November 12, 2024

Punk in Russia, Prisoner in Kazakhstan


Punk in Russia, Prisoner in Kazakhstan
Punk musician Aikhal Ammosov with his luggage in Germany. Publichnye Prisyry, Telegram.

After a year in prison due to a Russian extradition order, Kazakh authorities released Yakut punk musician and anti-war activist Aikhal Ammosov. On November 9, he announced he had arrived in Germany. 

Aikhal Ammosov, whose passport name is Igor Ivanov, was not involved in politics until suspicion arose that Russia might invade Ukraine. The musician betted with a friend that there would be a war. He won two pizzas at the time, but lost far more in the long run.

The punk band Crispy Newspaper's leader began leading anti-war protests in Yakutia. Ammosov graffitied walls with "No to War" in three languages. He put a banner "Yakut Punk Against War" on a swimming pool roof. He distributed pamphlets saying, "Get your hands dirty with paint, not blood."

The anti-colonial activist, wearing all-black attire, sunglasses, and a mask, photographed himself in front of a funerary home with the sign "The grooms have arrived" and a picture of a casket. The stunt referenced the 2007 movie Gruz 200 (Cargo 200), directed by Alexey Balabanov.

In 2022, Ammosov was charged with "discrediting the army." At the start of his trial, he posed in front of the city court of Yakutsk wearing his signature all-black outfit, raising his fist. Shortly after, he fled to Kazakhstan.

After Ammosov arrived in Kazakhstan, authorities refused to grant him refugee status. Back in Russia, authorities opened a case against Ammosov in absentia for "justifying terrorism." Since the Criminal Code of Kazakhstan includes a similar law as the Russian one against "discrediting the army," authorities in Russia filed for his extradition. In October 2022, the punk musician was detained in Almaty. 

Ammosov's letters from custody in Kazakhstan described how his health deteriorated in jail from poor nutrition. He witnessed riots and went on a hunger strike with fellow prisoners. The activist also recalled how guards abandoned prisoners during an earthquake in Almaty. Consequently, a revolt ensued, resulting in many detainees being placed in solitary confinement. Ammosov was spared that fate, thanks to other prisoners defending him.

Upon his release, Ammosov fled to Germany on a humanitarian visa, which he obtained with the assistance of human rights activists.

You Might Also Like

A Pro-War Childhood?
  • October 31, 2024

A Pro-War Childhood?

Russian children are being instilled with militant patriotism through plays, stories, cartoons, and toys.
Forced to Be Sorry
  • September 24, 2024

Forced to Be Sorry

In 2024, Russians publish public video apologies every two days.
Baikal, not Bali
  • July 10, 2024

Baikal, not Bali

The State Duma has banned Russian deputies and senators from traveling abroad without permission.
Small-Town Russia and the War
  • July 02, 2024

Small-Town Russia and the War

Sociologists spent a month living in small-town Russia to understand how Russians feel about the war in Ukraine.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

The Latchkey Murders

The Latchkey Murders

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin is back on the case in this prequel to the popular mystery Murder at the Dacha, in which a serial killer is on the loose in Khrushchev’s Moscow...
Marooned in Moscow

Marooned in Moscow

This gripping autobiography plays out against the backdrop of Russia's bloody Civil War, and was one of the first Western eyewitness accounts of life in post-revolutionary Russia. Marooned in Moscow provides a fascinating account of one woman's entry into war-torn Russia in early 1920, first-person impressions of many in the top Soviet leadership, and accounts of the author's increasingly dangerous work as a journalist and spy, to say nothing of her work on behalf of prisoners, her two arrests, and her eventual ten-month-long imprisonment, including in the infamous Lubyanka prison. It is a veritable encyclopedia of life in Russia in the early 1920s.
The Moscow Eccentric

The Moscow Eccentric

Advance reviewers are calling this new translation "a coup" and "a remarkable achievement." This rediscovered gem of a novel by one of Russia's finest writers explores some of the thorniest issues of the early twentieth century.
A Taste of Russia

A Taste of Russia

The definitive modern cookbook on Russian cuisine has been totally updated and redesigned in a 30th Anniversary Edition. Layering superbly researched recipes with informative essays on the dishes' rich historical and cultural context, A Taste of Russia includes over 200 recipes on everything from borshch to blini, from Salmon Coulibiac to Beef Stew with Rum, from Marinated Mushrooms to Walnut-honey Filled Pies. A Taste of Russia shows off the best that Russian cooking has to offer. Full of great quotes from Russian literature about Russian food and designed in a convenient wide format that stays open during use.
Maria's War: A Soldier's Autobiography

Maria's War: A Soldier's Autobiography

This astonishingly gripping autobiography by the founder of the Russian Women’s Death Battallion in World War I is an eye-opening documentary of life before, during and after the Bolshevik Revolution.
Faith & Humor: Notes from Muscovy

Faith & Humor: Notes from Muscovy

A book that dares to explore the humanity of priests and pilgrims, saints and sinners, Faith & Humor has been both a runaway bestseller in Russia and the focus of heated controversy – as often happens when a thoughtful writer takes on sacred cows. The stories, aphorisms, anecdotes, dialogues and adventures in this volume comprise an encyclopedia of modern Russian Orthodoxy, and thereby of Russian life.
A Taste of Chekhov

A Taste of Chekhov

This compact volume is an introduction to the works of Chekhov the master storyteller, via nine stories spanning the last twenty years of his life.
Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

In this comprehensive, quixotic and addictive book, Edwin Trommelen explores all facets of the Russian obsession with vodka. Peering chiefly through the lenses of history and literature, Trommelen offers up an appropriately complex, rich and bittersweet portrait, based on great respect for Russian culture.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955