Dogs are running amok in Bashkortostan, both literally and figuratively. On April 17, a pack of dogs attacked and killed a four-year-old boy in the Uchaly district. Video footage of a woman trying to fend off the dogs from the already lifeless body of the torn child shocked many. However, this case is far from unique — attacks on pedestrians by packs of stray dogs occur all the time. While adults often manage to defend themselves with health-related losses, children have no chance unless adults intervene in time.
On April 18, different dogs attacked another person — in Baymak, environmental activist Ildar Yumagulov, known throughout the republic for his protection of the environment against barbaric exploitation, was almost beaten to death by three unidentified persons with bats. The environmental genocide of Bashkortostan’s residents by colonial capital, covered up by Kremlin-appointed officials, is an issue that not only we write about regularly, but also Russian opposition politicians have drawn attention to. For example, Alexei Navalny, who is currently imprisoned and whose life is in danger due to his declared hunger strike in response to the lawlessness of the penal colony administration. Or Nikita Isaev, who visited the same Sibay in 2019 to support people who spoke out against environmental genocide. Let us remind you that, according to the research of Christo Grozev, Nikita Isaev was killed by the same poisoners who tried to kill Alexei Navalny and murdered Timur Kuashev. However, during his visit to Sibay, the same dogs attacked Isaev. This time they did not beat up a federal politician, but limited themselves to throwing flour at him and firing shots in the air. And such acts of intimidation have become the style of the new Moscow-appointed governor, Radiy Khabirov.
Not to mention quasi-legal repressions, such as the arrest and nine-year sentence of leading Bashkir oppositionist Ayrat Dilmukhametov, or the official ban on the leading Bashkir public organization «Bashkort». As a result, the car of opposition figure Ruslan Nurtdinov was burned, the cars of opposition activists Elmira Mukhametyanova and Liliya Chanyasheva were sprayed with paint, and the house of the leader of the banned «Bashkort» Ruslan Gabbasov was covered with discrediting propaganda leaflets. In addition, the authorities attacked the camp of the «Kushtau» defenders with attack dogs, but were forced to retreat after strong resistance.
So, back to the dogs with which we began this article. In a situation where the authorities do not solve this problem in civilized ways accepted in the modern world, such as catching homeless dogs and placing them in shelters, more and more people are suggesting that shooting them by groups of hunters could be the solution to this problem. And such an analogy may sooner or later arise with other rabid dogs whose crimes are simply not investigated. If the authorities do not put them on a leash and stop using them, people may start dealing with them themselves. After all, Bashkortostan is known for its traditions.