The Released
During the time our exhibition has been running, five political prisoners out of our original 16 "subjects" have been released.
On August 1, 2024, a historic event took place in Turkey: 16 prisoners from Russian jails, including five heroes of our exhibition, were exchanged for 8 Russians (intelligence agents and hackers) who were imprisoned in various countries around the world.
The freed Russian political prisoners have already joined the fight to preserve Ukraine's independence and to advocate for their colleagues still imprisoned.
Andrey Pivovarov wrote a few words specifically for the updated exhibition. Here they are:
“My deepest thanks to everyone who supported me during the 3 years and 2 months I spent in a Russian prison. Thanks to the support of people around the world, I was able to get through this ordeal. I am now with my family, in no small part thanks to you and your efforts.
It is now my responsibility to ensure that Russia becomes a free country that no longer threatens its neighbors, so that we no longer have political prisoners, and so that there would be no need to tell these stories at this beautiful exhibition anymore.”
Yes, the release of 16 people is a tremendous joy, and we are grateful to the authorities in Germany, the USA, and everyone who contributed to this act of humanity. But over 2,000 people—victims of politically motivated criminal cases—are still languishing in Russian prisons.
Let's not forget that the West insisted on exchanging Russia's leading opposition figure, Alexei Navalny, but in February 2024, he was killed in a penal colony.
To prevent other brave Russians from meeting Navalny's fate, we will continue to fight for their release and urge you to help (at least by not voting for those politicians of yours who support Putin).
The more the West talks about Russian political prisoners, the higher the chances of new exchanges, and the less likely it is that the Kremlin can silence this issue and keep innocent people behind bars with impunity.
Photo by Gennady Cherkasov
Ilya Yashin
Politician
8.5 years of imprisonment
The reason for initiating a criminal case against the politician Ilya Yashin was a stream on his popular YouTube channel, in which he talked about the crimes of the Russian army in Bucha. Yashin's fault was actually that he did not limit himself only to the official version of the Russian Defense Ministry, in which reports of the involvement of the Russian military in the deaths of civilians in Bucha were called "provocation".
For several months, the security forces hinted to Yashin that he should either leave the country or keep quiet, but he publicly stated that he would never leave his homeland, and continued to tell the truth about the war.
"Putin is a war criminal. In the end, I will give up my place in prison to him. It gives me strength to feel morally superior to the thieves and murderers who have seized power. They know I'm not afraid of them. I did not run from them, nor begged for mercy, and never lowered my eyes in front of them. And it also gives me strength to feel responsible for my country," – Yashin said at one of the courts.
Ilya Yashin, 40, has been a critic of the Russian government for many years. He entered politics in 2000, has been a member of various opposition movements since his student days, was a friend of Boris Nemtsov, who was killed by the walls of the Kremlin, and was one of Alexey Navalny's closest associates.
As a young man, he was a fan of flamboyant political performances: in the fall of 2006, he and a colleague leaned out of a bridge near the Kremlin on climbing gear, holding a huge banner: "Give the people back the elections, you bastards!" A year later, together with a fellow member of the Yabloko Youth movement, they put on fire-resistant costumes and set themselves on fire in front of the Kremlin, unfolding a banner: "No successors, or Burn in hell!".
Later Yashin repeatedly tried to participate in elections of various levels, but usually he was illegally removed from them. Only in 2017, he still managed to win the election and become a municipal deputy of the Krasnoselsky district in the center of Moscow, and then head this municipal district.
At the end of 2022, Ilya Yashin was sentenced to 8.5 years in prison. "Please do not fall into despair and do not forget that this is our country. It is worth fighting for. Be brave, do not back down before evil and resist. Stand up for your street, for your cities. And most importantly, stand up for each other. There are many more of us than it seems, and we are a huge force," – he addressed the Russians in his last speech.
Released on August 1, 2024, as part of a prisoner exchange.
Photo by Alexandra Astakhova
Vladimir Kara-Murza
Politician, journalist
25 years of imprisonment
On April 28, 2023, amendments to the Criminal Code came into force in Russia, according to which a treason can be punished by a life term. In a sense, the politician Vladimir Kara-Murza was somehow lucky as he was sentenced for treason, cooperation with an" undesirable"organization (Mikhail Khodorkovsky's Open Russia) and" spreading fakes"about the Russian army" only "to 25 years in prison less two weeks before this came into force.
Kara-Murza has been a consistent critic of the Russian government for many years. Together with his friend Boris Nemtsov (under Yeltsin-First Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, under Putin-shot by a hitman b the walls of the Kremlin), he fought for the adoption of sanctions against Russian officials, businessmen, security forces and judges after the death in prison of the lawyer Sergei Magnitsky. Later Kara-Murza convinced US congressmen that the Magnitsky Act should include not only those responsible for the lawyer's death, but also those responsible for "gross violations of human rights in Russia."
During the time that Kara-Murza spent under arrest, his health deteriorated sharply, he lost more than 20 kilograms. He was diagnosed with lower limb polyneuropathy — which is included in the list of diseases that prevent serving a sentence. Kara-Murza got this disease most likely due to two poisonings in Russia in 2015 and 2017. The politician almost died both times, and in 2021, journalists found out that he was followed by the same FSB officers whom Alexey Navalny accused of poisoning with Novichok in 2020.
Kara-Murza is sure that they tried to kill him in revenge for his opposition activities and lobbying for the Magnitsky Act. Although the Russian authorities considered the politician a traitor, he himself said that "the act is not anti-Russian, but pro-Russian," and "when a normal justice system appears in Russia, he himself will be the first to seek its cancellation."
