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☆ Lawyers Seek Release of Russian Artist Who Staged Anti-War Price Tag Protest
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-12 | by ( Nov. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +4 min

Critics say it is part of a crackdown on anyone who speaks out against Moscow's "special military operation". Authorities have detained nearly 20,000 people for anti-war activity and opened over 800 criminal cases against anti-war dissidents, according to the OVD-Info rights group. The justice ministry has designated the rights group a "foreign agent" and its website is blocked in Russia. Copies of the imitation price tags produced by Skochilenko are on display on a website maintained by her supporters. Another alleges Russia was sending conscripts to fight in Ukraine, which Russia has also denied.

Persons: Andrew Osborn, Alexandra Skochilenko, Sasha, Moscow's, Vladimir Putin, Skochilenko, Alexander Gladyshev, Putin, Mark Trevelyan, Barbara Lewis Organizations: Authorities, Moscow, Wednesday, Amnesty, NATO, Reuters Locations: Russian, Ukraine, St Petersburg, Russia, Mariupol, Moscow

☆ Ordinary Russians Feel Wrath of Putin’s Repression
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-11 | by ( Ann M. Simmons | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +2 min

Authorities in Novosibirsk fined a woman 15,000 rubles around the same time for tearing down a poster exalting Russian soldiers fighting in Ukraine. In St. Petersburg, a man was briefly detained in September for holding a poster reading, “Wishing for peace is not a crime! In August, the police had briefly detained Belsky after he hoisted a poster in the same location reading, “Russia is tired of corruption, repression and propaganda! “In Russia, people are imprisoned for simply wanting peace,” said Belsky, a 34-year-old specialist in decorative restoration. “I don’t think it’s a crime to want peace.” The police warning has scared Belsky from staging any further protests.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Artyom Belsky, Belsky, ” Organizations: United Nations Locations: Siberia, Novosibirsk, Ukraine, St . Petersburg, Russia, Kazan

GENEVA (AP) — The rights situation in Russia has “significantly deteriorated” since President Vladimir Putin launched his war against Ukraine in February last year, an expert commissioned by the U.N.’s top human rights body said in her first report on the country on Monday. Mariana Katzarova, the special rapporteur on Russia's rights situation mandated by the Human Rights Council, chronicled the domestic crackdown that has largely targeted critics of Putin's war as well as other opposition voices in Russia. Her report, made public on Monday, is separate from another probe by U.N.-backed investigators that has accused Russia of war crimes in Ukraine. Last April, barely six weeks after Russia's armed invasion of Ukraine, the U.N. General Assembly suspended Russia's seat in the 47-member-country rights council in Geneva. The rights council is set to discuss it Thursday.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Mariana Katzarova, ”, Katzarova, Ministry’s, Dmitry Peskov, Putin, “ Organizations: GENEVA, Ukraine, Human Rights, U.N, . Security, “, General Assembly, Authorities, Rights, Kremlin Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Britain, China, France, United States, OVD, Geneva, Bulgarian

Aziz Umerov looks at a portrait of his sister Leniye Umerova, a Ukrainian from Russian-annexed Crimea arrested in Russia, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine August 11, 2023. A Reuters review of Rudenko's social media account on Telegram didn't find any messages critical of the war. Russia's top investigative body, the Investigative Committee, the Interior Ministry and the Prosecutor General's Office didn't respond to requests for comment on the phenomenon of carousel arrests or individual cases. A Reuters review of Russian court records identified seven cases of carousel arrests this year, with the suspects involved arrested and jailed between two and five times in succession. Not all "carousel" arrests lead to more serious criminal charges, and for some detainees, time spent behind bars is frightening enough.

