Russia then and now

Times do change. After college I received the surprise of my life when I received the Thomson Award for Journalism then owned by Lord Thomson who owned the London Sunday Times. I could not believe it because of the many applicants from less obscure countries. The courses were to be held in Cardiff, Wales.

But we would get a chance to see how the London Sunday Times worked.

More interesting to me then was the opportunity to travel to Eastern Europe, that part of the world where new things were happening, propelled as it were by an ideology different from my country.

It meant an opportunity to travel to the countries surrounding Russia, then known as the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. But how was it to be done? To my dismay my Filipino passport clearly said “not allowed for travel to the USSR.”

It was May by then and I looked forward to spring weather as it was in the rest of Europe. I wore flats and a thin coat thinking this was enough.

There were friends in the course from Australia, Japan and African countries who told me that should be enough. How wrong they were!

When the course was finished we were invited by different countries. The countries that invited me were Israel and West then only known as (West) Germany.

But I was determined to go to Moscow, then St. Petersburg and attempt to ride the train on the Transiberian Railway. At the Russian embassy I argued my case and the lack of relations between our countries, saying that a passport was a privilege to be called upon for help from one’s country in case of difficulty or tragedy. The Russian consul was amused when I told him that I would waive that privilege.

He must have been amazed why this small wisp of a girl should be challenging the rational behind passport and after much prodding and pleading, he agreed to issue me a visa separated from my Philippine passport. Travel was arranged by Thomas Cook through Poland and arrived in Moscow 24 hours later from Checkpoint Charlie, the demarcation line between East and West Berlin. Friends coaxed me not to lose the opportunity to visit the Bertold Brecht which was just immediately behind the border.

Thinking it was going to be an ordinary train journey as it was in the West I hopped in with only my meager clothes and nothing else. I asked in vain to put me in a coach near the train’s restaurant but was dismayed when told there was none. Luckily my co-passengers in the coach speaking in sign language invited me to share their meal of bread and caviar. Soon I was at my designated hotel – the Interpol. It had cavernous rooms and I could not see another soul in sight. The bathroom with a huge bathtub must have had glorious fittings but were gone. And worse I waited for luggage but none appeared – it was lost somewhere between Berlin and Moscow and no matter how they described it all they needed was to give its wait.

It was hopeless. More disaster was to come. It was a delightful summer day -May 1st. They gave me seats close to the center stage with Premier Krushchev passionately arguing for the Marxist-Leninist form of government, but all I could think of was my frozen feet and the cold wind blowing across my face. Directly in front of me were huge portraits and Lenin and Marx as high as the building they were pasted on.

Having narrated my experience of the journey from West Berlin to Moscow did not change my mind at all about the promise of a better future for ideologues seeking a better life for the poor.

Now, Philippines and Russia are friends and in pursuit of President Duterte’s policy of being friends with all. The two countries are set to seal several bilateral agreements. Our President and President Putin are working out how best to work for better relations.

President Duterte and President Vladimir Putin will witness the exchange of several bilateral agreements that cover cooperation on culture, health, and basic research.

President Duterte also visited the cities of Sochi and Moscow.

In Sochi, President Duterte and President Putin along with other leaders spoke during the plenary session of the Valdai Forum on Oct. 3, on the theme “The world order seen from the East.”

The forum is organized by the Valdai Discussion Club, one of Russia’s prominent and respected think tanks and discussion groups. Top Russian and international officials, as well as policymakers, academics, and journalists gather at the annual Valdai Forum.

Part of the President’s itinerary in Moscow will be his attendance to the Philippines-Russia Business Forum aimed at promoting the trade and investment opportunities between the Philippines and Russia. The forum serves as a venue for networking between Russian and Filipino businessmen.

I would also include words from Jose Dalisay Jr. which is less known to many Filipinos.

“For over three decades – from the late 1930s to the early 1970s – the Lava brothers exerted a seminal influence on the Philippine Left.

Three of the six brothers served as general secretaries of the Communist Party, demonstrating the efficacy of the old Filipino mix of blood and politics – even, and interestingly, in the context of a Marxist revolutionary movement.” This excerpt from a new and forthcoming biography of the Lavas traces the development of the family’s intellectual traditions and follows each brother’s life as person and partisan. This is an important intellectual legacy that we must cherish.

The Lava brothers were intellectuals and ideologues and in a sense prepared us for Russia now.