Россия

From 1 to July 10, 2016, a call to action in solidarity with anarchists and antifascists imprisoned-e-s in Russia was made by the Anarchist Black Cross of Moscow. Indeed, the political and repressive situation in Russia is very hard for our comrades fighting for anarchism and fascism (and more generally for all those fighting for human rights), and many of them found themselves es imprisoned in high security prisons or labor camps because of their activism, often condemned es for terrorism or violence. Some were convicted on the basis of confessions obtained under torture, others on facts which they were not even present .

July 2nd, in Simferopol near the FSB and Crimean prosecutor’s offices activists held pickets as a part of International Days of Solidarity with political anarchist and anti-fascist prisoners. Authorities had not confirmed pickets, and police had been at the venue.

Vladimir Putin will visit Finland on friday 1th of July 2016. Conflict in Ukraine is still going on, in year 2016 only more than 600 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed and wounded in ceasefire violations.

31 may 2016 Taganrog City Court Judge Georgy Serebryanikov sentenced 31-year-old local resident Elizaveta Tsvetkova to a year of corrective labor for disseminating leaflets criticizing the police, reports Caucasian Knot. As published on the court’s website, the verdict stipulates that fifteen percent of Tsvetkova’s wages will be docked by the state for a year. The activist has also been charged 6,000 rubles in court costs. Serebryanikov found the defendant guilty under Criminal Code Article 281.2 (incitement of hatred or enmity toward the social group “police officers”), which stipulates a maximum punishment of four years in a penal colony.

When mass civil protests in Russia were defeated in 2011-12 the Putinist police regime started open political repressions against militants of social and political movements, including anarchists and antifascists. Many activists have been sentenced to prison terms in the course of the last 5 years in Russia.   We call on comrades from the whole world to show solidarity with Russian anarchists and antifascists – prisoners of the Putinist police state, and distribute information about the international solidarity decade as widely as possible, maybe organise an event in your own town.

Dmitry Buchenkov, PhD in political sciences, antifascist, anarchist and boxing coach, has been under arrest for already more than three months in “Vodnik” remand prison. Investigators suspect him of participating in the riots of May 6, 2012 at Bolotnaya Square in Moscow. The absurdity of the accusation against Dmitry Buchenkov is quite evident: he had been in Nizhny Novgorod on that day, more than 300 km away from Moscow, but he was arrested anyway despite the alibi.

A well-known antifascist and anarchist Dmitry Buchenkov, PhD in political science, was arrested in Moscow in December 2015. He is suspected of participating in the riots of May 6, 2012. More than 400 persons were arrested as a result of a mass protest action against Putin’s politics that took place on May 6, 2012 in Moscow. Dmitry was not in Moscow on that day, he was in Nizhny Novgorod, more than 300 km away from Moscow. Dmitry is a long-time participant of the antifascist and anarchist movements and he has done a lot for their development. Dmitry’s comrades and friends believe that the arrest is related to his political militancy and his active position regarding the developments taking place in the country.

At the beginning of December, Dmitry Buchenkov became the latest person in Russia’s ‘Bolotnaya Case’, a series of investigations and trials into Russia’s opposition now in its fourth year. Buchenkov, a 36-year old history lecturer at a Moscow medical university, is the 31st defendant in Bolotnaya. More than two hundred people were detained in the initial case, which stretches back to the ‘March of the Millions’, an opposition demonstration on the eponymous square in May 2012. The protest was timed to coincide with the inauguration of Vladimir Putin’s third presidential term, and this didn’t go unnoticed. During the sanctioned demonstration, the police cut off the square, in effect ‘kettling’ the protesters. Scuffles started between police and protesters, and a pitched battle of sorts began before the crowd was violently dispersed. 

Russian authorities have upped the ante in their pressure on anarchists from “Autonomous Action” movement as of late – this includes a new prisoner charged with the Bolotnaya Square case, Dmitry Buchenkov, and an antifa activist Alexei Sutuga. The Insider found out why the Kremlin is all rage against the leftist anarchists, and we also talked to Sutuga’s mother. Buchenkov and Sutuga  A new figure appeared last week in the Bolotnaya Square case: Dmitry Buchenkov, Ph.D. in political science, docent in the Russian National Research Medical University named after N.I.Pirogov (the so called 2nd Med) was arrested charged with a standard set of accusations used in the May 6 case. Buchenkov was allegedly bashing coppers and participating in the riots....

"OVD-INFO" (russian NGO which observes police repressions) has found photos of Bolotnaya Square on May 6, 2012. In the center the person in black "which in Investigative committee (Russian analog of FBI) is considered to be Dmitry Buchenkov". According to Buchenkov's companions, it is obviouslu another person. Any person who has seen Dmitry Buchenkov at least once, would understand that there is different person on this photo. But our state and its repressive structures probably have "problems with sight", giving out a photo of the unknown person for a photo Dmitry.

Human rights activists found the new person involved in "Bolotnaya Square case" who was looked for four days by relatives and the lawyer. I remember how three years ago we counted arrested of "bolotnik": the first, the second, thirteenth, eighteenth. Then some of arrested were released — it appeared that they have an alibi and on Bolotnaya Square on May 6 they weren't. Then trials of those who really was on Bolotnaya Square, but those crimes which were charged began, didn't make at all — that is police officers didn't beat, to them didn't hurt, and only protected from them those whom police officers rigidly detained.

Anarchist Black Cross Moscow (ABC - Moscow) is calling for solidarity to help the anti-fascist and anarchist Oleg Serebrennikov. For more than ten years, Oleg has actively participated in the anarchist and anti-fascist movements in Russia and in Izhevsk. He has worked with the ABC – Moscow collective, and has aided detainees and arrested anti-fascists and anarchists within Izhevsk, helping them look for lawyers; he has been very vocal concerning police and state repression against anti-fascists in the city; he has also actively participated in solidarity actions in support of imprisoned anti-fascists and social activists. Due to serious problems with his health which arose after an attack by Neo-Nazis on Oleg in 2004, he is in dire need of help. Please share the story Oleg's case within your communities, organize solidarity concerts and events, and/or even write a letter to him for support. Additionally, it is simple to transfer funds to his fund (see the bank accounts provided below)

Supporting campaign for Crimean antifascist Alexander Kolchenko Alexandr Kolchenko and Oleg Sentsov will be under the arrest at least until the middle of April 2015.