Правозащита

Just learned about another intention of the authorities of Sevastopol to ban peaceful protests, appointed on June 19, Saturday at 15:00 at the Square. Rebels.

"Belgrade Six were acquitted today. The Court recognized the impossibility to prove their involvement in crime attributable to them.

In evening of 14th of April officers of Center of Counteraction Against Extremism (“Center E”) in Tyumen region searched house and arrested for 48 hours local anarchist and member of Autonomous Action Andrey Kutuzov. According to friends of Andrey, pretext of the arrest was a leaflet, which Center E officers considered “extremist”. Friends of Andrey say that leaflet was planted during the search. Andrey Kutuzov and Rustam Fahretdninov were arrested in January of 2009 for “political vandalism”, eventually criminal case against them was closed due to “lack of proof”. This history resulted a criminal case against officers of “Center E”, who back then beat up one of the arrested. 
 

It is an open secret that the newly created centers for counteraction of extremism in Russia often become the tool of repression and work against civil liberties and initiatives. Doing their work the "fighters against extremism" don't despise to break the law brutally. In Petrozavodsk 3 young people became the victims of the police outrage. They were being pressed and tortured and now the case is being fabricated.

We have posted on the ridiculous case of Vsevolod “Seva” Ostapov on two previous occasions. Yesterday, February 17, the whole ugly story came to a (we hope, temporary) conclusion in a Moscow court. Below, you’ll find translations of some of the coverage in the non-state-controlled press.

In Izhevsk, officers of Centre of Counteraction Against Extremism (CPE, new Russian political police, formed in January of 2009) are falsifying a case against members of Autonomous Action. According to Galina Shutova, who is yet a witness in the case, state wants to make her a terrorist: “Officer of CPE Artyom Ahmetzyanov said to me directly, that he wants to do anything to lock me down”.

12th of October sentencing of Yura M., anarchist who killed a local Nazi in self-defence 22nd of November 2008. This was third time Yura got attacked by Nazis, he was jumped in April of 2006 15 to 5 and was hospitalized with a brain damage. He also suffered seriously in attack against Ecological protest camp in Angarsk 21st of July 2007, after attack he spent days in coma, two months in hospital and it took a whole year for him to recover. His friend Ilya Borodaenko was not that lucky, and he died as a result of the attack.