List of Individuals Recognized as Political Prisoners by the Memorial Human Rights Centre (with the Exception of Those Persecuted in connection with the Realization of their Right to Freedom of Religion) as of 25 May 2017

We consider political prisoners to be individuals who are serving a prison sentence, as well as those held in custody or under house arrest as a form of pre-trial detention. The full criteria for considering persons to be political prisoners are published on our website.

There are 51 individuals named in this list. The names of those who are persecuted mainly in connection with the realization of their right to freedom of religion can be found in a separate list. This list is far from complete. It includes only those individuals and cases for which we have managed to collect and analyze sufficient information for a convincing conclusion to be drawn about the politically-motivated and illegal nature of a criminal prosecution. At the present time the list does not contain the names of a large number of people who have been deprived of their liberty, and whose prosecution contains indications of illegality or political motivation, but for whose cases we have either not yet received the required information, or have not yet fully analyzed the information.

A year ago, a similar list contained 39 names.

The political prisoners represent a very wide range of groups that have become victims of political repression by the State. The ‘Ukrainian trail’ can be clearly traced in the cases of the Crimean Tatars Akhtem Chiygoz, Ali Asanov and Mustafa Degermendzhi, the Ukrainian citizens Stanislav Klykh, Andrei Kolomiyets, Alexander Kostenko, Oleg Sentsov, Alexander Kolchenko and and Sergei Litvinov, and the cases of Andrei Bubeyev, Darya Polyudova, Rafis Kashapov and Natalya Sharina that are linked to the authorities’ anti-Ukrainian campaign.

As previously, one of the most important goals of politically motivated incarceration remains restriction of the right of assembly. In place of three Bolotnaya Square defendants who were released, two new defendants are now behind bars: Dmitry Buchenkov and Maksim Panfilov, Ivan Nepomnyashchikh, Dmitry Ishevsky, Sergey Udaltsov remain imprisoned. Darya Polyudova has also been deprived of her liberty on the basis of charges of taking part in public events. Vitaly Shishkin who was sentenced for calls to take part in mass protests and Dmitry Bogatov who was taken into custody after the mass protests of 26 March 2017 under false allegations of making calls to participate in such protests can also be listed in the same group.

The attack on freedom of expression and the dissemination of information has been seriously intensified, in particular in relation to the Internet: among those who have been put behind bars for trying to exercise this right are Andrei Bubeev, Darya Poyiudova, Airat Dilmukhametov, Robert Zagreev, Igor Stenin, Vadim Tyumentsev, Alexei Moroshkin, Natalya Sharina and Ruslan Sokolovsky.

The means of unlawful repression provide an instrument for suppressing any kinds of civic activity that are displeasing to the authorities. For example, victims have included Ivan Barylyak who defended housing rights as well as Sergei Nikiforov who sought to protect environmental rights.

High treason cases serve the objectives of propaganda striving to represent Russia as a country encircled by enemies. The list of their victims includes the names of Svyatoslav Bobyshev, Gennady Kravtsov, Petr Parpulov, Inga Tutisani, Anik Kesyan and Marina Dzhandzgava.

Dozens of different articles of the Russian Criminal Code have become the instrument of political repression. The persecution of citizens holding the status of political prisoners over the past year has been conducted on the basis of 41 different Articles of the Russian Criminal Code. The most widely used Articles include those related to extremism (incitement of hatred and enmity, public appeals for extremist activity, organization of the activities of an extremist organization) – in 20 cases, to terrorism (terrorist act, complicity in terrorist activity and justification of such an activity, organization of a terrorist group) – in 16 cases, and to public gatherings (mass riots, multiple violations of the established procedure for organising gatherings, use of force against a representative of the authority) – in 32 cases.

In the list below, along with the reasons given for the recognition of specific individuals by political prisoners in each of the cases, we see, as such grounds, also the political motivation for prosecution.

***

1. Asanov, Ali Akhmedovich, was born on 7 July 1982. A resident of the village of Urozhainoye in Crimea, he holds a higher education degree. He is married with four children. Prior to his arrest, Mr Asanov worked as a sales representative. He holds Russian and Ukrainian citizenships. Mr Asanov was charged under Part Two of Art. 212 (‘Participation in mass riots’) of the Russian Criminal Code. Mr Asanov has been held in custody since 15 April 2015.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that the prosecution was conducted in relation to an alleged offence that did not in fact take place, with violation of his right to a fair trial and disproportionate use of pre-trial detention.

2. Bagavutdinova, Zarema Ziyavtudinovna, was born on 18 September 1968. A member of the Dagestani NGO ‘Pravozashchita’, she was sentenced to 5 years in a general-regime colony on a charge of committing a crime under Part One of Art. 205.1 (‘Incitement and other involvement of individuals in committing a crime envisaged under Art. 208 of the Russian Criminal Code’) of the Russian Criminal Code. Ms Bagavutdinova has been held in custody since 4 June 2013.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that her prosecution was conducted in relation to an alleged offence that did not in fact take place, with violation of her right to a fair trial.

3. Balukh, Vladimir Grigoryevich, was born on 8 February 1971. A resident of the village of Serebryanka of the Razdolnoye district of Crimea, he is a farmer and a pro-Ukrainian activist who kept the Ukrainian nationality after 2014 and renounced the Russian nationality. He was charged under Part One of Art. 222 (‘Illegal acquisition, transfer, sale, storage, transportation, or bearing of firearms, its basic parts, ammunition, explosives, and explosive devices’). Mr. Balukh has been held in custody since 8 December 2016.

