Political prisoners in the republics of Russia
Parvina Abuzarova. 32 years old. Tatarstan.
Exemplary punishment for anti-war statements.
Parvina Abuzarova
A blogger and designer of clothing for Muslim women, she condemned the war through social media. Russian authorities immediately accused her of actions «against the security of the Russian Federation.» She was brought in for questioning in her bathrobe. Parvina has two young children, tens of thousands of followers on Instagram, and her own clothing brand. FSB officers conducted a search of her apartment at 7 a.m. on February 14, 2023: «Almost 10 men from the FSB burst into my apartment under the pretext that I was disturbing neighbors. Without showing identification, they thrust a document in front of me stating that a criminal case had been opened against me. They said they came to search the apartment. I strongly requested that they leave so I could at least change out of my pajamas and wash up!!! But the pressure was incredible!»
Fail Alsynov. 38 years old. Bashkortostan.
Personal enemy of the republic’s leader.
Fail Alsynov
One of the leaders of the Bashkir national movement, married with four children. An eco-activist who worked as a foreman in a construction company and lived in Ufa. He advocated for the preservation of nature from industrial development. He was convicted on fabricated charges of «inciting hatred.» The head of the republic Radiy Khabirov wrote a report against him, leading to a criminal case being initiated following Alsynov’s speech at a rally in the village of Ishmurzino, Baimaksky district of Bashkortostan on April 28, 2023. The protest was against plans to mine gold in the area. 82 other Bashkirs are detained in pre-trial detention centers for participating in protests against the persecution of Fail. Many of them are tortured, and two have been killed by Russian forces.
Mikhail Babintsev. 41 years old. Buryatia.
Arson of a military commissariat.
Mikhail Babintsev
A photographer who lived in the village of Mukhorshibir, Republic of Buryatia. Protesting against the Russian invasion of Ukraine, he set fire to the building of the military commissariat of the Mukhorshibirsky district of the Republic of Buryatia. On October 4, 2023, he was sentenced to 13 years of imprisonment in a strict regime colony, with the first 3 years to be served in prison. He has been deprived of freedom since October 28, 2022.
Lilia Chanysheva. 42 years old. Bashkortostan.
Head of Alexey Navalny’s headquarters in Ufa.
Lilia Chanysheva
Convicted in a case involving the creation of an «extremist community.» Chanysheva was the first person arrested in this case in 2021. The investigation claimed that Navalny’s associates allegedly aimed to «destabilize the situation in the regions» and «form public opinion about the necessity of violent regime change.» She was sentenced to 7.5 years in a general regime colony with a fine of 400,000 rubles. The appellate court upheld the verdict. On March 4, 2024, the Sixth Cassation Court returned the case for appeal. On April 9, 2024, the Supreme Court of the Republic of Bashkortostan increased the sentence to 9.5 years in a general regime colony
Gaziz Davletbayev. 35 years old. Bashkir. Chelyabinsk region.
Accused of terrorism for critical comments on social media.
Gaziz Davletbayev
The news of Gaziz’s detention and his placement in a pre-trial detention center became known in December 2023. A criminal case for publicly justifying terrorism was allegedly initiated against him in September of the same year due to a comment in a Telegram channel regarding Alexey Nuriev and Roman Nasryev, convicted for attempting to set fire to a military registration desk in the administration building of Bakal, Chelyabinsk region. He was sentenced to 2 years in a general regime colony. He has been deprived of freedom since August or September 2023, and is being held in a pre-trial detention center.
Ayrat Dilmukhametov. 58 years old. Bashkortostan.
Candidate for President of the Republic of Bashkortostan.
Ayrat Dilmukhametov
An opposition politician, political commentator, and journalist. He is one of the leaders of the Bashkir national movement. He has been sentenced to 9 years in a strict regime colony for his public speeches on the internet criticizing the authorities and advocating for the rights of the Bashkir people. Previously, Dilmukhametov was sentenced to 3 years in a strict regime colony with a ban on engaging in journalistic activities for 2 years due to a journalistic article that spoke unfavorably about the political regime in Russia and the colonial situation in his native republic.
Friends and relatives of the political prisoner report that since his arrival at the colony, he has been almost constantly kept in a punishment cell or solitary confinement. According to his lawyers’ calculations, the Bashkir politician has spent about 10 years of his life behind bars on political charges.
Rustam Fararitdinov. 35 years old. Bashkortostan.
Serving punishment for his opposition brother.
Rustam Fararitdinov
Father of three young children. He is the brother of Bashkir politician and political emigrant Ruslan Gabbasov. He is accused of «assisting terrorist activities.» The Kirovsky District Court of Ufa ordered his arrest at the request of the investigation. During interrogations, law enforcement told him that he «will be punished for his brother.» Fararitdinov admitted guilt during questioning. Investigators told Fararitdinov that he could avoid criminal prosecution if he persuaded his brother to return to Russia from emigration.
Alexander Gabyshev. 55 years old. Sakha (Yakutia).
Especially sophisticated punishment — punitive psychiatry.
Alexander Gabyshev
He is a civil activist and respected shaman who advocated for his people to live in harmony with nature and the surrounding world, and to cease predatory exploitation of Yakutian resources for the benefit of the metropolis. In 2019, he organized an extraordinarily resonant protest action against Putin — a walking march from Yakutsk to Moscow. Authorities placed him in a psychiatric hospital. Punitive psychiatry has been a sophisticated punishment for dissenters since the times of the USSR. Dissidents are isolated and subjected to medical torture.
