Mar 30: Masha, "Letter to my father"
The story of Alexei Moskalev and his daughter Masha, who drew a picture and dared to write: "No to War" & "Glory to Ukraine"
Masha Maskaleva, Letter to my father…
This is the story of Alexei Moskalev, a single father, and his daughter Masha.
Alexei Moskalev, and his daughter Masha Moskaleva, came to the attention of local law enforcement back in April in the town of Yefremov, south of Moscow, when Moskaleva drew an anti-war painting in her sixth-grade art class.
The painting featured a Ukrainian flag and a Russian flag with the phrases “No to war” and “Glory to Ukraine” written on it, as well as a woman shielding her child from Russian missiles. Moskaleva’s art teacher flagged her painting to the school principal, who reported the incident to the authorities.
Days later, Moskalev was charged with “discrediting” the Russian military for an anti-war comment he left on the Russian social media platform Odnoklassniki, OVD-Info reported. His daughter was visited at school by Federal Security Service (FSB) officers, according to OVD-Info.
In December, the authorities opened a criminal case against Moskalev, accusing him of repeated violations of wartime censorship laws that criminalize “discrediting” the Russian military — charges that are now punishable by up to three years in jail.
Moskalev and his daughter left Yefremov after their house was searched and Moskalev was violently interrogated by security forces. Following his arrest in March, Moskalev was taken to the Yefremov Investigative Committee headquarters, OVD-Info reported, citing a local volunteer.
His daughter was taken to a foster care facility in Yefremov overnight, though as Moskalev was placed under house arrest, child protection services are due to return Moskalev’s daughter to her father on Friday, according to OVD-Info.
Russian lawmakers banned statements that "discredit" the military or spread "false information" about the armed forces shortly after the country invaded Ukraine in February 2022. The laws have subsequently been used to silence protest and to punish anti-war sentiment across the country, with hundreds of people already being prosecuted.
On March 28, the court announced the verdict in the case against Mokalev but he wasn’t there because he had fled house arrest. Police in Minsk have apprehended Moskalev. Journalists at SOTA Project reported that Belarusian police likely managed to locate Moskalev by tracking his mobile phone to the apartment where he was hiding.
Lawyer Dmitry Zakhvatov, who kept in touch with Aleksey Moskalev, told Dozhd in an interview how, presumably, his detention took place:
“According to indirect data, the apartment where he was was raided, the apartment was destroyed, he was pulled out, taken away in an unknown direction. According to indirect information, it was the KGB of Belarus, and at the moment we have no connection with Alexei.”
Alexei’s daughter, Masha, written a letter to her father:
“Daddy, hello, I really ask you not to get sick and not to worry. Everything is fine with me, I love you very much and know that you are not to blame for anything, I am always for you and everything you do is right.
I love you very much, thank you for everything you do for me. When you feel bad or you worry, I get sick and feel very bad. I believe that everything will be fine and we will be together. Hope for the best and love you very much.
Daddy, you know, as one woman wrote to me, you need to believe, hope and love, becuase only the one who knows how to believe, hope and love wins.
Know that we will win, that victory will be ours, no matter what happens, we are together, we are a team, you are the best. YOu are my dad, the smartest, most beautiful, best dad in the world. Know- there is no better than you.
Please, just don’t give up. Believe, hope, and love.
One day we will sit down at the table and we will remember it all. I love you, I hope not, I know that you will not give up, you are strong, we are strong, we can, and I will pray for you and for us, dad.
I’m proud. Yes, dad, I can say that I’m proud of my father. Proud, smart, handsome, stubborn and who loves his daughter so much.
When we finally meet, I’ll give you a big nice present. Daddy, I don’t want to upset you, but I understood the bitter truth better than the sweet lie. But nothing, we’ll meet and I’ll tell you everything.
Here is a sign (drawn by Masha Pacific) means an anti-war sign, I will give this pendant to you as the braves person in the world!
Love you, you are a hero.
My hero.