Recognized as a political prisoner on grounds of violation of his right to fair trial.

4. Barabash, Kirill Vladimirovich, was born on 21 January 1977. Mr Barabash is a retired Air Force lieutenant colonel. He was charged under Part One of Art. 282.2 (‘Organisation of the activities of an extremist organisation’) of the Russian Criminal Code for having allegedly pursued the activities of the inter-regional public movement ‘Army of the People’s Will’, banned in Russia in 2010, through the Initiative Group for the Holding of a Referendum ‘For a responsible government’ ‘with the aim of carrying out extremist activities’. He has been held in custody since 17 December 2015.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution is being conducted exclusively in connection with the non-violent exercise of his right to freedom of expression, on a charge of an offence that did not take place, with violation of his right to fair trial.

5. Barylyak, Ivan Mikhailovich, was born on 19 February 1986. A resident of the city of Stavropol, Mr Baryilyak worked as a repair technician while studying law extramurally. He was sentenced to 3 years and 6 months in a strict-regime colony on a charge of crimes under Part Two of Art. 213 (‘Hooliganism’) of the Russian Criminal Code, point ‘a’ of Part Two, Art. 116, (‘Battery’), and point ‘a’ of Part Two, Art. 115 (‘Intentional Infliction of Light Injury’). Mr Barylyak was held in custody from 10 September 2014 to 24 December 2014; afterwards he was under house arrest from 24 December 2014 to 31 August 2015. He has been imprisoned after the pronouncement of the judgment on 31 August 2015.

Recognized as a political prisoner on grounds of violation of his right to fair trial.

6. Bobyshev, Svyatoslav Vasilyevich, was born on 9 August 1953. A professor at the Baltic State Technical University named after D. F. Ustinov (Voenmekh), he was charged with crimes under Art. 275 (‘High treason’) of the Russian Criminal Code for having allegedly transferred information on the Bulava missile to China. On 20 June 2012, he was sentenced by the St Petersburg City Court to 12 years in a strict-regime penal colony. He had been held in custody since 16 March 2010.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution was conducted in relation to an offence that had not in fact taken place, with violation of the right to fair trial.

7. Bogatov, Dmitry Olegovich (in Russian), was born on 29 January 1992. A resident of Moscow, he holds a higher education degree (the Moscow State University and the Moscow Pedagogic State University) and pursues a PhD. Prior to his arrest, he worked a Maths teacher at the Moscow Finance and Law University, gave private Maths lessons and worked a programmer. He is married. He is charged with committing crimes under Part Two of Art. 205.2 (‘Public incitement of terrorist activities committed using the Internet’) and Part One of Art.30 in conjunction with Part One of Art. 212 (‘Preparation of actions aimed at organising mass riots’) of the Russian Criminal Code. He has been in custody since 6 April 2017.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that the prosecution was conducted in relation to an alleged offence that did not in fact take place, with violation of his right to a fair trial and disproportionate use of pre-trial detention.

8. Bubeyev, Andrei Borisovich, was born on 11 December 1975. A resident of the city of Tver, he holds a higher education degree. He is married with two children. At the time of his arrest, he was temporarily unemployed. Taking into account an unserved prison term for an earlier offence, he was sentenced to 2 years and 3 months in a low-security penal colony under Part Two of Art. 280 (‘Public appeals for an extremist activity, committed using mass media or social media networks’) of the Russian Criminal Code and under Part One of Art. 280.1 (‘Public appeals for actions aimed at a violation of the territorial integrity of the Russian Federation, committed using mass media or social media networks’). Earlier he had been sentenced to 1 year in a low-security penal colony under Part One of Art. 282 (‘Incitement of hatred, or abasement of human dignity’) of the Russian Criminal Code and Part One of Art. 222 (‘Illegal acquisition, transfer, sale, storage, transportation, or bearing of firearms, its basic parts, ammunition, explosives, and explosive devices’). He has been in custody since 24 May 2015.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution was based on am alleged offence that had not in fact taken place, with violation of his right to fair trial and with disproportionate use of pre-trial detention, given the charges laid against him.

9. Buchenkov, Dmitry Evgenevich, was born in 1978. Mr Buchenkov holds a PhD in Political Science. Prior to his arrest, he was employed as a deputy head of the department of History of Medicine and Social Sciences and Humanities at the Russian National Research Medical University named after N.I. Pirogov. He is an anarchist and the editor-in-chief of the newspaper Moskovskaya Elektrichka. Mr Buchenkov was charged with crimes envisaged under Part Two of Art. 212 (‘Participation in mass riots’) of the Russian Criminal Code and Part One of Art. 318 (‘Use of force against a representative of the authority’) in the Bolotnaya case. Mr Buchenkov was taken into custody on 2 December 2015.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that the prosecution has been based on an offence that did not in fact take place, with violation of his right to fair trial and disproportionate use of pre-trial detention, given the charges laid against him.

