Anime festival disrupted in Makhachkala after threats to organizers

The anime festival, which was to be held at the Avar Theatre in Makhachkala, was disrupted. Its organizer Saida Tuchalova had been kept at a police station for more than three hours. According to journalist Svetlana Anokhina, the directorate of the Avar Theatre and the organizers were bombarded with threats.

The festival was disrupted because of complaints filed to the director of the Avar Theatre and the discontent expressed in social networks. In particular, Dagestani showman Eldar Iraziev wrote on his Instagram page about "debauchery in Dagestan, after which a festival of gays and transvestites could be expected," the RIA "Derbent" reports.

"Children prepared for the festival for several months, and all of them are extremely disappointed with such a turn of events," Vladlena Besarab wrote on Facebook.

"This is a country for everyone, and attacks on people who want to live in a secular way can and should be equated to extremism," added Anna Zayidova.

The "AniDag" festival held in September 2017 included master classes on hieroglyphics and tea ceremony, and activists showed dance and vocal numbers and participated in contests for the best picture, image, and fan fic, the "My Dagestan" reports.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that in Dagestan, performances of well-known Russian pop stars were repeatedly cancelled because of threats. Earlier, concerts of Egor Kreed and rapper Doni had been cancelled. Well-known athletes and Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov joined the debates in social networks.