Russia: Release of imprisoned activists must mark beginning of turn towards human rights

2 August 2024

Reacting to the release of 16 individuals from Russian prisons, including Russian human rights defenders, as part of a prisoner swap deal, Marie Struthers, Amnesty International's Director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia, said:

"Today, we share the relief and joy for the release of detained human rights defenders, activists and journalists, who will soon be finally able to hug their loved ones. We are grateful that the voices of the global and Russian human rights communities have been heard, and that the freedom of these individuals has been brokered. They should never have been behind bars - their prosecution was a grave injustice.

"While their release is an important step, it should not remain an isolated episode. The right way forward is the dismantling of Russia's system of political repression, not bartering human beings. The Russian authorities must free unconditionally all other individuals arbitrarily detained on political grounds, such as Natalia Filonova, Aleksei Gorinov, Maria Ponomarenko, Vladimir Rumyantsev and many more, and provide remedy for their unjust detention. The repressive legislation that enables these prosecutions must also be abolished."

Background

On 1 August, in a swap deal brokered between Russia and Belarus on the one hand and Germany, Norway, Poland, Slovenia and the US on the other, the authorities in Moscow and Minsk pardoned, released and exiled 16 prisoners, including Russian activists and human rights defenders Oleg Orlov, Aleksandra (Sasha) Skochilenko, Lilia Chanysheva, Ksenia Fadeeva, Vladimir Kara-Murza, Andrei Pivovarov and Ilya Yashin, and journalists Evan Gershkovich and Alsu Kurmasheva, among others. These and some of the other released individuals had been imprisoned following unfair trials under politically motivated charges relating to criticism of the authorities, anti-war activism and journalistic work. In return, eight individuals convicted in Germany, Norway, Poland, Slovenia and the US, under espionage and other charges, have been handed over to Russia.