10. Chiygoz, Akhtem Zeytullaevich, was born on 14 December 1964. A resident of Bakhchysarai, Mr Chiygoz holds a higher education degree and is single. The closing indictment states that he holds two citizenships (Russian Federation and Ukraine). Mr Chiygoz is charged with crimes under Part One of Art. 212 (‘Organization of mass riots’) of the Russian Criminal Code. He was taken into custody on 29 January 2015.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that the prosecution is based on an alleged offence that did not in fact take place, with violation of his right to a fair trial and disproportionate use of pre-trial detention, given the charges laid against him.

11. Degermendzhi, Mustafa Bekirovich, was born on 22 May 1989. He is a resident of the village of Grushevka in Sudak and is single. Prior to his arrest, he worked as a sales representative. Mr Degermendzhi holds two citizenships (Russian Federation and Ukraine). He was accused of crimes under Part Two of Art. 212 (‘Participation in mass riots’) of the Russian Criminal Code. He has been in custody since 7 May 2015.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that the prosecution is based on an alleged offence that did not in fact take place with violation of his right to a fair trial and disproportionate use of pre-trial detention, given the charges laid against him.

12. Dilmukhametov, Airat Akhnafovich, was born on 21 June 1966. A resident of the city of Ufa in the Republic of Bashkortostan, he worked as a journalist. He was sentenced to 3 years in a strict-regime penal colony on charges under Part One of Art. 205.2 (‘Public appeals for terrorist activity’) of the Russian Criminal Code and deprived of the right to work as a journalist for 2 years after release. Mr Dilmukhametov was under house arrest from 17 July 2013 to 16 January 2014. He has been held in custody since 12 March 2015.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution was conducted exclusively in connection with the non-violent exercise of the right to freedom of expression, on charges of an alleged offence that had not in fact taken place, with violation of the right to fair trial.

13. Dzhandzhgava, Marina Nodarovna, was born on 1 May 1958. A resident of the city of Sochi, she worked as a train guard at the Adler wagon depot of JSC Russian Railways. She was sentenced to 12 years of imprisonment in a general-regime penal colony on charges under Art. 275 (‘High treason’) of the Russian Criminal Code. Ms. Dzhandzhgava has been held in custody since 3 October 2012.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution was conducted with regard to an alleged offence that did not in fact take place, with violation of his right to a fair trial and the disproportionate use of pre-trial detention

14. Geriyev, Zhelaudi Nasrudinovich, was born on 13 June 1993. A resident of the village of Mairtup of the Kurchaloi district of Chechnya, he is single. Mr Geriyev graduated from the Faculty of History of the Chechen State University and worked as a journalist at the Internet media ‘Kavkazsky Uzel’ (‘The Caucasus Knot’). He was sentenced to 3 years of imprisonment in a general-regime penal colony under Part Two of Article 228 (‘Illegal storage and transportation of narcotic substances on a large scale without the purpose of selling’) of the Russian Criminal Code. He has been in custody since 16 April 2016.

Recognized as a political prisoner since his prosecution is being conducted in connection with an alleged offence that did not in fact take place, with violation of his right to a fair trial and the disproportionate use of pre-trial detention.

15. Ishevsky, Dmitry Vyacheslavovich, was born in 1983. He is a retired officer in the Russian armed forces. Mr Ishevsky was sentenced to 3 years and 2 months of imprisonment in a general-regime penal colony on the charge of crimes under Part Two of Art.212 of the Russian Criminal Code (‘Participation in mass riots’) and Part One of Art. 318 (‘Use of force against a representative of the authority’) in the Bolotnaya case. The charges were formally laid on 27 May 2014, he has been held in custody ever since.

Recognized as a political prisoner since his prosecution was conducted exclusively in connection with the non-violent use of his right to freedom of assembly, on the charge of an alleged offence that did not in fact take place, with violation of his right to a fair trial and the disproportionate use of pre-trial detention.

16. Izokaitis, Anton Alvidovich, was born on 30 November 1987. He is a resident of the town of Staraya Russa in the Novgorod region. He holds a diploma of specialized secondary education. Mr Izokaitis was sentenced to 2 years of imprisonment in a low-security penal colony on charges under Part One of Art. 205.2 (‘Public appeals for terrorist activity or public justification of terrorism’) of the Russian Criminal Code and Part One of Art. 282 (‘Incitement of hatred, or abasement of human dignity’). He has been held in custody since July 2015.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution was conducted on the basis of an alleged offence that did not in fact take place, with violation of his right to a fair trial.

17. Karpyuk, Nikolai Andronovich, was born on 21 May 1964. He is a citizen of Ukraine. At the time of his arrest, he was one of the leaders of ‘Right Sector’, an organisation banned in Russia. Mr Karpyuk was accused of crimes underpart One of Art. 209 (‘Creation of a stable armed group (gang) with the aim of assaulting individuals or organizations, and also operation of such a group (gang)’) of the Russian Criminal Code, points ‘v’, ‘z’ and ‘n’ of Art. 102 (‘Intentional murder of two or more people in connection with their professional duties, committed by a group of people by preliminary agreement’) of the Criminal Code of the Russian SFSR, and Part Two of Art. 15 in conjunction with points ‘v’, ‘z’ and ‘n’ of Art. 102 (‘Attempted premeditated murder of two or more people in connection with their professional duties, committed by a group of people by preliminary agreement’) and sentenced to 22 years and 6 months in prison. He has been in custody since 21 March 2014 although being deprived of freedom since 17 March 2014.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution is conducted with violation of his right to a fair trial.

