Updates from the Field

To wrap up our Notes from the Field series, we reached back out to our respondents for updates. Roughly two months have passed since we began this series, so we were interested to hear what has changed and what the future looks like now versus back in April. Below we have some updates from Ukraine, Georgia, Belarus, and Russia.

Ann Merrill, Kyiv, Ukraine

Ukrainian President Zelensky sits in a café with his team despite cafes remaining closed to dine-in customers.

In Ukraine, it seems to me the government is caving under pressure from the business community to return to “normal life.” The Ministry of Health set specific conditions for easing the quarantine, which were not met by Kyiv city and several oblasts, but I guess keeping the capital and rest of the country shut down just doesn’t seem to be a viable option anymore. And with almost no enforcement of quarantine measures, and no repercussions for breaking them, it’s not surprising that many Ukrainians are not taking it seriously anymore -even the president. His office posted a photo on the Office of the President’s official Telegram channel of him inside a café during a working visit to Khmelnitsky. Cafes were not yet permitted to allow customers inside, so it caused a bit of a scandal. While the number of confirmed cases in Ukraine is still relatively low compared to many other countries (25,411 as of June 4, with 742 fatalities and 11,402 recovered), the curve is not flattening and certainly not declining. Yesterday had the highest number of new confirmed cases in one day to date with 588. The unseasonably cool and rainy weather has helped keep more people inside than usual for spring, but I worry what the coming weeks will look like as the weather improves.

 

Emma Pratt, Tbilisi, Georgia

The pandemic has certainly given me some insights into my daily life, especially into my work as a teacher. Delivering my course online has made clear to me which parts of teaching I like and which I dislike. Unfortunately, face to face interaction seems to be one of the things I like most, which I hadn’t fully realized before. Student requests come across differently online than they do in person, often in a negative way. On a similar note, it seems I should focus more on email-writing in the future. Some of the online activities born out of necessity have been very effective, and I hope to integrate them into future courses, even if they don’t have an online component.

I’ve realized that though cooking is my hobby, it is also a chore. There isn’t easy access to grocery stores and restaurants and the dishes are endless! Although I have been cooking for myself and my family for years, I never understood the “double burden” so well before. There was always the option to just grab something if I was tired or out of an ingredient. Don’t be mistaken. My family has also been doing an increased amount of cooking and dishwashing at this time. We just seem to need a LOT of food and dishes.

The biggest insight, though, has been into the political situations in the US and in Georgia. As America struggles, I worry about my friends and family there. However, Georgia has remained relatively calm and we are slowly returning to normal life, with the addition of masks and lots of hand sanitizer (both of which are now easily available). This is having an effect on the way I think about my future plans, though it’s too early for anything to be certain.

Free bread for those in need in Tbilisi

The following passages were pulled from a blog essay written by Tatiana Shchyttsova discussing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on global society as well as Belarus’s response the pandemic. The essay was published in April 2020.

Tatiana Shchyttsova, Vilnius, Lithuania

The pandemic confirmed a truth already known to all: a crisis situation reveals weak spots and flaws in public systems: poorly functioning institutions, a deficit of material resources, various forms of social injustice.

The global spread of the virus has worked like a perception enhancer or a magnifying glass: it has sharpened our ethical, social, and political sensitivity, bringing about a new wave of critical hostility toward those things we already knew. That there are particularly vulnerable groups–the elderly, the critically ill, the unemployed, the homeless–who are not receiving sufficient social support. That the wealthy have privileged access to high-quality medical care. That corruption impedes the development of social institutions. That neoliberal capitalism does not facilitate social equality. That authoritarian government tends toward irrational decisions and the misuse of a crisis situation.

Liya Bushkanets, a literature professor in Kazan, Russia, honed her sewing talents during the Soviet era and now has created masks “in every size and color” for her family to wear during the pandemic.

Lyudmila Skryabina, Moscow, Russia

Lyudmila Skryabina shared her “outing schedule” for the first half of June: her building fell into Group 3 for her region and residents were permitted to go outside only three days a week: from 9 AM to 9 PM on June 2, 4, 6, 10, 12 and 14th.

Compared to many other countries, Russia has not had as many human losses in this epidemic. And that’s probably why large numbers of people outside of Moscow and the Moscow region don’t believe the virus is particularly dangerous. They argue that percentage-wise about as many people—and sometimes more—die each year from ordinary flu viruses.