Diana Kamilyanova
Diana Kamilyanova, 29 years old. Bashkir. Orenburg region.
Deprived of freedom for «LGBT propaganda».
She lived in Orenburg and worked as an administrator at the Pose club, which was accused by authorities of having contacts with the LGBT community. Authorities accuse her of «organizing activities of an extremist organization,» which carries a penalty of up to 10 years in prison. No actual charges have been brought against her. She has been deprived of freedom since March 20, 2024. Her further fate and whereabouts are unknown.
Olga Komleva. 45 years old. Bashkortostan.
Under arrest for opposition views.
Olga Komleva
A resident of Ufa, a civil activist, and journalist for RusNews. Olga was detained in March 2024, summoned for questioning in Ufa. She has been deprived of freedom since March 27, 2024. Komleva is accused of «participating in an extremist community.» The real reason for her persecution is her opposition views as a journalist and her disagreement with the political course of the Russian government.
Kevin Lik. 18 years old. Republic of Adygea.
The youngest convicted for “treason.”
Kevin Lik
A schoolboy, Kevin excelled academically and had interests in ecology and medicine. He was a prize winner in national academic competitions. In 2022, at the age of 16, Kevin was detained on fabricated charges of “espionage.” According to the accusation, while still a schoolboy, he observed a local military unit and took photographs of its locations. Lik turned 18 in spring 2023, and on December 28 of that year, he was sentenced to four years in prison for treason. He is one of 30 German citizens convicted in Russia.
Sergey Mikhailov. 48 years old. Republic of Altai.
Persecution for an article in the newspaper.
Sergey Mikhailov
A resident of Gorno-Altaysk, Republic of Altai. Founder and editor of the opposition weekly newspaper “Listok”, member of the federal political council of the democratic party “Parnas”. He has a young child and is in an unregistered marriage. He is persecuted for publishing about the Russo-Ukrainian war. On April 13, Sergey Mikhailov was detained in Lyubertsy near Moscow, where he had been living recently in a rented apartment. Law enforcement officers conducted a search at the “Listok” office in Gorno-Altaysk, seizing their documentation and office equipment. The journalist was taken to Gorno-Altaysk and charged with a crime. Sergey Mikhailov did not agree with the charges brought against him.
Tatyana Moskalenko. 63 years old. Republic of Adygea.
Exemplary punishment for anti-war comments on social media.
Tatyana Moskalenko
A pensioner and former educator. Following comments on social media where Moskalenko criticized the invasion of Ukraine, the FSB conducted a search of her apartment. She was accused of discrediting the Russian armed forces for her criticism of the authorities. She has been in custody since August 18, 2023, and around January 2024 was transferred to house arrest or restricted from certain activities.
On November 9, 2022, Tatyana Moskalenko posted a video from the Ukrainian channel «Here is the Truth» on YouTube, which has over 1 million subscribers. The video titled «The Kremlin Deletes This on All Channels» discusses the hardships faced by those mobilized from various regions of Russia, their protests, and appeals from relatives of the mobilized. The video also includes calls not to go to mobilization points and not to go to war.
Rustem Mulyukov. 47 years old. Bashkortostan.
Exemplary punishment for speaking at a rally.
Rustem Mulyukov
A lawyer and opposition activist. He was sentenced to 2 years and 6 months in a general regime colony for «participation in an extremist community.» He was under house arrest from March 15 to November 7, 2023. The appellate court upheld the sentence and ordered him to be taken into custody. Previously, he was given a suspended sentence of 2 years for an emotional speech at a rally on June 12, 2017, criticizing corrupt officials.
Zarema Musayeva. 55 years old. Chechnya-Ichkeria.
Personal enemy of the head of the republic.
Zarema Musayeva
She is the wife of Judge Saidi Yangulbayev. Musayeva was abducted by forces loyal to the Head of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov. Kadyrov targeted the Yangulbayev family due to their opposition activities. He personally beat their sons, and Chechen officials publicly called for their heads to be cut off. Kadyrov’s men kidnapped Zarema Musayeva and falsely accused her of “fraud.” She is held hostage to silence her influential blogger sons. The Yangulbayev family is one of thousands of Chechen families facing kidnappings, torture, and intimidation by Russian authorities and their proxies in occupied Chechnya.
Ramila Saitova. 58 years old. Bashkortostan.
Candidate for President of the Republic of Bashkortostan.
Ramila Saitova
She is an entrepreneur and a participant in the Bashkir national movement. Ramila Galim has been repeatedly convicted for her public speeches and political activities. She was detained by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and FSB officers near her home on May 16, 2023. The next day, Judge Artur Alikovich Suleimanov of the Kirovsky District Court of Ufa granted the prosecution’s request and arrested the activist for two months in connection with a criminal case initiated against her for posting a video on YouTube in November 2022. In the video, Ramila Galim addressed those mobilized from Bashkortostan, urging them to refuse to kill Ukrainians and instead return home, stating, “The true courage of a hero today is to say: I refuse to kill.”
On December 22, 2023, she was sentenced by the court to 5 years in a medium-security prison with a ban on administering websites on the Internet for 4 years. She has been in detention since May 16, 2023.