18. Kashapov, Rafis Rafailovich, was born on 2 July 1958. At the time of his arrest, he resided in the city of Naberezhnye Chelny and was the chair of the Naberezhnye Chelny branch of the Tatar Public Centre. He was charged with committing a crime under Part One of Art. 282 (‘Incitement of hatred, or abasement of human dignity’) of the Russian Criminal Code and Part Two of Art. 280.1 (Public appeals for actions aimed a violation of the territorial integrity of the Russian Federation committed using the Internet). He has been in custody since 28 December 2014.

Recognized as a political prisoner since his prosecution is being conducted in connection with an alleged offence that did not in fact take place, with violation of his right to a fair trial and the disproportionate use of pre-trial detention.

19. Kesyan, Annik Ovanesovna, was born on 20 February 1959. A resident of the city of Sochi, she was officially unemployed and worked as a cook. She was sentenced to 8 years of imprisonment in a general-regime colony on charges under Art. 275 (‘High treason’) of the Russian Crimean Code. She has been in custody since 26 February 2014.

Recognized as a political prisoner since his prosecution is being conducted in connection with an alleged offence that did not in fact take place, with violation of his right to a fair trial and the disproportionate use of pre-trial detention.

20. Klykh, Stanislav Romanovich, was born on 25 January 1974. He is a citizen of Ukraine, a lecturer at the Kiev Transportation and Economics College. Mr Klykh was charged with committing crimes under Part Two of Art. 209 (‘Participation in a stable armed group (gang) and in the assaults committed by it’) of the Russian Criminal Code, points ‘v’, ‘z’ and ‘n’ of Art. 102 (‘Intentional murder of two or more people in connection with their professional duties, committed by a group of people by preliminary agreement’) of the Criminal Code of the Russian SFSR, and Part Two of Art. 15 in conjunction with points ‘v’, ‘z’ and ‘n’ of Art. 102 (‘Attempted premeditated murder of two or more people in connection with their professional duties, committed by a group of people by preliminary agreement’) and sentenced to 20 years in prison. He was taken into custody by a court decision on 22 August 2014, being actually deprived of freedom since 8 August 2014..

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution is being conducted with violation of his right to a fair trial.

21. Kolchenko, Alexander Aleksandrovich, was born on 26 November 1989. A resident of Crimea, Mr Kolchenko is an anti-fascist who clashed with the far right. He worked as a loader at the post office and a print shop, while studying geography extramurally. Mr Kolchenko was sentenced to 10 years in a strict-regime penal colony under Part Two of Art. 205.4 (‘A terrorist act committed by an organised group’) of the Russian Criminal Code. He has been held in custody since 16 May 2014.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution was conducted with violation of his right to a fair trial.

22. Kolomiyets, Andrei Vladimirovich, was born on 8 May 1993. While holding a permanent registration in his native village, he was also temporarily registered in the village of Yantarny of the Kabardino-Balkar Republic of the Russian Federation where he resided with his common-law wife Galina Gennadyevna Zelikhanova. He was sentenced to 10 years of imprisonment in a strict-regime colony on the charges of committing crimes under Part Three of Article 30 in conjunction with points ‘a’, ‘b’, ‘e’, ‘l’ of Part Two, Art. 105 (‘Attempted murder of two individuals in connection with their professional duties committed by generally dangerous means for reasons of political or ideological hatred’) of the Russian Criminal Code and under Part two of Art. 228 (Illegal acquisition, storage and transportation of plants containing narcotic or psychotropic substances on a large scale without the purpose of selling’). He has been in custody since 15 May 2015.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution was conducted in relation to an alleged offence that did not in fact take place, with violation of his right to a fair trial.

23. Kostenko, Alexander Fedorovich, was born on 10 March 1986. A resident of Crimea, he is a former employee of the Kiev district branch of the Ukrainian Main Department of Internal Affairs in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea in the city of Simferopol. Mr Kostenko was sentenced to 3 years and 11 months of imprisonment in a general-regime penal colony on the charge of crimes under point ‘b’ of Part Two, Art. 115 (‘Intentional infliction of light injury which has caused temporary damage of health, committed for reasons of ideological hatred or enmity’) of the Russian Criminal Code and Part One of Art. 222 (‘Illegal storage and bearing of firearms and ammunition’). He has been held in custody since 6 February 2015.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution was conducted on the basis of an alleged offence that did not in fact take place, with violation of his right to a fair trial.

24. Kravtsov, Gennady Nikolaevich, was born on 30 October 1968. A resident of the city of Moscow, he worked as a chief design engineer at an IT company. He was sentenced to 14 years in prison in a strict-regime penal colony on a charge of committing a crime under Art. 275 (‘High treason’) of the Russian Criminal Code. He has been held in custody since 27 May 2014.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution was conducted with regard to an alleged offence that did not in fact take place, with violation of his right to a fair trial.

