Yesterday at 20:25
Photo from Radio Svoboda
Mikhail Gonchar, the representative of the association of families of political prisoners,
said that the association has drafted a document addressed to the global leaders present at the Munich Security Conference, to ask for their help concerning Russia’s political prisoners.
The association is now waiting for the reaction of the global leaders, which will probably come through Ukraine’s own foreign Minister – Pavlo Klimkin – to whom they sent a copy of the letter.
The authors urge the governments of the EU, NATO and the G-7 to demand that Russia ceases its persecution and immediately releases Ukrainian political prisoners. The letter further asks that Russia grants access to the peninsula to the United Nation , and demands that Russia stops using anti-terrorist and anti-extremist laws as a go-to excuse against dissidents.
According to human rights activists, Russia is currently detaining 66 Ukrainians both on the mainland and in Crimea, for political reasons.
Now that Russia annexed Crimea, the FSB conducts regular man-hunts and interrogations of journalists, activists, and public figures of the Crimean Tatar population. Human rights defenders define this as persecution against dissidents.
Russia totally denies these accusations.