In my opinion, the epidemic has not caused a collapse in Russia because quarantine measures were taken in time, the healthcare system was reoriented as the situation changed, and epidemiological controls were well-organized. This, I think, is where the habits of the Soviet-era planned economy come in handy.

Officially, unemployment stands at about 3 million people, and some estimates suggest it may rise to 6 million. Most of all the service sector—especially trade, food service, tourism—has suffered, and it won’t soon recover. Everyone I know who worked in cafes and bars has now registered for unemployment. In Moscow, civil servants have not stopped working but are still on a “distanced” regime. The plan now is to return to offices June 15, but construction and industry have already reopened.

Moscow instituted a walking schedule which residents were required to follow (although it was canceled on 9 June, 2020) and has now introduced a mobile tracking app.

 

Thank you for reading Notes from the Field, and thank you to all of our respondents for sharing their experiences during what we hope will turn out to be a once-in-a-lifetime event.

Margarita Nafpaktitis, MA in Slavic and East European Studies Class of 1994

Margarita Nafpaktitis

Where do you work and what is your current position?

I work at Stanford University Libraries as the Curator for Slavic and East European Collections (and Modern Greek).

Tell us how you got there.

I came to Stanford Libraries in 2016 after 5 years as Librarian for Slavic Studies at UCLA.

How has your CSEES MA helped you throughout your post-graduate life?

My CSEES MA was, in retrospect, the ideal preparation for what I do now. Librarians are supposed to know at least something about a lot of things, and the interdisciplinarity of my area studies degree made me a confident generalist within the larger field of Slavic, East European and Eurasian Studies. The historical, political, cultural context I gained by taking a broad range of courses made me a better scholar of literature than I would have been without it, and now, it makes me a better librarian.

What was your focus or research interest when you studied at OSU?

Early 20th-century Russian literature (prose fiction).

If you are a traveler, what is one of your favorite trips you have taken?

Recently, a 3-city collecting trip to Ukraine: Kyiv, Odesa, and Lviv.  Each city has its own distinct character and history, and they’re all wonderful cities for walking in. My job has also provided opportunities to travel to Poland (Warsaw and Wroclaw), Czechia (Prague), Germany (Frankfurt), and Russia (Moscow) for conferences and collecting.

What are your future plans?

It’s kind of hard to think about the future in these times, somehow, isn’t it…? I love my job at Stanford, helping students, researchers, and faculty with their research, along with truly splendid colleagues, and I’d love to still be working there 10, 20 years from now.

What inspires you?

I’m motivated by opportunities to help others achieve their goals. Creativity and wit in pretty much all forms are also energizing (especially in book arts, literature, photography, gastronomy, mixology, music, and sewing). Learning about the ways that other people do good in and for the world (even or especially when it’s difficult and thankless) is also inspiring and keeps me hopeful, even in uncertain and unsettling times like these.

 

New CSEES News Series: Alumni Profiles

CSEES is excited to launch a new monthly series featuring alumni profiles. The Master of Arts in Slavic and East European Studies welcomed the first cohort of students in autumn quarter 1988, who then graduated in 1990. Since that first cohort, CSEES now has over 165 alumni scattered across the globe in all sorts of different career paths, including academia, government agencies, the military, non-profit, public companies, and think tanks. Over the years, the MA program has evolved and added its first official dual degree in public affairs in 2008. Our aim with this new series is to strengthen the connections between our network of alumni. We hope that this will be a way for alumni to reconnect with each other, learn about more recent graduates, and share their work and achievements. If you would like to be featured, please email Eileen Kunkler, the assistant director, at kunkler.10@osu.edu.

To start the series, we will hear from a 1994 CSEES graduate, Margarita Nafpaktitis.

Life in a Pandemic: What Could the Future Hold, continued

In continuation of yesterday’s post about what the next six months could look like, here are some responses from Ukraine, Hungary, Georgia, and Russia.

 

Ann Merrill, Kyiv, Ukraine
Ukrainians are pretty awesome people with (unfortunately) a lot of experience dealing with disasters and difficult situations. Within the first couple of weeks, there were already numerous volunteer initiatives to help elderly and vulnerable people who are home alone during the quarantine. Many businesses are adapting to an online world (and Ukraine is, after all, one of the top IT countries in the world). I won’t speculate on what will happen, there are too many unknown and unpredictable variables. But I do know this wonderful country and the great people here are hardy, determined, and good at taking care of each other. I’m glad I am here.

 

Jessie Labov, Budapest, Hungary
I expect to see the slow but steady erasure of more civil liberties and attacks on migrants/stiffening of immigration and visa regulations in the name of preventing a second wave of COVID-19.

 

Emma Pratt, Tbilisi, Georgia
I think that we will remain on lockdown into summer. I hope that by fall the country will begin to reopen, though unfortunately many businesses will not be able to do so. I hope that the threatened food shortages have reinvigorated Georgian agriculture and the harvest will be fruitful. If the situation remains under control, fall has the potential to bring in tourists* again for the wine harvest and begin the slow economic recovery.

Lyudmila Skryabina, Moscow, Russia
I am sure that we’ll solve the problem within six months and will celebrate two Victory Days** simultaneously – WWII and the victory over COVID! I wish everyone GOOD HEALTH!!! May our world become kinder after this pandemic!

*Update: Georgia plans to open to tourists starting 1 July, 2020, but with restrictions. Read more here 

**Russia is planning to hold its Victory Day celebration on 24 June, 2020 despite having the third highest number of COVID-19 infections in the world.

<< Come back next week as we wrap up Notes from the Field with some updates from our participants!

Life in a Pandemic: What Could the Future Hold?

It’s uncertain what the long-term effects of the COVID-19 pandemic will be. Every country seems to have its own plan for reopening and adjusting to “the new normal”. We asked our participants what they think the next six months have in store for their countries. The following responses were collected in mid-April, 2020.

 

Eric Bednarski, Warsaw, Poland
Many people are hoping that by that the end of April the worst will be over and that the rate of new infections and deaths will begin to gradually fall. In May there is supposed to be a Polish presidential election that will take place through a postal ballot system. Nobody knows how this will go, or how many people will actually vote. A lot of people will certainly not take part in this election because of the pandemic situation.* I imagine there will be social distancing into the summer months, with a gradual easing of restrictions around how many people can be in shops, at events, in churches, etc. I think most people will be wearing face masks for at least the next 6 months.

Conrad Rinto, Budapest, Hungary
Much like the rest of the world, it is expected that Hungary will weigh the risk of easing COVID-19 restrictions with medical capabilities and capacities. The gradual reopening of the economy (sectors and services) will be dependent on Hungary’s ability to test for the virus, limit its spread, and have essential medical space and equipment in place to treat COVID patients.

 

Jesse Smeal, Rome, Italy
It’s tough to tell as things are changing on a daily basis. It seems as though social distancing and wearing masks will become a part of our daily life for quite some time.

 

Adela Muchova, Prague, Czechia
This is rather unclear in many ways. The government is sending different signals and citizens are confused about possible loosening of quarantine measures. Czech Republic is one of the few countries that closed its borders not only from the outside, but also from the inside. This travel restriction was not seen only as a safety precaution, it also resembles the Cold War period when people were unable to exercise their basic human right to the freedom of movement. Some people fear this restriction can negatively affect a major value of European Union, the right to travel freely within Schengen countries. This causes unease within the public, so various initiatives challenge the government for transparent explanation and justification.

 

*Update: the 2020 Polish elections went ahead as planned, but resulted in a 0% voter turnout. Read more here

<< Check back tomorrow for more responses from Ukraine, Hungary, Georgia, and Russia!

Opening Up

Many US states began slowly reopening in May while others extended their stay-at-home orders indefinitely. The following responses to the question “do you see any signs of reopening the economy? Do you think that’s a smart idea?” were collected in early April, 2020.

 

Jessie Labov, Budapest, Hungary
No, I don’t. We will probably stay in semi-lockdown for a prophylactically long period of time. And yes, that does seem like a smart move.

 

Ann Merrill, Kyiv, Ukraine
Some parts of the government talk about it, but other parts (MinHealth) insist it is much too early. I understand the desperate need for people to have income, but Ukraine could be devastated if the virus spreads significantly here. I do not envy those who have to make the very difficult decisions on how to handle this situation.

 

Emma Pratt, Tbilisi, Georgia
Georgia has been successful in delaying the peak, but that means that reopening the economy is still a long way away. I agree that keeping most things closed is the right decision, but the longer it lasts, the more painful it will be. Many people have lost their jobs already and fear they will go hungry. One thing that gives me some hope for the economy is the creative pivots I have seen many small businesses make: chacha distillers making hand sanitizer, wineries hosting online tastings, pub quizzes migrating online with a “virtual tip jar” for the staff of the bar that used to host, etc.

 

Jesse Smeal, Rome, Italy
Like many countries, Italy has slowly reopened. Some industries and factories started to reopen in April and some small business such as bookstores, stationary stores, and children’s clothing stores. In May, more have followed.

 

Lyudmila Skryabina, Moscow, Russia
In Russia the peak of the pandemic is just being reached, in particular in the Moscow area, according to the government and it’s conceivable that the economic situation will continue to get objectively worse, despite the unprecedented supportive measures on the part of the government. April and May largely became state mandated vacations but in June we will see how things stabilize or what further actions are taken.

 

<<Return next week, June 22nd, to read our participants’ predictions for the futures of their countries.

The Consequences of a Pandemic, continued

To continue yesterday’s discussion of political and economic flashpoints, here are three more responses from Hungary, Russia, and Georgia.

 

Jessie Labov, Budapest, Hungary
Well, the government has declared emergency, absolutist powers with no expiration date. Extendable indefinitely, at their discretion. Elections can be postponed, the entire system of government can be reshaped according to their liking, etc. So far there has not been any great abuse of these powers, but we are all just waiting to see what happens next. More details here.

 

Lyudmila Skryabina, Moscow, Russia
The global economic crisis has already begun. I don’t dare make political predictions. But clearly the world will change.

 

Emma Pratt, Tbilisi, Georgia
In terms of the virus itself, Easter (April 19) was a flashpoint, and we saw the medical results two weeks from then. This is an election year for Georgia, so the stakes are high for Georgian Dream. Their initial response led to increasing popularity, or at least grudging respect. Especially in the early days, the opposition was on board with the government’s response. Last summer’s protests were starting to calm down with a deal having been made between the government and the opposition regarding parliamentary elections, but the state of emergency endangers it. The recent arrest of opposition leader Okruashvili in connection with the June protests is also causing discontent. Further legal action towards the opposition would constitute a political flashpoint. The opposition’s support for the government response is already starting to weaken—the libertarian “Girchi” movement filed a lawsuit claiming the lockdown is illegal.

 

<< Stay tuned for next week’s post about reopening countries and economies!

The Consequences of a Pandemic

As tensions rise across the United States, people continue to be impacted by lockdowns and the spread of COVID-19. We asked our participants if they saw any political or economic flashpoints in their countries as a result of the pandemic.

 

Jesse Smeal, Rome, Italy
None had really developed by early April. As the crisis goes on many have suffered economically. I personally had to close both of my shops due to lack of revenue and government support.

Ann Merrill, Kyiv, Ukraine
Tens of thousands of Ukrainians lost their jobs or are on furlough. However, businesses that were allowed to stay open, like grocery stores and delivery services, were hiring. The Ministry of Economy estimates that most Ukrainians can survive only one month without income, and we are now beyond that point. The government is working to enact support programs to help citizens and businesses.

Tatiana Shchytssova, Vilnius, Lithuania
Yes, in Belarus there are many inspiring examples of civic activity. Top-down initiatives aim mostly at helping doctors (providing them with masks etc.)

Adela Muchova, Prague, Czechia
Major economic and political impacts seem to be rather high, strict prevention measures, such as closing most businesses, affected most of the population. There were also some attempts to misuse the crisis situation for the government to obtain more power (like in Hungary and Poland). These attempts were fortunately suppressed by opposition, media, and active citizens´ initiatives (so the situation is different from that of Hungary and Poland at the moment). In addition, some politicians misused the situation to mount unjustified criticism of the European Union. For instance, ministries of public health are independent from the EU, so their unpreparedness in terms of medical tools is solely the responsibility of national governing bodies. All this has been accelerated by the disinformation campaigns of Russian fake-news networks.

 

<<Come back tomorrow for another post with answers from Hungary, Russia, and Georgia!

