We're all in the same train

More than a week has passed since the Nevsky Express wreckage claiming thirty

people dead and over a hundred injured. Not to mention an immeasurable number
losing the scarce remains of their trust in the government's ability to provide safety

for its people.

What exactly has happened? Who is to blame for it? And most importantly, how to ensure that

nothing of the kind will ever happen again?

Media coverage

Journalists presented completely different versions of the crash. If one compares an angle, tone

and even wording of various articles and news bulletins on the subject, one probably wouldn't

believe that they all cover the same event. The government TV channel "Vesti" for instance

hailed the accident as terrorist attack based on the evidence by the train driver who claimed to

have heard the sound of explosion exactly before the accident. The opposition radio station

"Svoboda" sticks to the version of an accident caused by the lamentable condition of the Russian

railway.

Opinions of experts

The evidence found at the place of the crash is contradictory. On the one hand, seven

kilogrammes of trotyl and a two-metre-deep funnel make a terrorist attack a likely version.

Vladimir Yakunin, the head of the Russian Railways Company (RZD), compared this Nevsky

Express accident to the one that had taken place in August 2007 and immediately declared it a

terrorist attack. However, Evgeny Kulikov, the leader of the Trade Union of Russian Railway

workers, doesn't agree. According to him, the wreckage of the 60-tonne-train would inevitably

cause a deep funnel in the ground near the railway. He is also wondering why it should be three

rear carriages that derailed if according to the driver explosion occurred at the front of the train.

People's reactions

But the most heated discussions take place in the Russian blogosphere. Relatively free from the

government control or censorship, users express a multitude of opinions. You can come across

any point of view here. From a passionate attack on restless Islamist terrorists to a bitter critique

of the Russian Railways management to heart-felt condolences to the families of the victims to

hateful comments about the government's involvement in organising the explosion to scare

people and to force them into supporting the "stable and secure" current regime.

Whatever happened to the Nevsky Express, we can only guess and pray. Accidents as well as

terrorist attacks occur in many countries, it is no longer a flat-earth news. But what is sad and

frightening is the fact that in a similar situation citizens of other states would pounce upon

Al-Qaeda or another terrorist organisation and Russians wouldn't even know who to blame. An

increasing number of people would turn an accusing finger to their own government.

But hush! They would do it very-very cautiously. Who knows how many fast trains will never

reach their destination...