Persons: Aziz Umerov, Leniye Umerova, Gleb Garanich, Rudenko's, Yulia Kiselyova, he'd, Kiselyova, Ivan Vtorushin, Valeriya, Ilya Yashin, Vladimir Putin, Putin, Alexei Navalny, Lauren McCarthy, McCarthy, Gevorg, Dmitry Golovlyov, Aleksanyan, Rudenko, Mike Collett, White Organizations: REUTERS, Reuters, Russian, Investigative, Interior Ministry, First Department, PUTIN, WHO, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Federal Security Service, of Russia Legion, Russia Legion, Thomson Locations: Russian, Crimea, Russia, Ukraine, Kyiv, Moscow, Bucha, Rudenko, Crimean Tatars, Ukrainian

Critics say the move is a part of a sustained effort to indoctrinate school children and stifle any independent thinking. Russian President Vladimir Putin has always maintained that Moscow’s unprovoked aggression against Ukraine is an effort to liberate the country from a “Nazi regime” and Western influence. No critical thinking allowedMany countries introduce school children to patriotic ideas and civic values. According to independent human rights monitor OVD-Info, there have been almost 20,000 people detained for protesting against the war in Russia. This complete crackdown on freedom of speech means there isn’t a force in Russia that can counteract school propaganda.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Sergey Kravtsov, ” Kravtsov, Katerina Tertytchnaya, “ There’s, ”, Putin, Yuri Kadobnov, Sergey Lavrov, Kirill, ” Ian Garner, ” Tertytchnaya, ” Garner, Garner Organizations: CNN, country’s Ministry of Education, Nazi, Russian, Russian Federation, RIA Novosti, University College London, Ministry of Education, Schools, Getty, Kremlin, University of Chicago’s, Political, Students Locations: Russia, Ukraine, Crimea, Moscow, AFP, Russian, France, Russians, China

CNN —The Russian State Duma, or lower house of parliament, has voted in favor of a new law banning nearly all medical help for transgender people including gender reassignment surgery, in a raft of new anti-LGBTQ laws in Russia. These recent legal developments in Russia expand the constraints on the LGBTQ community and reflect a tightening of regulations and control over transgender rights in the country. Russia’s first transgender politician, Yulia Alyoshina, has warned of the severe consequences of the proposed transgender bill. The latest restrictions seem to be closely intertwined with the ongoing dissent on the political and human rights activity in Russia. The Russian state labeled OVD-Info a foreign agent in 2021 under a law that critics say suppresses dissent.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Putin, Russia’s, Yulia Alyoshina, “, ” Alyoshina, Alyoshina Organizations: CNN, Russian State Duma, Federation Council, Putin, State Duma, Civic Initiative, Federal Security Service, FSB, Armed Forces Locations: Russia, Ukraine, State, Russian, Oryol

☆ Insight: Young Russian lawyers step up to defend anti-war protesters
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-04 | by ( Lucy Papachristou | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

"I have always had a keen sense of justice," Gominova told a Reuters reporter based in Poland. "Defending protesters in court is my version of protest," said Gominova, who began representing anti-war activists in court almost immediately after the invasion. With numerous civil society groups disbanded by the state, many other lawyers also defend anti-war activists independently, but it is hard to determine how many. Several Russian lawyers have attracted the attention – and condemnation – of authorities, not only for defending critics of the invasion but also for expressing their own opposition. Before the Ukraine conflict, Gominova, in St Petersburg, worked mainly on civil cases ranging from family disputes to consumer rights.

Persons: Young, acquittals, Sofia Gominova, Gominova, Violetta Fitsner, Alexei Navalny, Vladimir Kara, Murza, Russia's, Evgenia Kara, Vladimir, Vadim Prokhorov –, Putin –, Prokhorov, Dmitry Talantov, Ivan Safronov, Maria Bontsler, Anastasia Rudenko, George Orwell's, Yuri Mikhailov, Mikhailov, Filipp Lebedev, Gabrielle Tetrault, Farber, Mike Collett, White, Mark Trevelyan, Andrew Cawthorne Organizations: Russia, Ukraine Lawyers, Petersburg Bar Association, Moscow Bar, Russia's, Ministry, Russian Federation, Reuters, U.S, of America, Facebook, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, acquittals Moscow, Russia, Soviet Union, Poland, St . Petersburg, St, Petersburg, Moscow, Ivanovo, Russian, St Petersburg, Tbilisi, Geneva

