Russian news outlet Rise has posted Sergey Lukyanenko’s reaction to shocking statements RT presenter Anton Krasovsky made earlier this month while the sff author was being interviewed on his program. (See “During Lukianenko’s Appearance on Russia’s RT, Presenter Calls for Drowning Ukrainian Children”.)
On the air, after Lukyanenko said that when he was 12 years old he came to Ukraine, and even then his peers told him that “Ukraine was occupied by Muscovites,” Krasovsky said “They should have been drowned in the Tysyna (river). Just drown those children, drown them.” Alternatively, he said, they could be shoved into huts and burned. Lukyanenko merely replied, “In Russia [they] traditionally used rods. They are better than the river.”
However, Sergey Lukyanenko, told the Russian news outlet Rise on October 23:
“I immediately expressed my opinion on this matter. Anton spoke, of course, very provocatively. I understand that this is such a journalistic technique. But it seems to me that such statements should not be allowed even within the framework of a provocative statement. Let it be on his conscience.”
(“Писатель Лукьяненко предположил, что призыв Красовского топить украинских детей был «журналистским приёмом” — “The writer Lukyanenko suggested that Krasovsky’s call to drown Ukrainian children was ‘a journalistic technique’”.)
Krasovsky was suspended by RT for his statements. However, The Daily Beast’s Julia Davis says RT’s editor-in-chief already is laying the groundwork for his return (“RT Boss Margarita Simonyan Hints She’ll Reinstate Host Anton Krasovsky, Who Suggested Drowning Ukrainian Kids”.)
Lukyanenko is a guest of honor of the 2023 Chengdu Worldcon.
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That’s a very weak response from Lukyanenko
It helps to have a reliable exit strategy, and no family, when critiquing the tools of the fascist governments in the likes of Russia and the PRC.
@Camestros Felapton
I don’t think that it is a weak response, it is just a comment that means nothing from a person whose previous statements are no less egregious, dated back to 2004 Orange revolution in Kyiv. And not only about Ukraine and Ukrainians, but e.g. about Geogrians as well (and maybe others, I don’t follow him closely)
Chengdu could choose Vox Day as a Guest of Honor and it would be less offensive than Lukyanenko.
Chengdu having that fascist bigot as a guest tells you all you need to know about how ‘welcoming’ they really are.
#BoycottChengdu2023
If anyone is interested, Mr L’s earlier exercise in frothing, after his Czech publisher stated they won’t reprint his books and proceeds from sales of the existing stock would go to #supportUkraine, is https://dailystorm.ru/kultura/sergey-lukyanenko-esli-nasha-elita-bezhit-iz-strany-znachit-ona-ne-nasha (Russian of course except for the domain name, but machine translation is pretty good these days).
Also, for whatever reason this is sourced only from the almost-daily-updated News section of the “the writer’s official website”. The news item, unlinked thence, is https://pdmnews.ru/28706/ (but it also consists of the same brief paragraph; the “news outlet” seems to be based on Telegram soundbites).
Proving himself to be willing dig an even deeper grave fir himself was his latest words: “There is no such country as Ukraine, and there shall never be. Either it will be a part of Russia, or else a Polish protectorate.”
Polish protectorate? WTF?
He, as many other russians lives in 19th century mindset or even earlier, so he is sure that every country wants to grab everything around it. When the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (PLC) existed, a large part of Ukrainian lands was under PLC. Other parts were under Ottomans but he’ll never say about Turkish protectorate because these parts included Crimea and under the current russian propaganda it has always been part of russia.
The idea of Poland wanting “their part” of Ukraine is present sometimes even among formally liberal russian SF authors – in 2019 alt-history novel ?????? ?????? (Corvus Corax) of recently deceased ????? ???????? (who was quite active in russian SFF fandom with multiple mystifications and mockumentaries), the protagonists foil a plot to split Ukraine between russia and Poland in line with how Poland was split in 1939 by Stalin and Hitler (in this alt-history no audio recording devices were invented and birds are taught to ‘record’ and and old raven is stolen, one that recorded Molotov-Ribbentrop pact)
p.s. it seems the site doesn’t show Cyrillic correctly, ??? are Cyrillic text
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