25. Kudayev, Rasul Vladimirovich, was born on 23 January 1978. He resided in the village of Khasanya near the city of Nalchik at the time of his arrest. He was charged with crimes under points ‘a’, ‘e’, ‘zh’ and ‘z’ of Art. 105 (‘Murder of two or more individuals by generally dangerous means by an organized group, out of mercenary interest related to banditry’) of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, Part Four of Art. 166 (‘Unlawful occupancy of transport vehicles without the intention to commit theft committed by an organized group with the use of force dangerous to life and health, and also with the threat of using such force’), Part Three of Art. 205 (‘Terrorist act using firearms committed by an organized group resulting in dangerous consequences’), Part Two of Art. 209 (Participation in a stable armed group (band) with the aim of assaulting individuals or organizations, and in the assaults committed by it’), Part Two of Art. 210 (‘Participation in a criminal group’), Part Three of Art. 222 (‘Illegal acquisition, transfer, sale, storage, transportation, or bearing of firearms, its basic parts, ammunition, explosives, and explosive devices committed by an organized group’), Part Two of Art. 30 and points ‘a’ and ‘b’ of Part Four, Art. 226 (‘Attempt to steal firearms and ammunition committed by an organized group with the use of force dangerous to life and health, and also with the threat of using such force’), points ‘a’ and ‘b’ of Part Four, Art. 226 (‘Theft of firearms and ammunition committed by an organized group with the use of force dangerous to life and health, and also with the threat of using such force’), Art. 279 (‘Active participation in an armed mutiny aimed at a forcible change of the constitutional order or a violation of the territorial integrity of the Russian Federation’), and Art. 317 (‘Attempt on the life of law enforcement officers or military service personnel’). Mr Kudayev was sentenced on 21 December 2014 to life imprisonment in a general-regime penal colony. He had been held in custody since 23 October 2005 in connection with his alleged participation in the Nalchik attack on 13 October 2005.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution was conducted in relation to an alleged offence that had in fact been committed by another person, with violation of his right to a fair trial.

26. Kungurov, Alexei Anatolyevich, was born on 6 March 1977. A resident of the city of Tyumen, he is an opposition blogger and journalist of left nationalist persuasion. Mr Kungurov was charged with Part One of Art. 205.2 (‘Public justification of terrorism’) of the Russian Criminal Code for having published a post in his blog, critical of the Russian military operation in Syria. Since 15 June 2016, he has been held in custody while awaiting trial.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that the prosecution is based on an alleged offence that did not in fact take place with violation of his right to a fair trial and disproportionate use of pre-trial detention, given the charges laid against him.

27. Kutayev, Ruslan Makhamdiyevich, was born on 20 September 1957. A Chechen civil society activist, he has a PhD in philosophy. Mr Kutayev was sentenced to 3 years and 10 months of imprisonment in a general-regime penal colony on a charge of committing a crime under Part Two of Art. 228 (‘Illegal storage and transportation of narcotic substances on a large scale without the purpose of selling’) of the Russian Criminal Code in a fabricated case after holding a conference, entitled ‘The deportation of the Chechen people: What was it and can it be forgotten?’ organised without a formal permission from the authorities of the Chechen Republic. He has been in custody since 20 February 2014.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution was conducted on charges of an alleged offence that did not in fact take place, with violation of his right to fair trial.

28. Litvinov, Sergei Nikolaevich, was born on 9 March 1983. He lived in the village of Kamyshnoe in the same district. A citizen of Ukraine, he has an incomplete secondary education, and, according to his wife, is almost illiterate. Mr Litvinov was not conscripted into the army on grounds of ill health. According to the charges laid against him, he is not officially working, is not married with no children. However, according to media reports, he is married with a 14-year-old daughter. He was sentenced to 8 years and 6 months in a strict-regime penal colony under Part Three of Art. 162 (‘Robbery, involving illegal entry to a residence, premises or other storehouse or on a large scale’) of the Russian Criminal Code.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that the prosecution was conducted with violation of the right to fair trial.

29. Moroshkin, Alexei Andreyevich, was born on 2 August 1980, and now he resides in the city of Chelyabinsk in Russia. He is a former Russian nationalist who fought as a volunteer for the pro-Russian militia and the ‘Vostok’ battalion in the East of Ukraine but later turned pro-Ukrainian. For the last year and a half, he has considered himself a ‘regional nationalist’. He was found guilty of a crime under Part Two of Art. 280.1 (‘Public appeals for actions aimed at a violation of the territorial integrity of the Russian Federation committed using the Internet’) of the Russian Criminal Code. He was exempt from criminal liability in accordance with of Art. 21 of the Russian Criminal Code on grounds of his insanity. The court ruled to impose on him compulsory measures of a medical nature envisaged under point ‘a’ of Part One, Art. 97 of the Russian Criminal Code. Mr Moroshkin was placed in a specialized mental hospital (the Chelyabinsk regional clinical specialized psychoneurological hospital No.1) in accordance with point ‘b’ of Part One, Art. 99 of the Russian Criminal Code. He was also charged with Part One of Art. 214 (‘Vandalism’) of the Russian Criminal Code for having painted the Lenin bust in Chelyabinsk in the colours of the Ukrainian flag.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that the prosecution was conducted in relation to an alleged offence that did not in fact take place.

30. Mukhin, Yury Ignatievich, was born on 22 March 1949. He is a pensioner, worked as a journalist, and formerly was the editor-in-chief of the ‘Duel’ newspaper. Mr Mukhin was charged with committing a crime under Part One of Art. 282.2 (‘Organisation of the activities of an extremist organisation’) of the Russian Criminal Code, for having allegedly pursued the activities of the inter-regional public movement ‘Army of the People’s Will’, banned in Russia in 2010, through the Initiative Group for the Holding of a Referendum ‘For a responsible government’ ‘with the aim of carrying out extremist activities’. He has been in custody since 28 July 2015. On 19 August 2015, he was placed under house arrest.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution is being conducted exclusively in connection with the non-violent exercise of his right to free expression of his opinion, on a charge of an alleged offence that did not in fact take place, with violation of his right to fair trial.

