactly. A few dozen supporters gathered outside the Moscow City Court to chant “Freedom to Strelkov!” but there was little hint of optimism in their voices. “They’ve put a Russian national patriot on trial,” Denis tells me. “I hope our people wake up and fight. Unfortunately, we don’t see much pushback. Everyone seems to be hiding away.”Also in the crowd was retired colonel and outspoken ultranationalist Vladimir Kvachkov.Having informed me that “Russia will always be the enemy of the Anglo-Saxon West” and assured me that the break-up of the United Kingdom was inevitable, Mr Kvachkov claimed that Girkin was being punished for “fighting against the system.”In recent years the “system” concentrated on clearing the Russian political landscape of pro-democracy, pro-Western critics and challengers. A prison sentence for Girkin suggests the Russian authorities have now decided to crackdown on critics from the opposite end of spectrum: the so-called ultra-patriots. Last year’s mutiny by Wagner mercenaries led by Yevgeny Prigozhin may be the reason. The Putin system survived the challenge. But that drama will have alerted the Kremlin to the potential dangers from highly motivated nationalistic and patriotic elements in Russian society.Related TopicsWar in UkraineRussiaVladimir PutinMore on this storyPutin critic Girkin wants Russia presidential runPublished19 November 2023Pro-war Putin critic Strelkov detained in MoscowPublished21 July 2023Wanted Russian rebel scorns MH17 trial. Video, 00:01:25Wanted Russian rebel scorns MH17 trialPublished9 March 20201:25Top StoriesFamilies’ anger as triple killer gets hospital orderPublished24 minutes agoWatch: Killer’s rampage and arrest caught on camera. 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