The Fan Fest will be placed right next to the Moscow State University. Unfortunately, there’s no point denying that – the construction is well underway, the territory is fenced, more plans are published and to be realised. Moving the Fan Zone to another location – that we fought for – is now almost impossible.
Despite the outcome, we do not believe we lost this campaign. We have been able to enunciate, in public space, the opinion of a large part of the MSU community, bringing it to the administration of the University and officials at various levels, escalating the information about internal and external problems of the university that usually was hidden from the public eye. During the year, a large number of people were fighting for the relocation of the fan zone: students, alumni, and professors stood up for the interests of the University, openly disobeyed treacherous managers and their decisions.
From the beginning, we have been facing an aggressive response from the University administration and city authorities: the blockade of the 9th floor to let the Rector play “Hide-and-seek” with students, many refusals on public events organization, illegal detentions during the leaflets’ handouts, fake reconstructions and general cleanings, police buses on the territory of MSU. And, of course, a gross, outrageous pressure on campaign activists organized by the MSU administration, which is likely to continue, and which we will write more about.
WHAT NOW?
We continue to believe that the fan zone on the Sparrow Hills harms the University and the environment around it – we have not been convinced by fake promises and pseudo-compromises. In the current situation, when the relocation can only happen by a miracle, we have a simple but very important duty: to closely monitor the entire process of construction and works for the fan zone, detect violations, monitor all shady activities of officials and contractors.
And we ask you to do that with us: follow the fan zone activities, take photos and videos of everything that violates the laws or promises given to us by the MSU administration, Deputy Prime-Minister Arkady Dvorkovich and city officials. These records later will help us to assemble the full picture of the consequences of the fan zone, which will be an excellent illustration argument in the fight against future attempts to host events like this on our campus. We do not surrender.
#noFanFestMSU
PS Photo: walking tour on Sparrow Hills as a part of a protest of students, employees and alumni against the fan zone near MSU on 22nd of May. ‘Arkadiy Kots’ music band attended and supported the Festival