31. Navalny, Oleg Anatolyevich, was born in 1983. He is the brother of Alexei Navalny, and a former employee of the Federal Russian Post Office. Mr Navalny was convicted on 30 December 2014 in the Yves Rocher case under Part Three of Art. 159 (‘Swindling on a large scale’) of the Russian Criminal Code, Part Three of Art. 159.4 (‘Swindling on a particularly large scale in the entrepreneurial sphere’), and point ‘a’ of Part Two, Art. 174.1 (‘Laundering of funds on a large scale acquired by a person through a crime committed by him’). He was sentenced to 3 years and 6 months of imprisonment in a general-regime penal colony and a fine of 500,000 roubles. He has been in custody since 30 December 2014.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution was conducted on the basis of an alleged offence that did not in fact take place, with violation of his right to a fair trial.

32. Nepomnyashchikh, Ivan Andreyevich, was born in 1990. A resident of the town of Sergiyev Posad in the Moscow Region, he worked as a design engineer at the ‘Rodina’ Scientific Production Association. Mr Nepomnyashchikh was charged with crimes under Part Two of Art. 212 (‘Participation in mass riots’) of the Russian Criminal Code and Part One of Art. 318 (‘Use of force against a representative of the authority’). On 26 February 2015, the Basmanny district court in Moscow placed him under house arrest until 6 April 2015. He was formally charged on 2 March 2015. He has been in custody since 25 February 2015.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution is being conducted exclusively in connection with the non-violent use of his right to free assembly, on the basis of an alleged offence that did not in fact take place, with violation of his right to a fair trial and the disproportionate use of pre-trial detention.

33. Nikiforov, Sergei Savelevich, was born on 31 October 1968. A resident of the village of Ivanovskoye in the Amur Region, he is married with five foster children. Mr Nikiforov has been the head of the Ivanovsky rural council (an elected office, second term); he was temporarily suspended from the office. He is the leader of the Evenk community. Mr Nikiforov was found guilty of crimes under point ‘v’ of Part Five, Art. 290 (‘Bribe-taking by a functionary on a large scale’) of the Russian Criminal Code and Part Two of Art. 285 (‘Use by the head of a local self-government of official powers, contrary to the interests of the service, out of mercenary or other personal interest’). The court of first instance sentenced him to 5 years of imprisonment in a strict-regime penal colony, a fine of 16 million roubles and a further prohibition on holding official positions in local self-government bodies for 2 years and 6 months. The appeals court reduced the sentence to 4 years of imprisonment in a strict-regime penal colony, a fine of 3 million roubles and a prohibition on holding official positions in local self-government bodies for 2 years.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds of a violation of his right to a fair trial.

34. Nikonorov, Alexei Vyacheslavovich, was born on 8 August 1982. At the time of his arrest, he served as a field operations police officer at the rank of captain at the Criminal Investigations Department of the Kostroma district branch of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs. He was sentenced to 3 years and 7 seven months of imprisonment in a general-regime penal colony and a fine of 150 thousand rubles under Part Three of Article 272 (‘Illegal access to a protected computer information followed by its modification or copying, committed by a group of people by preliminary agreement’) of the Russian Criminal Code, Part One of Article 286 (‘Exceeding official powers’), Part Three of Article 290 (‘Bribe-taking by a functionary for the commission of knowingly illegal actions’). He has been deprived of freedom since 28 July 2015.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that the prosecution is based on an alleged offence that did not in fact take place with violation of his right to a fair trial and disproportionate use of pre-trial detention, given the charges laid against him.

35. Panfilov, Maksim Alekseevich, was born in 1985. He is a resident of Astrakhan and suffers from a neurological health condition. At the time of his arrest, he was unemployed. He was charged under Part Two of Art. 212 (‘Participation in mass riots’) of the Russian Criminal Code and Part One of Art. 318 (‘Use of force against a representative of the authority’) in the Bolotnaya case. He has been held in custody since 7 April 2016.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution is being conducted in relation to an alleged offence that did not in fact take place, with violation of the right to fair trial and disproportionate use of pre-trial detention in relation to the alleged offence.

36. Parfyonov, Valery Nikolaevich, was born on 3 August 1974. A resident of the city of Moscow, he worked as a systems administrator at the Moscow Unified Energy Company. Mr Parfyonov was charged with committing a crime under Part One of Art. 282.2 (‘Organisation of the activities of an extremist organisation’) of the Russian Criminal Code, for having allegedly pursued the activities of the inter-regional public movement ‘Army of the People’s Will’, banned in Russia in 2010, through the Initiative Group for the Holding of a Referendum ‘For a responsible government’ ‘with the aim of carrying out extremist activities’. Mr Parfenov has been in custody since 28 July 2015.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution is being conducted exclusively in connection with the non-violent exercise of his right to free expression of his opinion, in relation to an offence that did not in fact take place, with violation of his right to a fair trial.

