Natalya Filonova, an activist and journalist from Ulan-Ude in Eastern Siberia, was arrested in 2022 during a peaceful protest opposing the conscription of men for Russia's military involvement in the war in Ukraine.
Filonova, who has a long history of activism dating back to the 1990s, was arrested in 2022 during a demonstration against forced conscription. She was subsequently sentenced to two years and ten months in prison for allegedly assaulting two police officers. Amnesty International asserts that her conviction is politically motivated and calls for her immediate release.
Filonova's activism includes participation in protests supporting Aleksei Navalny, commemorating the murdered Solidarity leader Boris Nemtsov, and opposing Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Her peaceful demonstrations and journalistic endeavors have repeatedly drawn the ire of authorities, resulting in multiple arrests under Russia’s stringent laws on public assemblies.
On September 24, 2022, Filonova was arbitrarily detained during a protest in Ulan-Ude. Although a court initially dismissed charges of violating assembly procedures, she was re-arrested and accused of using violence against police officers during her transfer. Such charges are frequently employed in Russia to suppress dissenters.
After being held under house arrest and later pre-trial detention for breaching house arrest conditions, Filonova was sentenced by the Oktyabrsky District Court of Ulan-Ude on August 31, 2023. In May 2024, she rejected a presidential pardon offer, refusing to admit guilt. Subsequently, she faced heightened punitive measures, including solitary confinement and a transfer to stricter detention conditions.
These conditions, typically reserved for habitual rule violators, severely restrict prisoners' movements, limit their time outdoors, reduce access to food purchases, and curtail family visits and parcels. Such measures are imposed and lifted at the discretion of the penal colony administration.
Amnesty International continues to advocate for Natalya Filonova's release, condemning her imprisonment as a tactic to silence her activism and criticism of the Russian government.
