Russian human rights activist sentenced to 2.5 years in prison – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries

70-year-old Orlov is one of the leaders of Memorial, the now-banned human rights organization that was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2022. The case against him began the same year, when he wrote an article in which he criticized Russia for having descended into fascism under President Vladimir Putin. Orlov was accused of violating Russia’s armed forces, according to Memorial. – I regret nothing, Orlov said with a trembling voice ahead of the verdict, according to the AFP news agency. Perseverance has been a hallmark of the prominent activist. He has spoken against the regime since Soviet forces entered Afghanistan more than 40 years ago. – To admit guilt in front of the judges? That would be denying my entire life’s work, said Orlov. Stricter punishment In court on Monday, Orlov condemned the Russian authorities for the suppression of opponents of political opinion. He pointed, among other things, to Alexei Navalny’s death and the war in Ukraine. The prosecution asked in the trial that took place in Moscow for a prison sentence of two years and eleven months, according to Reuters. He eventually received a sentence of two and a half years. The punishment is still more severe than the one he received in October last year. The sentence must be served in a labor colony. Then the court said that he should pay a fine of 150,000 rubles (roughly NOK 17,000). He is said to have received it for having “repeatedly discredited the armed forces”. The prosecution thought the sentence was too lenient and appealed. In the grounds for the prison sentence, it is shown that “the motive is ideological hostility and hatred” against the Russian state. – Totalitarianism The activist has for over two decades been one of the leaders of Memorial, which won part of the Nobel Peace Prize in 2022, one year after the organization was banned and disbanded in Russia. Human rights activist Olev Orlov in handcuffs in the courtroom after he has been sentenced to two and a half years in prison. Photo: ALEXANDER NEMENOV / AFP Russia has intensified a long-term suppression of all forms of political dissent as deviations from the government’s line, in what Moscow calls its “special military operation” in Ukraine. – Russia is going backwards. We left communist totalitarian rule, but have now returned to another form of totalitarianism. I call it fascism, Orlov told Reuters in an interview in Moscow last year.



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