37. Parpulov, Petr Ivanovich, was born in 1955. Since the 1980s up to his detention in 2014, he worked as an air traffic control officer at the civilian airport in Sochi although he had already reached pensionable age. Mr Parpulov was found guilty under Art. 275 (‘High treason’) of the Russian Criminal Code and sentenced to 12 years in a strict-regime penal colony. He has been in custody since 4 March 2014.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution was conducted in relation to an alleged offence that did not in fact take place, with violation of the right to fair trial.

38. Pichugin, Alexei Vladimirovich, was born on 25 July 1962. He is a former head of the department of internal economic security for the Yukos oil company. Two guilty verdicts were delivered against him, in 2005 and 2007, under Art. 162 (‘Robbery’) of the Russian Criminal Code and Art. 105 (‘Murder’). He was sentenced to life imprisonment in a special-regime penal colony. During the investigation and trials, numerous violations were noted, which allows us to assert that Mr Pichugin’s guilt was not proven, and that the evidence on which the verdicts were based was falsified. Mr Pichugin has been in custody since 19 June 2003.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution was conducted with violation of his right to a fair trial.

39. Polyudova, Darya Vladimirovna, was born on 4 February 1989. At the time of her arrest, she was a resident of the city of Krasnodar. She is a Left Front activist. On 21 December 2015, she was sentenced to 2 years in a low security penal colony under Part One of Art. 280 (‘Public appeals for an extremist activity’) of the Russian Criminal Code, Part Two of Art. 280 (‘Public appeals for an extremist activity committed using the Internet’), Part Two of Art. 280.1 (‘Public appeals for actions aimed at a violation of the territorial integrity of the Russian Federation’) in connection with her participation in the preparation of a ‘March for the Federalization of the Kuban’ that did not take place. The sentence entered into force on 30 March 2016. On 20 April 2016, Ms Polyudova independently arrived at her place of detention.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that her prosecution was conducted on the basis of an alleged offence that did not in fact take place, with violation of the right to fair trial and disproportionate use of pre-trial detention, given the nature of the charges laid against her.

40. Reznikov, Sergey Petrovich, was born on 25 January 1961. A resident of Moscow, he is the general director of the ‘Demetra-2000 M’ limited liability company. Since 2003, he had been a member of the territorial electoral commission of the district of Prospect Vernadskogo representing the Communist Party of the Russian Federation. On 6 April 2017, he was sentenced to 3 years of general-regime penal colony on charges under Part Two of Art. 228 (‘Illegal storage of narcotic substances on a large scale’) of the Russian Criminal Code. On the same day, he was taken into custody.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution is being conducted in relation to an alleged offence that did not in fact take place, with violation of the right to fair trial and disproportionate use of pre-trial detention in relation to the alleged offence.

41. Sentsov, Oleg Gennadyevich, was born on 13 July 1976. A resident of the city of Simferopol, Mr Sentsov is a film director and producer. He was an Automaidan activist and supported the movement for a united Ukraine in Crimea in February-March 2014. Mr Sentsov was sentenced to 20 years of imprisonment in a strict-regime penal colony on the charges of crimes envisaged under Part One of Art. 205.4 (‘Organisation of a terrorist group’) of the Russian Criminal Code, two episodes under point ‘a’ of Part Two, Art. 205 (‘Terrorist act committed by an organised group’), Part One of Art. 30 in conjunction with point ‘a’ of Part Two, Art. 205, (‘Preparation of a terrorist act’), Part Three of Art. 30 in conjunction with Part Three of Art. 222 (‘Attempted illegal acquisition of firearms and explosive devices’), and Part Three of Art. 222 (‘Illegal acquisition and storage of firearms and explosive devices’). Mr Sentsov has been in custody since 11 May 2014.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution was conducted with violation of his right to a fair trial.

42. Sharina, Natalya Grigoryevna, was born on 13 July 1957. A resident of the city of Moscow, she is a Russian citizen and acts as the director of the government-funded Library of Ukrainian Literature in Moscow. Ms Sharina was charged with a crime under point ‘b’ of Part Two, Art. 282 (‘Incitement of hatred or enmity and abasement of human dignity, committed by a person using their professional position’) of the Russian Criminal Code and Part Four of Art. 160 (‘Embezzlement’). Ms Sharina was detained on 28 October 2015 and on 30 October 2015 was placed under house arrest while awaiting trial.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that her prosecution is being conducted in relation to an alleged offence that did not in fact take place.

43. Shishkin, Vitaly Viktorovich, was born on 6 August 1972. He is a Russian citizen and an opposition activist of Russian nationalist persuasion. Mr Shishkin was sentenced to 4 years in a general-regime penal colony on charges of committing crimes under Part Three of Art. 212 (‘Appeals for mass riots’) of the Russian Criminal Code and Part One of Art. 282 (‘Incitement of hatred or enmity’). Mr Shishkin has been in custody since 13 February 2015.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution was conducted exclusively in connection with the non-violent implementation of his right to free expression of his opinion, on a charge of an alleged offence that had not in fact taken place, with violation of his right to a fair trial.

