During Vladimir Putin’s fourth presidential term, 116,000 people were subjected to repression. This is written by the Russian The Project, an investigative group that conducts investigative journalism. – It is sad, but unfortunately not surprising, says Petr Vasilev, who is a board member of SmåRådina. According to him, methods from the Soviet regime are on the way back. – For example, a person was declared insane and locked up inside. Today it is also used against political prisoners, as a means of keeping them locked up indefinitely. Petr Vasilev in SmåRådina. Photo: Simon Pugh Photography On Tuesday, Oleg Orlov, one of the men behind the human rights organization Memorial, was sentenced to prison for criticizing Putin and his regime. Almost no one is acquitted The journalists have obtained information from courts in the country, and have looked at criminal cases and offenses from 2018 to 2023. In these six years, the courts received almost 600,000 cases that dealt with violence against or violation of governing powers, and “insubordination”. More than 50,000 people were subjected to oppression because of words and opinions. 4,500 military personnel were put on trial after new rules were introduced as a result of the war. The number of acquittals in Russia is less than 1 percent, according to the website. news has tried to contact the Russian embassy in Norway, but has not received a reply. Thinks Putin is afraid Inna Sangadzhieva is head of department for Europe and Central Asia in the Helsinki Committee. Ho herself grew up in the Russian Republic of Kalmykia, and has seen the parallels to the Soviet Union. She thinks Putin is afraid. – Putin’s regime is afraid of society and those who are ready to participate in politics. Navalny is an example of how much one person can do alone. Inna Sangadzhieva in the Norwegian Helsinki Committee. Photo: The Norwegian Helsingforskomitee She was nevertheless surprised by the speech. – These are high numbers. It says something about how much protest there is in society, and how many are fighting for their rights. But not everyone who breaks the law is aware of it. – If you wear, for example, earrings with rainbow colors, you are suddenly an extremist, she says. Stalin tops the statistics Only one thing is clear, write The Project. In the extent of repression, Putin has long surpassed almost all Soviet leaders, except one – Josef Stalin. He was one of the Soviet Union’s foremost leaders, and sent many hundreds of thousands to prison or concentration camps from 1937–1938 alone. When the Gulag system was at its largest in 1953, there were said to have been 146 labor camps in the Soviet Union. The number of prisoners in leaders and colonies grew to around 2.5 million. Josef Stalin led the Soviet Union from 1924 to 1953. Even in self-censorship, Putin has in recent years introduced dozens of laws that restrict freedom of expression. Those who express disagreement can be expelled from the university and forced out of the country. If you refuse to travel, you must publicly say sorry and swear allegiance to the authorities. According to the digging group, it is impossible to know how many have been subjected to such oppression. – If there are statistics, they are well hidden by the police, they write. Vasilev in SmåRådina says people no longer dare to share opinions and thoughts. – People are afraid of how it will backfire on them. They censor themselves, and it is also very reminiscent of the Soviet Union. The people become paralyzed. The police arrest a man during a demonstration in St. Petersburg in 2021. The demonstration was in support of opposition leader Alexei Navalny. Photo: Olga MALTSEVA / AFP Refusal to go to war When the war against Ukraine broke out, the authorities took action against those who refused to fight for Russia. Since 2022, the penalty for not complying with an order has been greatly increased. More than 13,000 people were put on trial, 4,500 of them military personnel. The website writes that it is probably a large number of hidden figures, because Putin and the government use a wide range of techniques to exercise power – such as fines, harassment, espionage. Recently, Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny was found dead in prison. His supporters claim he was killed. Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre lit a candle in front of the picture of Alexei Navalny in Kirkenes. Photo: Sebastian Faugstad / news Pandemic punishment The corona pandemic in 2020 also brought new rules, and new rules violations. From April 2022 to the end of April 2023, around 159,000 people in Russia were punished due to cases linked to the pandemic. The Russian consumer authorities (Rospotrebnadzor), the police and the courts continued to punish Russians for breaking quarantine rules until last summer. Vasilev in SmåRådina does not think the situation will improve in the coming years. Sangadzhieva is more positive. – It may take time, but I have hope that the situation will change and that Russia will manage to become a democracy. Other countries in the Soviet Union have done it before them, but this is the toughest fight.
ttn-69
Only Stalin has arrested more people than Putin – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
