Shakhban Abakargadzhiev is a political prisoner

He has been sentenced to forced labour because of a post about killings in Bucha

The ‘Political Prisoners. Memorial’ human rights project, in accordance with international standards, considers Shakhban Abakargadzhiev a political prisoner. He is being prosecuted under the article on spreading ‘fakes’ about the Russian military for a post on Instagram. Abakargadzhiev’s criminal case violates his rights to freedom of expression and fair trial.

We demand the immediate release of Shakhban Abakargadzhiev and an end to his criminal prosecution!

What is the case against Shakhban Abakargadzhiev?

According to the ruling in Abakargadzhiev’s case under the article on spreading ‘fakes’ about the Russian military (Article 207.3, Part 2 of the Russian Criminal Code), in the spring of 2022, shortly after the massacre of civilians in Bucha near Kyiv, he published a post on his Instagram page sharply condemning the crimes committed by the Russian armed forces there. In addition to the text, the post also included a video.

At the trial, Abakargadzhiev pleaded guilty and explained that he copied the text from another resource and published it in a fit of anger after his dead nephew’s body was brought back from Ukraine.

On 8 November 2023, the Khasavyurt City Court of the Republic of Dagestan sentenced Abakargadzhiev to 5 years of imprisonment but later changed it to 3 years of forced labour.

On 24 November 2023, the sentence entered into force.

Why do we consider Abakargadzhiev a political prisoner?

Article 207.3, under which Abakargadzhiev is being prosecuted, was introduced into the Russian Criminal Code immediately after the start of Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine. It effectively prohibits criticism of the Russian authorities and military actions, thus violating the right of citizens to freedom of expression. We believe that this article contradicts Russia’s Constitution and international obligations, as well as basic principles of law, in particular, the principle of legal certainty: a citizen cannot know in advance what statements or information may be considered false in a given context. Moreover, it is impossible to establish guilty knowledge, i.e. intent to disseminate misinformation.

We believe that Article 207.3 of the Russian Criminal Code was introduced to carry out political repression against critics of the authorities and opponents of the war and should be rescinded.

Abakargadzhiev has been charged with publishing the post condemning the crimes of the Russian military in Bucha. In this case, the accusation of spreading ‘knowingly false’ information is particularly absurd since the responsibility of the Russian Federation for mass murders and rapes in this Ukrainian town has been proven and recognised by authoritative international organisations.

The fact that Abakargadzhiev pleaded guilty in court does not prove his guilt and does not make his prosecution less arbitrary. We regard the forced labour sentence as a deprivation of liberty, which allows us to consider Abakargadzhiev a political prisoner.

Further information about this case and the position of the ‘Political Prisoners. Memorial’ human rights project is available on our website.

Recognition of an individual as a political prisoner does not imply the ‘Political Prisoners. Memorial’ human rights project agrees with or approves of their views, statements, or actions.

How can you help?

On our website, you can donate to support all political prisoners in Russia.