Public apology of young woman highlights absurdity of apology practice in Chechnya

When commenting on an apology of a young woman from Grozny for her words about men, Svetlana Gannushkina, the chair of the “Civic Assistance” Committee*, points out that public apologies have become a kind of game and got out of control of the authorities. Forcing women to apologize to strange men contradicts the Vainakh tradition, says Saida Sirazhudinova, the president of the Centre for Research on Global Issues of the Present and Regional Problems “Caucasus. World. Development”.

The “Caucasian Knot” has reported that a video with insults against men who did not help young women in Grozny to carry heavy boxes caused a negative reaction among Instagram users. Several hours later, the author of the video apologized for her words about the men and said that she had received threats.

The use of obscene language could really offend men, but perhaps the young woman herself did not realize the unsuitability of those expressions for public space, Svetlana Gannushkina believes.

“The trend of public accusations is depreciating. It’s one thing when everyone apologizes to Ramzan Kadyrov. And here, one wanted and demanded an apology, and another who wanted then apologized. This destroys the entire ‘apologizing’ system,” the human rights defender notes.

Saida Sirazhudinova, the president of the Centre for Research on Global Issues of the Present and Regional Problems “Caucasus. World. Development”, points out that the young woman’s statements in public space were unacceptable. “Although what she said is essentially true. Women traditionally carry weights, but this has a negative impact on their health,” Saida Sirazhudinova added.

The expressions that the young woman used in her speech indicate that either she was agitated, or she fell under the influence of the media and social media, Saida Sirazhudinova believes.

*The organization has been put by the Russian Ministry of Justice on the register of NCOs performing the functions of a foreign agent.