Political analyst Stanislav Belkovsky, listed in Russia as a foreign agent, has reflected on how part of the emigration perceives street protests. According to him, many compatriots abroad who sincerely consider themselves opponents of Putin actually fear popular uprisings more than authoritarian rule.
He backed up his point with a quote attributed to Chulpan Khamatova:
“Better North Korea than revolution.”
In Belkovsky's assessment, the very idea that people might take to the streets to defend their rights “frightens them more than any totalitarian concentration camp.” He also claimed that in their view, any popular unrest is orchestrated by some “sinister puppet master” — in his phrasing, “Rothschild / Soros / the Main Directorate of the General Staff.”
Asked whether such emigrants are against Putin, Belkovsky said that as a specific ruler they may not accept him, but as a symbol of a certain mindset they are, in his opinion, on his side. “They just want a good dictator instead of a bad one,” he wrote.
The same post cites journalist Oleg Kashin on why fear of disorder hinders protests in Russia and helps Putin hold on to power. Kashin spoke of an “anti-revolutionary and anti-pogrom immunity” that he calls characteristic of the post-Soviet space.
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