After the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Kara-Murza took a tough anti-war stance and refused to leave the country, despite the risk of arrest. In his last speech at the trial, Kara-Murza said: "I know that the day will come when the darkness over our country will dissipate. When black is called black and white is called white; when it is officially recognized that two and two are still four; when a war is called a war, and a usurper is called a usurper; and when those who incited and unleashed this war are recognized as criminals, and not those who tried to stop it."
He was severely sentenced by Judge Podoprigorov, who was on the Magnitsky list.
Released on August 1, 2024, as part of a prisoner exchange.
Photo from personal Instagram page
Lilia Chanysheva
Politician
7.5 years of imprisonment
Lilia Chanysheva, a graduate of the prestigious Financial Academy in Moscow, worked as an auditor in a branch of Deloitte in Ufa. She received a good salary and could achieve a lot in her profession. But in 2017, Chanysheva gave up her career to fight the Putin’s regime.
Having headed Alexey Navalny's headquarters in Ufa (the capital of Bashkiria), she became involved in politics: she organized rallies, tried to participate in elections, and helped Bashkiria residents repel an attack on Mount Kushtau (a natural monument that they wanted to give away for the development of a limestone deposit).
After Navalny was sent to prison in 2021, and his headquarters in Russian regions were deemed extremist by the Kremlin, they closed down, and many of their leaders hurried to leave the country. Lilia stayed.
She decided to leave politics to devote herself to her family — six months before her arrest, Lilia got married and tried to get pregnant. Her husband Almaz Gatin, it seems, is still not used to the fact that his beloved is not next to him, but in prison, and continues to fight for his happiness. "I was struck by how strong spirit could have a woman and how she could be ready to do here and now not so much for herself, but for her republic, for her city, for her people. I am grateful to God that such a person has appeared in my life," – he said.
Lilia was accused of "creating an extremist community" and " promoting the actions of an organization that infringes on the identity and rights of citizens," although this organization — Navalny's headquarters — was engaged only in political struggle.
On June 14, 2023 the court sent Chanysheva to prison for 7.5 years.
Released on August 1, 2024, as part of a prisoner exchange.
Photo from Facebook page
Andrey Pivovarov
Politician
4 years of imprisonment
On May 31, 2021, a plane flying from St. Petersburg to Warsaw was already taxiing to the runway, but suddenly stopped. Andrey Pivovarov, the ex-director of Open Russia (a public organization founded by ex-political prisoner Mikhail Khodorkovsky), called his girlfriend Tatyana Usmanova and said that an FSB car was approaching the ramp.
Pivovarov was removed from the flight and arrested, accused of "carrying out the activities of an undesirable organization." According to Russian laws, such organizations are foreign or international non-profit organizations whose activities "may pose a threat to the foundations of the constitutional order of the Russian Federation, the country's defense capability or state security." They are prohibited from operating on the territory of the Russian Federation, and Russians who cooperate with such organizations face prison.
By the fall of 2023, there are already more than 100 undesirable organizations in Russia: among them are independent media outlets, such as the TVRain channel or Novaya Gazeta Europe, and Greenpeace with the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). However, so far only former employees of Open Russia, which announced the termination of its activities in May 2021 (shortly before Pivovarov's detention), have been brought to criminal responsibility.
On July 15, 2022, the court sentenced Pivovarov to 4 years in prison. His associates believe that the politician was behind bars, because for many years he fought with the Putin’s regime and was going to run for the State Duma elections in 2021. He recorded a video about his candidacy ten days before his arrest. "Of course, I understand the risks I'm taking. But I'm not afraid of pressure and harassment. And I am ready to take on this responsibility. I have a son. He is still very young and does not go to school, but I want him to grow up in a free Russia," he said. Andrey Pivovarov did become a candidate for deputy, but he conducted his election campaign from a prison cell.
Now the politician is in the Karelian IK-7 and spends most of his time not in a barrack, but in a separate room, he is isolated from other prisoners. In fact, it is a "prison within a prison". The bed on which he sleeps is strapped to the wall from 5am to 9pm, Pivovarov receives a pen "on schedule", he is deprived of access to information: there is only music on a radio.
In July 2023, Pivovarov married Usmanova — the wedding ceremony was held in the colony.
Released on August 1, 2024, as part of a prisoner exchange.
Photo by Alexandra Astakhova
Sasha Skochilenko
The artist
7 years of imprisonment
On the evening of March 31, 2022, Sasha Skochilenko went to a supermarket in St. Petersburg and replaced the price tags with stickers with information about the shelling of the Mariupol Drama Theater and the death of Ukrainian civilians. The 72-year-old customer found the price tag and wrote a denunciation to Skochilenko. Since April 2022, the artist has been under arrest, and she faces from five to ten years in prison for anti-war campaigning.
In 2014, Sasha released the comic book "The Book of Depression", in which she explained what this disease is and how to notice it in her loved ones. After the war began, Skochilenko attended protest actions and organized musical "Peace Jams", where everyone could come. Sasha drew a series of postcards "Love is stronger than war and death" and "Human life has no price".
Once in prison, Skochilenko repeatedly complained of poor health, the return of depressive episodes and the lack of proper medical care. Sasha has bipolar affective disorder and gluten intolerance, but the administration of the pre-trial detention center did not allow to pass food to the girl and provide her with medicines.
In a letter from prison, Sasha wrote: "It just so happens that I represent all the things that the Putin’s regime is so intolerant of: creativity, pacifism, LGBT, psycho-education, feminism, humanism and a love of everything bright, ambiguous, unusual."
The campaign in support of Sasha is carried out by her girlfriend Sofia Subbotina. For a whole year, they were not allowed to have dates or calls. In the summer of 2023, Sofia said that she was diagnosed with cancer.
Released on August 1, 2024, as part of a prisoner exchange.