Moving performance Russian activist moves Markus Lanz to tears
In the ZDF program "Markus Lanz", Maria Alyokhina speaks openly about her life as a Kremlin critic - two years in prison, constant surveillance, a spectacular escape. The otherwise so composed presenter fights back tears afterwards.
No time? blue News summarizes for you
- Russian activist Maria Alyokhina tells Markus Lanz about two years in prison, constant surveillance and her dramatic escape from Russia.
- As a critic of the Kremlin and member of Pussy Riot, she describes the repression she was subjected to in impressive detail.
- Her emotional accounts move the audience and visibly also presenter Markus Lanz.
A moving moment on Markus Lanz's ZDF talk show: when Pussy Riot activist Maria Alyokhina talks about the harrowing conditions in her Russian homeland, even the otherwise composed presenter struggles to hold back tears.
The 37-year-old co-founder of the notorious Pussy Riot artists' collective now lives in exile - but the shadows of the Kremlin will not let her go. She speaks openly about repression, imprisonment and constant surveillance. She spent two years in a prison camp, she says. This was followed by one and a half years with an electronic anklet - a life under constant surveillance.
Words that make a difference
But fear of Vladimir Putin? She has no such fear. "I have never looked for security," says Alyokhina resolutely. Her words resonate - not only in the studio, but also with the viewers. A TV moment that gets under your skin.
After a long pause and in a fragile voice, Lanz explained how deeply Aljochina's words had affected him. He said that he had been to St. Petersburg himself in 2018 and had met young women there who, like her, had fought for freedom and change in Russia.
Lanz is emotional
"I often ask myself what happened to the young people we interviewed back then? Who risked their lives to talk to us back then," says Lanz. "When you look at the pictures from back then, you get a sense of how incredibly brave these Russian opposition activists - including you - are."
Then the otherwise confident presenter regains his composure and continues with the text. A sequence is shown of Pussy Riot protesting against Putin's regime.
In the fight against Putin
Alyokhina made international headlines back in 2012: After a spectacular protest against President Vladimir Putin in Moscow's Cathedral of Christ the Savior, she was sentenced to two years in prison - a drastic signal from the regime to all critics.
But even after that, she refused to be silenced. In May 2022, she managed a cinematic escape from Moscow - despite house arrest and surveillance. She made her way to Lithuania via Belarus and continued her protest in exile.