Vulnerable Populations: Migrant Communities in Bosnia and Herzegovina

To continue this week’s theme of groups most vulnerable to the COVID-19 crisis, we have a special report about the issues migrants are facing in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The following post was written by Kathryn Metz.

In light of COVID-19, the situation for migrants in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) has been a restriction of their already limited freedom of movement. In March, the government of the Federation of BiH declared a state of disaster in the country and the state is using their expanded emergency powers to enforce transferring all migrants to transit centers where they are prohibited from leaving.

On April 17, the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina issued an order that restricts the movement of migrants and mandates that all must be housed in temporary reception centers. Migrants found outside of the centers are being collected and transported to the camps in order to limit the spread of COVID-19.

As such, the police are enforcing forced removals from all accommodations outside of the official transit centers. Prior to the outbreak of the epidemic, migrants found accommodation in privately run apartments and hotels, as well as abandoned buildings. Security guards at the reception centers prohibit anyone from leaving the camps and venturing into neighboring villages and cities. A riot erupted on April 12 at the Blažuj reception center outside of Sarajevo which hosts over 2,000 migrants. Hundreds were involved in the fighting, leaving 20 people hospitalized.

An activist from No Name Kitchen, which has been active along the Balkan route since 2016, reported that while in theory the BiH government is limiting movement, there are still people living outside official reception centers and attempting to cross the border into Croatia and transit towards Northern Europe.

Reception centers in Bosnia have been overcrowded for months and forcing more people into the centers further limits the resources available to people inside them. A new temporary reception center called Lipa has been established 25 kilometers from the border city of Bihać in Una Sana Kanton (USK). The authorities in USK are using the outbreak of COVID-19 as a justification for transferring thousands of migrants to this newly established tent settlement, where migrants and activists fear there will not be adequate access to clean water, heat and electricity.

Velika Kladuša is another border city in USK that has hosted thousands of migrants since 2018, in an effort of local solidarity, the bakery is donating bread and burek to No Name Kitchen and activists then distribute food to migrants living outside of temporary reception centers.

<<Tune in for the next installment of Notes from the Field on June 8th when our participants will be discussing the possible consequences of this virus.

Who is Most Vulnerable in a Crisis?

This week we asked our participants about vulnerability. What groups are being most impacted physically, financially, etc. by COVID-19?

 

Jesse Smeal, Rome, Italy

I believe the most vulnerable groups are the elderly, homeless, and small/independent business owners. The elderly because they are extremely susceptible to the virus and have minimal support and help due to social distancing and movement restrictions. The homeless because they are more exposed to the virus and have little help available. Small business owners because they do not fall into any category to receive government help and they rely solely on the revenue from their business. They are mostly closed and have zero revenue.

Lyudmila Skryabina, Moscow, Russia

As far as I know, unlike in Europe where the most vulnerable have been the elderly, in Russia more people between the ages of 18-45 have been infected.

Emma Pratt, Tbilisi, Georgia

The ethnic minority communities were hit particularly hard early on. The first community cluster occurred in the Marneuli-Bolnisi area, where a large portion of the population are Armenian and Azeri. The language barrier may have made things worse, since locals don’t receive information from the Georgian media, which has generally been giving accurate and helpful information. Since then, the government’s website  has been translated into Azeri, Armenian, Abkhaz, and Ossetian. South Ossetia and Abkhazia are huge question marks in their handling of the situation, which leaves many people vulnerable. The homeless population is also particularly at risk.

Ann Merrill, Kyiv, Ukraine

The Ministry of Health posts updates and has a press briefing every day, so we know the stats quite well. As of early April, 54% of those infected are women and 49% men, which seems to be different from the trends in other countries where men have higher rates of infection. MinHealth also reports that the majority of people who have died had concomitant illnesses (heart disease, diabetes, etc). The initial infections were in Ukrainians who had returned from working in Italy and those with whom they had contact. Most recently, it has been sweeping through the monks at the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra, who refused to follow any quarantine practices until this week.

Tatiana Shchytssova, Vilnius, Lithuania

The most vulnerable are doctors and teachers. Actually, all groups that must continue working in close contact or large groups are vulnerable.

<<Check back tomorrow for a special post about the situation migrants are facing in Bosnia and Herzegovina during the COVID-19 pandemic.