President Vladimir Putin sent a mixed message to Russia's women to mark International Women's Day, lauding their contribution in the war against Ukraine while emphasizing that the most important duty for women is the "relentless care of children."
In a message to mark the holiday on March 8, Putin said he signed a decree on granting clemency to 52 women imprisoned for various crimes, most of whom had underage children, were pregnant, or whose relatives are taking part in the war in Ukraine. The Defense Ministry estimates some 30,000 women are involved in the armed forces.
While he paid special tribute to the women who are "performing combat tasks" in Ukraine, Putin, who has made family values a major element of his campaign for reelection in a March 15-17 vote, said in a video statement that having children is women's "preordination."
"You, dear women, are capable of changing the world with your beauty, wisdom, and generosity of spirit, but mostly thanks to your greatest gift the nature gave you -- giving birth to children. Motherhood is an amazing preordination of women," Putin said in the video statement.
Russian officials have focused on the demographic situation for years, with the birthrate falling since 2014 -- it currently sits at its lowest level since 1999 -- often raising the decrease at government sessions and during parliamentary debate. Many lawmakers have tried to initiate laws restricting abortions and access to contraceptives to spur population growth.
Meanwhile, groups of wives of mobilized soldiers have staged protests outside the Kremlin in recent weeks to call for the return of their husbands from the front lines.
SEE ALSO: 'A Group Without Leaders': Disgruntled Families Of Mobilized Russians Complicate Putin's Plan For Smooth ReelectionAlso on March 8, police in the Urals city of Yekaterinburg disrupted a rally planned by feminist organizations in a park designated for public gatherings, known locally as Hyde Park.
Up to 100 persons have a right to hold pickets and rallies in such places without preliminary authorization from local authorities as long as they inform them beforehand.
Shortly before the beginning of the rally, police sealed off the park, saying a "suspicious item" was discovered on the grounds.
The activists said they will continue to stand "against women's political rightlessness, domestic violence, forced reproduction, and prostitution."
Putin did not mention domestic violence in his message, which feminist groups in Russia say accounted for 61 percent of all women killed in 2018.
Bills to prevent domestic violence have been proposed in parliament’s lower chamber, the State Duma, more than 40 times in recent years, but none of them were approved.
In 2017, battering was decriminalized in Russia and domestic violence became an administrative offense that envisions fines and days in jail as a punishment.
The Kremlin's tight grip on politics, media, law enforcement, and other levers means Putin, who has ruled Russia as president or prime minister since 1999, appears certain to win the election barring a very big, unexpected development.