00:04, 14 November 2015

Polina Zherebtsova refuses to write books about war in Chechnya

On November 13, the Sakharov Centre in Moscow hosted a presentation of the book "A thin silver thread" by Polina Zherebtsova. The writer herself took part in the event via Skype.

Polina Zherebtsova had survived the two Chechen Wars, but was forced to leave Russia in peacetime. In 2013, because of received threats after the publication of her first book, she emigrated to Finland, where she lives now.

"The truth about the war crimes in Chechnya, described in the book, was such a threat that Polina Zherebtsova was forced to emigrate to Finland," Stanislav Bozhko, the master of the event, told the audience.

Polina Zherebtsova appeared on the screen and welcomed everybody who came to the presentation. "I live in Finland, because I'm a political refugee. My book contains 33 artistic stories having documentary bases. The book is about the people whom I saw; and for me it's important that they remain 'alive' at least in my book. I am eager to tell on what I had experienced when I was a child," said Zherebtsova.

Alexander Bozhko asked the author of short stories about the sources of the great optimism present in her book. "At war everything happens – love, friendship, and a lot more," said the author. According to her story, she will never again deepen into the military topic of Chechen Wars, narrated in her three books. "I'd like to move away from the war; you need to show people the difference between the hell and the life," said the writer.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.

Source: CK correspondent