44. Smyshlyayev, Maxim Nikolayevich, was born on 22 December 1982. He is a resident of the city of Rostov-on-Don of left persuasions. At the time of his arrest, he worked at a McDonald’s and studied extramurally at the Institute of History and International Relations of the Southern Federal University. He was charged with committing a crime under Part Three of Art. 205.1 (‘Complicity in the preparation of a terrorist act’) of the Russian Criminal Code for having allegedly aided a minor holding the citizenship of Ukraine in the preparation of a terrorist act that did not take place. Since 22 April 2016, he has been held in custody while awaiting trial.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution was conducted with violation of his right to a fair trial.

45. Sokolov, Alexander Aleksandrovich, was born on 17 November 1987. A resident of the city of Moscow, he holds a PhD in economics. He was worked as a journalist at the RBC news agency. Mr Sokolov was charged with committing a crime under Part Art. 282.2 (‘Organisation of the activities of an extremist organisation’) of the Russian Criminal Code for having allegedly pursued the activities of the inter-regional public movement ‘Army of the People’s Will’, banned in Russia in 2010, through the Initiative Group for the Holding of a Referendum ‘For a responsible government’ ‘with the aim of carrying out extremist activities’. Mr Sokolov has been in custody since 28 July 2015.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution is being conducted exclusively in connection with the non-violent implementation of his right to freely express his opinion, on a charge of an alleged offence that in fact did not take place, with violation of his right to a fair trial.

46. Staroverov, Yury Viktorovich, was born on 14 November 1982. He is an activist of the party ‘The Other Russia’ and a member of the civil movement of Nizhny Novgorod. Mr Staroverov was charged under Part One of Art. 318 (‘Use of force against a representative of the authority’) of the Russian Criminal Code and given a 3-year suspended term with a period of 3 years of probation for having allegedly hit a riot police officer during the dispersal of a civil march on 15 September 2012. On 10 February 2016, the Ostankinsky district court of the city of Moscow replaced the verdict with 3 years of imprisonment in a general-regime penal colony. Mr Staroverov was taken into custody on the same day.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution was conducted in relation to an alleged offence that did not in fact take place, with violation of his right to a fair trial and the disproportionate use of pre-trial detention, given the charges laid against him.

47. Stenin, Igor Anatolyevich, was born on 24 October 1965. A resident of the city of Astrakhan, he is an opposition activist of Russian nationalist persuasion. He was charged with crimes under Part Two of Art. 280 (‘Public appeals for an extremist activity committed using the Internet’) of the Russian Criminal code and, on 16 May 2016, was sentenced to 2 years of imprisonment in a low-security penal colony. On 28 July 2016, the sentence came into force. On 9 September 2016, Mr Stenin arrived at his place of detention. On 28 November 28 2016, his prison regime was toughened to the general.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution was conducted in relation to an alleged offence that did not in fact take place, with violation of his right to a fair trial.

48. Tutisani, Inga Zhorayevna, was born on 18 February 1970. A resident of the city of Sochi, she is unemployed. She was sentenced to 6 years of imprisonment in a general-regime penal colony for crimes under Art. 275 (‘High treason’). Ms. Tutisani has been held in custody since 25 October 2013.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that her prosecution was conducted in relation to an alleged offence that did not in fact take place, with violation of her right to a fair trial and the disproportionate use of pre-trial detention, given the charges laid against her.

49. Tyumentsev, Vadim Viktorovich, was born on 3 December 1980. A resident of the city of Tomsk, he is a video blogger and a civil society activist. Mr Tyumentsev was charged with committing crimes under Part Two of Art. 280 (‘Public appeals for an extremist activity committed using the Internet’) of the Russian Criminal Code and Part One of Art. 282 (‘Actions aimed at the incitement of enmity, or abasement of human dignity on the basis of their sex, race, nationality, language, origin, attitude to religion and also their affiliation with a social group.’). Mr Tyumentsev has been in custody since 28 April 2015.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution is being conducted in relation to an alleged offence that did not in fact take place, with violation of his right to a fair trial and disproportionate use of pre-trial detention, given the nature of the charges laid against him.

50. Udaltsov, Sergei Stanislavovich, was born on 16 April 1977. Udaltsov was a member of the Coordinating Council of the Opposition and a leader of the Left Front. After the screening of the propaganda film ‘Anatomy of a Protest-2’ on the NTV channel, Mr Udaltsov was sentenced to 4 years and 6 months of imprisonment in a general-regime penal colony under Part One of Art. 30 in conjunction with Part One of Art. 212 (‘Preparation of actions aimed at organising mass riots’) of the Russian Criminal Code and Part One of Art. 212 (‘Organisation of mass riots’). Mr Udaltsov was under house arrest from 9 February 2013 until being taken into custody on 24 July 2014.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution was conducted on the basis of an alleged offence that did not in fact take place, with violation of his right to a fair trial and the disproportionate use of pre-trial detention.

51. Zagreev, Robert Raufanovich, was born on 3 July 1964. A resident of the city of Ufa in the Republic of Bashkortostan, he is a journalist and an opposition politician. He was sentenced to 3 years in prison in a strict-regime penal colony on charges of crimes under Part One of Art. 205.2 (‘Public appeals for terrorist activity’) of the Russian Criminal Code. Mr Zagreev was under house arrest from 27 April 2015, and has been in custody since 29 October 2015.

Recognized as a political prisoner on the grounds that his prosecution was conducted exclusively with respect to his peaceful exercise of his right to freedom of expression of opinion, on a charge of an alleged offence that in fact did not take place, with violation of the right to fair trial.  

Download the file of list by selecting the file format: