Russia 2018: 6 controversial events that took place in Russia while we were all distracted by the World Cup

The World Cup is the biggest news event in Russia these days, but apart from the sporting titles, what else is happening in that country? Here are six stories that you possibly missed.

On June 16, while the Russians were still celebrating the 5-0 thrashing against Saudi Arabia, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev sent a bill to parliament proposing changes in the retirement age. Under this rule, Russian men will have to work five more years, until 65, while women, who now retire at 55, will have to work until they are 63.

The government says that these changes will be implemented gradually and that they are needed to relieve pressure on the economy.

But since the life expectancy of Russian men is barely over 65, many wonder if they will live long enough to enjoy their pension.

The start of the World Cup also coincided with a government proposal to increase the value added tax (VAT) to 20%, effective January 2019.

The measure is designed to generate more income, but consumers fear that inflation may increase and prices increase.

The 10% tax that is currently charged on basic food products, medicines and children's items will remain the same.

Defenders of Oleg Sentsov, a Ukrainian film director who is on a hunger strike in a Russian prison, have expressed growing concern about his health.

Sentsov, an opponent of the annexation of Crimea by Russia in 2014, is serving a 20-year sentence, accused of planning the destruction of a Lenin monument.

On May 14, Sentsov began the strike to demand the release of all Ukrainian political prisoners in Russia.

In the host cities of the World Cup matches, protests are prohibited during the days of the tournament, but on Tuesday, June 26, a group of activists put a replica of the crown with barbed wire and slogans on a popular street in Moscow, to draw attention to the situation of Sentsov.

The police withdrew the cup, not before several soccer fans, oblivious to the message, took selfies with what they thought was a tribute to the World Cup.

A veteran historian and activist who had been acquitted of child pornography charges in April has been arrested again.

Yuri Dmitriev, a member of the human rights organization, Memorial, has spent almost 30 years locating mass graves of people who were executed during the Stalin period.

On June 14, the supreme court of Karelia, his native region, annulled the acquittal and Dmitriev now faces up to 20 years in prison accused of new charges.

Its defenders say that Dmitriev's case is motivated by political issues, due to his work exposing the truth about hundreds of thousands of people killed during the Stalin repression.

Russia's interior minister ordered the police to withhold bad news during the World Cup and report only the successful results of investigations and operations, Reuters reports.

The order establishes July 25 as the deadline for a ban on what is normally a usual procedure by the Russian police.

According to the Russian news portal Meduza, there has been a radical drop in the number of police reports that have been issued to the media: of 1,438 reports sent between June 1 and June 6, only 71 were reported among the 7 and on June 13.

Opposition activist Alexei Navalny was released from his most recent detention on the same day the World Cup began. Navalny had spent 30 days in prison for participating in an unauthorized protest.

A few days later his brother Oleg was released, after paying a sentence of three and a half years for embezzlement. The brothers say that this accusation was motivated by political issues.

In a social media post after returning home, Alexei Navalny said the indulgent conditions he had during his detention had to do with the World Cup.

And he also sent a message to those who hope that the relaxed atmosphere will continue in Russia after the championship.

"When the World Cup finishes, the golden carriage will once again become a pumpkin," he wrote.

There are several protests planned against the pension reform, so many Russians will be aware of whether Navalny is right.