For many in the former USSR, May 9 - or Victory Day - marks the day that the Soviet Union defeated Nazi Germany’s forces during World War II. Typically feted with fireworks and parades, this year’s Victory Day may also feature a number of commuter buses decorated with portraits of ex-Soviet leader Joseph Stalin.
The concept of the “Stalinobus” ruffled feathers even before it first appeared two years ago. Human rights activists and democracy groups kicked up a fuss in the run-up to the 2010 Victory Day festivities after hearing news of the bus and did everything they could to block it. Only one “Stalinobus” got through. The vehicle made a brief debut in the city of Saint Petersburg, before it was sprayed with white paint. The whole stunt lasted barely a day.
Despite its cold reception, “Stalinobus’” organisers were not to be discouraged. The following year, the vehicle was again spotted at Victory Day celebrations, and multiple buses were seen rolling through a number of Russian cities on November 7, a date that marks both the beginning of the country’s 1917 Bolshevik Revolution and a major show of military force at Moscow’s Red Square in 1941. Although the “Stalinobus” was welcomed by a number of towns in Siberia, Russia's capital Moscow refused to allow the vehicle onto its streets.
If all goes according to plan, “Stalinobus” organisers hope to have vehicles decked-out with Stalin portraits in 40 cities in time for Victory Day this year. But, as in the past, their ambitions have been met with resistance. In addition to vehicles in major Russian cities, “Stalinobuses” have also been planned in the capitals of former Soviet states, such as Latvia and Estonia. The two countries, like other Baltic states, hold a very different view of the role the former USSR played in their liberation from Nazi control. As a result, a number of countries, including Latvia and Estonia, have banned the use of Soviet symbols.