☆ Navalny campaigner jailed for 7.5 years for 'extremism' by Russian court
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MOSCOW, June 14 (Reuters) - A former campaign leader for jailed Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was sentenced to seven years and six months in prison on Wednesday for "creating an extremist organisation", rights group OVD-Info said. Navalny supporters reacted with outrage to the sentence against Liliya Chanysheva, the former campaign chief for Navalny in the Urals city of Ufa. Navalny aide Lyubov Sobol called it a political verdict, saying President Vladimir Putin had "put one more hostage in a penal colony". Human rights groups and Western governments view Navalny as a political prisoner. Reporting by Reuters, Writing by Mark Trevelyan; editing by Guy FaulconbridgeOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Alexei Navalny, Navalny, Liliya Chanysheva, Lyubov Sobol, Vladimir Putin, Putin's, Mark Trevelyan, Guy Faulconbridge Organizations: Navalny, Kremlin, Reuters, Thomson Locations: MOSCOW, Ufa, Navalny

☆ Russian police arrest more than 100 Navalny supporters, group says
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

June 4 (Reuters) - Russian police on Sunday arrested more than 100 people who had taken to the streets to mark the 47th birthday of Alexei Navalny, Russia's most prominent opposition leader, a protest monitoring group said. OVD-Info said in a statement that 109 people had been detained in 23 cities as of 10:42 p.m. Moscow time (1942 GMT). Footage from Moscow and St Petersburg, Russia's two largest cities, showed police arresting individual demonstrators. Another man, who held up a sign in English that read "Free Navalny", was also arrested in Moscow. In St Petersburg, a woman accompanied by a child told reporters that "I'm against the war, that's why they detained me with my underage kid".

Persons: Alexei Navalny, Navalny, Vladimir Putin's, David Ljunggren, Grant McCool Organizations: Sunday, Authorities, St, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Moscow, Ukraine, St Petersburg, Russia's

☆ Putin's political enemies and Kremlin critics face an 'extremely dangerous' situation in Russia right now
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Holly Ellyatt | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +9 min

"All of the opposition political leaders are either in jail or under restrictive measures or outside of the country. The oppression of political opposition figures in Russia is nothing new. Some accuse the Russian state of trying to poison them, while others have died in suspicious circumstances. Evgenia Novozhenina | ReutersThe persecution of political opposition figures attracted global attention in 2020 when the high-profile Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny was poisoned with a Novichok nerve agent. Russian political analyst Tatiana Stanovaya agreed that "it's extremely dangerous" to be a critic of the Kremlin now, no matter what your background is.

☆ Russian Lawyers Ask Court to Ease Crackdown on Speaking Out
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Ivan Nechepurenko | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A group of leading Russian lawyers on Tuesday asked the country’s highest court to declare unconstitutional a law banning criticism of the armed forces, in a rare display of opposition to the draconian censorship imposed by the Kremlin in the wake of the invasion of Ukraine. The complaint, filed by three lawyers and supported by 10 more, most of whom are still in Russia, asked the Constitutional Court to strike down the measure, which has emerged as the Kremlin’s most effective tool for stifling dissent in the country. “This law was passed with only one goal — to suppress antiwar activism,” said Violetta Fitsner, a lawyer with OVD-Info, a Russian rights group, and one of the authors of the complaint. “Such restrictions cannot exist in a democratic society.”The censorship laws effectively ban anything that does not correspond to the Kremlin’s depiction of the war, which it continues to call a “special military operation.” They have virtually silenced debate in Russia.

☆ How facial recognition is helping Putin curb dissent
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

There officers told the 51-year-old bank employee that the metro’s facial recognition system had flagged him for detention because of his political activism. Facial recognition is now helping police to identify and sweep up the Kremlin’s opponents as a preventive measure, whenever they choose. The facial recognition system in Moscow is powered by algorithms produced by one Belarusian company and three Russian firms. All but one said they understood from officers that they were flagged for detention by facial recognition. Facial recognition technology uses artificial intelligence algorithms to analyse and identify faces.

☆ Russian man who was prosecuted after 13-year-old daughter's anti-war drawing now appears to be on the run
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Charles R. Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Alexei Moskalev was sentenced Tuesday to two years behind bars for alleged antiwar social media posts. Moskalev was prosecuted after school authorities found antiwar drawings by his 13-year-old daughter. Alexei Moskalev was sentenced Tuesday to two years in a penal colony for the alleged posts, which he has denied penning. In the drawing, a mother and child can be seen holding hands and standing next to the Ukrainian flag as missiles approach them from the Russian side. According to Human Rights Watch, people have since been prosecuted for merely displaying the colors of the Ukrainian flag, blue and yellow.

