I haven’t met up with my friend in over two years. I thought about her recently. Realised that despite having worked with her, and knowing her for more than 15 years, I knew very little about her husband’s home country, Azerbaijan. Our conversations usually focussed on what we have been up to, our mutual friends, her young family, and a cursory update of our respective husbands’ work and health status.

I know my friend’s husband speaks Russian and he has told me he makes a mean borscht, a Russian soup with cabbage, beef and other vegetables. I know Russia and Azerbaijan were amongst the 15 states that comprised the former USSR or the Union of Soviet Socialists Republic. I also know that there’s a community of Russians living in Malaysia. 

Whatever else I know, particularly about Russia, is what I have seen on TV and movies. More often than not, Russians are portrayed as baddies, villains and crooks. In obviously, non-Russian productions. The balance is based on what I have read, watched and heard on the various news media and searches on Google. For instance, a few years ago, there were reports on the illegal annexation of Crimea, the undeclared war in eastern Ukraine and occupation of large swaths of Georgia and Moldova’s territory[1]. And, the Novichok poisonings in Salisbury, England. Damaging reports and news coverage about Russia are aplenty. Last week’s full-scale military invasion by Russia into Ukraine, after months of escalating tensions between the two nations over two contested areas in the latter’s borders, Donetsk and Luhansk[2] has further fuelled the country’s negative image on the world stage.

My mum, with even less exposure to things and issues associated with Russia, asked me why Russians were thought of as bad people. I was curious as to how she formed this view. Her response was ‘James Bond.’ The far-reaching arm of movies! I tried to answer my mum’s question about the picture, image or perception of Russia by drawing an analogy closer to home. Our country, thank God, has always been peaceful and devoid of any real violence. But there is on-going abuse of power and grand corruption[3] that most Malaysians are cognizant of. Many of us are embarrassed by the recurring shameless and greedy behaviour amongst the powers that be. We don’t condone the malpractices. Those who point out the transgressions, rather loudly, feel the heavy hand of the Government. Should all Malaysians be tagged as corrupt and thieves? Should the general populace, who do not have the ‘high’ or ‘special’ power and authority, be considered bad because of the actions of certain elected and non-elected leaders of the country?

And then, there are leaders from some countries, with their phalanx of self-serving supporters, who cannot see any wrong in wrestling power beyond their own sovereign boundary or dividing peoples of different religion, race or colour, in order to conquer and control, or divide and rule. In these situations, it’s the people who suffer both the direct or indirect consequences of the policies and actions of the heads of states. Are these people also bad because of the path taken by their presidents and prime ministers?

Countries with economic might and political stature undeniably have more star power. Their citizens and passports are welcomed in most countries on the globe. But are all these people good? Those living under questionable regimes and those caught in the crossfires of wars want to flee their countries. They find it difficult to do so, and when they do escape, they receive less than warm receptions from the outside world. More so now due to the on-going refugee crisis. Are all these people bad? 

We form perceptions based on what we know and what we think we know. Historical and factual data are supposed to be credible references. ‘Supposed’ only because actual events and real facts can also be skewed depending on the authors. Admittedly, I am guilty of bias and sometimes tend to over generalise the behaviour, speech, attitude and gender of people from certain countries. Biases and preferences, sadly, do influence our perceptions, override reality and overlook humanity.

That said, what exactly are every day, normal people like you and me, supposed to do when economic sanctions, negative viewpoints, travel restrictions, media backlash or worse yet, physical attacks and bombs are targeted at us, our families, our friends and our homes, through no fault of ours? As observed by an intelligence and counterintelligence expert, “sanctions may not work to stop the war, as the effects of these sanctions may not necessarily be felt by the leaders who are pulling the strings, but instead by the “ordinary people of Russia[4].”

So how? What are the answers to this very real and frightening problem? Hmm…