☆ Russian politician fined for "noodle ears" stunt during Putin speech
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 16 (Reuters) - A Russian local politician was fined nearly $2,000 on Thursday for "discrediting the armed forces" by dangling spaghetti from his ears while listening to a speech by President Vladimir Putin, a human rights monitoring group said. Mikhail Abdalkin was convicted for a stunt, which he filmed and posted on social media, based on a Russian saying that someone who has been strung along or deceived has had noodles hung on their ears. The implication was that he did not believe the content of the state of the nation speech that Putin delivered on Feb. 21, just before the first anniversary of his invasion of Ukraine. The monitoring group OVD-Info quoted Abdalkin, a Communist from the Samara region, as saying it had been an ironic gesture to express his dissatisfaction with "the president's silence about internal political problems". ($1 = 76.8455 roubles)Reporting by Mark Trevelyan; Editing by Kevin LiffeyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Russian law amendments punish 'discrediting' military, including voluntary formations
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Igor RussakSummary This content was produced in Russia where the law restricts coverage of Russian military operations in Ukraine. MOSCOW, March 1 (Reuters) - Russia brought new law amendments to parliament on Wednesday that further strengthen the country's censorship laws, envisaging up to 15 years in jail for discrediting the armed forces and voluntary military organisations such as the Wagner Group. "As well as public actions aimed at discrediting the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, volunteer formations, organizations and persons who are facilitated in the implementation of tasks assigned to the ... Armed Forces," would be punishable, Volodin wrote on the Telegram messaging platform. "This initiative will protect everyone who today is risking their lives to ensures the security of the country and our citizens ... ($1 = 75.1 roubles)Reporting by Reuters; Writing by Lidia Kelly in Melbourne; Editing by Raju GopalakrishnanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Russian father had his daughter taken away after she drew an anti-war picture in art class, reports say
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( Sophia Ankel | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A Russian sixth-grader drew an anti-war painting in her art class, Meduza reported Tuesday. He fears he will permanently lose custody of his daughter if he is jailed, his lawyer told OVD-Info. Moskalev's lawyer told OVD-Info that he was interrogated and told that his daughter had also made anti-war comments on the Russian social media outlet VKontakte. Moskalev was able to retrieve Masha from the children's center a few days later and both have since left Yefremov, Meduza reported. Under Russian law, using the words "war" and "invasion" can land someone in prison for up to 15 years.

☆ Russians lay flowers at improvised memorials to commemorate Dnipro dead
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Jan 20 (Reuters) - Russians in St Petersburg and Moscow have been laying flowers at improvised memorials to the victims of a Russian missile attack on a nine-storey apartment block in the Ukrainian city of Dnipro. On Friday evening, dozens of bunches of flowers and several cuddly toys were arranged around the base of a monument to Ukrainian national poet Taras Shevchenko in central St Petersburg. A young man said that "one way or another, even in times like these, this shouldn't become normal". Ukraine says the building in Dnipro was hit by a Russian Kh-22 missile. Among those who paid their respects in St Petersburg were a middle-aged couple.

Among women protesters heading to central Moscow on the evening of Sept. 24 was 19-year-old Lisa. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterThree days earlier Putin announced a partial mobilisation of reservists to fight in Ukraine, prompting tens of thousands of Russian men to flee abroad, often by circuitous routes. Russian authorities say protesters are detained because unsanctioned rallies are illegal under Russian law, which also forbids any activity considered to defame the armed forces. OVD-Info said male protesters were drafted in at least 17 police departments on Sept. 21 and at least 16 departments on Sept. 24. Rossman, who is mapping out Russian feminist activism, counted 45 Russian feminist groups in 2021, up from about 30 in 2019.

☆ Gunman fires at Russian draft office amid anger over Ukraine mobilization
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-26 | by ( Https | Media-Cldnry.S-Nbcnews.Com Image Upload Newscms Yuliya-Talmazan-Circle-Byline-Template.Jpg | Yuliya Talmazan | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

A gunman opened fire at a draft office in Russia’s Siberian region of Irkutsk on Monday amid a growing backlash against President Vladimir Putin’s chaotic efforts to mobilize more people to boost his troops in Ukraine. A video circulating online, confirmed by NBC News to have been shot in the draft office, showed people inside running for cover and screaming as the gunman fired. But Melvin said it's further evidence of Russia's disorganized mobilization drive. The unrest throughout Russia comes against the backdrop of a voting process underway in four Moscow-occupied regions of Ukraine. Meanwhile, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church has said that Russian soldiers who die in the war against Ukraine will be cleansed of their sins.

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterEU leaders gave mixed messages ahead of a meeting of their ambassadors in Brussels on Monday, with another one planned for Tuesday. Russia invaded Ukraine - a former Soviet republic that now wants to join the EU - on Feb.24 by air, land and sea. More than 2,000 people have been detained across Russia for protests at the draft, says independent monitoring group OVD-Info. On Monday, senior Russian lawmaker Sergei Tsekov told RIA news agency that Russia itself should bar draft-age people from leaving. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by John Chalmers, Sabine Siebold, Charlotte Van Campenhout, Writing by Gabriela Baczynska; Editing by Andrew HeavensOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Senior Russian lawmakers express concern over Putin's mobilization drive 'excesses'
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-25 | by ( Hyder Abbasi | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

Amid increasing public anger about Russia's mobilization drive, two of the country's most senior lawmakers ordered regional officials to solve the “excesses” that have stoked protests and seen flocks of military-age men attempt to flee. “Appeals are coming in,” Volodin, speaker of the Duma, Russia’s lower chamber of Parliament, said in a post Sunday. Russian State Duma Chairman Vyacheslav Volodin in St. Petersburg in April. It said hundreds of people had been detained by police across Russia for protesting against the mobilization and the war. The territory controlled by Russian or Russian-backed forces in the four regions represents about 15% of Ukrainian territory.

☆ Shelling hits southern Ukraine, Russia in U.N. spotlight over escalation
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Ukrainian service members ride atop an armoured fighting vehicles, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kharkiv region, Ukraine September 24, 2022. REUTERS/Oleksandr RatushniakRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterSept 25 (Reuters) - Shelling hit southern Ukraine late on Saturday while Russia sought to defend its seven-month old war at the United Nations even as it moves to escalate the conflict. Nearly three-quarters of countries in the assembly voted to reprimand Russia and demand it withdraw its troops shortly after the Feb. 24 invasion. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterKyiv and Moscow traded blame for shelling in Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia region on Saturday. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by Reuters bureaux; writing by Simon Lewis; editing by Chris ReeseOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Russia expected to ban men of military age from leaving the country as thousands try to flee Putin's call-up, report says
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-25 | by ( Joshua Zitser | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Russia is expected to stop men of military age from leaving the country, according to Meduza. Russian men have tried to flee the country since Vladimir Putin announced partial military mobilization. Current laws permit Russian men up to 40 and foreigners up to 30 to serve in the military. The ban would allow a small number of men of conscription age to leave the country only after procuring "exit visas," Meduza reported. To get these visas, men of military age would have to seek permission from enlistment offices, the media outlet said.

☆ New Russian anti-war protests as Putin decrees soldiers who refuse to fight will go to prison for up to 10 years
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-25 | by ( Alia Shoaib | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Putin decreed that soldiers who surrender, desert, or refuse to fight can face up to 10 years in prison. At least 820 protesters have been detained in connection to Saturday's protests, a rights group said. The stiffened penalties come as protests continue across Russia against Putin's partial mobilization of 300,000 reservists to fight in Ukraine. Footage from Saturday's protests in Moscow showed police pinning protesters to the ground, carrying men, and escorting women into police vans. The ongoing protests come as droves of draft-age Russians have tried to flee the country, leading to plane ticket prices soaring and border crossings being overwhelmed.

☆ Putin has escaped to his secret palace in a forest amid anti-draft protests in Russian cities, report says
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-25 | by ( Joshua Zitser | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Vladimir Putin has escaped to his secret palace amid anti-draft protests in Russia, per a report. An image of a bedroom inside Vladimir Putin's purported secret palace. An image from inside Vladimir Putin's purported secret palace. An image showing the outside of Vladimir Putin's palace. Police officers detain a protester during the unsanctioned rally in Moscow, Russia, on September 24, 2022.

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