Anastasiya Berezhinskaya is a political prisoner
A Moscow-based director has been sentenced to eight years in a penal colony for posts on VK criticising the Russian authorities and supporting Ukraine
The ‘Political Prisoners. Memorial’ human rights project, in accordance with international standards, considers Anastasiya Berezhinskaya a political prisoner. Berezhinskaya was convicted on charges of spreading ‘fake news’ and ‘discrediting’ the armed forces, as well as making calls to engage in terrorism, for anti-war posts on the VK social media site. Berezhinskaya’s prosecution and conviction violated her rights to freedom of expression and fair trial. We demand her immediate release and that all criminal charges against her be dropped.
What were the charges against Anastasiya Berezhinskaya?
Anastasiya Berezhinskaya is a theatre director from Moscow and the mother of two young children. In March 2022, she shared a post by the Anti-Corruption Foundation on VK about Russia’s war against Ukraine. The following month, she was fined under administrative law for ‘discrediting’ the Russian armed forces.
In May 2024, Berezhinskaya was charged under three articles of the Russian Criminal Code for posts on VK. For comments about crimes committed by Russian soldiers, genocide and the torture of civilians in Ukraine she was charged with spreading ‘fake news’ about the use of the armed forces (Article 207.3, Part 2) and repeated ‘discrediting’ of the use of the military (Article 280.3, Part 1); and for comments allegedly inciting the killing of Vladimir Putin she was charged with ‘making calls for people to engage in terrorism’ (Article 205.2, Part 2).
On 14 November 2024, a Moscow court sentenced Berezhinskaya to eight years in a general regime penal colony. She was taken into custody immediately after the verdict.
Why do we consider Anastasiya Berezhinskaya a political prisoner?
The criminal charges against Anastasiya Berezhinskaya were based on statements she made in support of Ukraine and critical of the Russian authorities.
The laws on ‘fake news’ and repeated ‘discrediting’ of the armed forces, under which she was convicted, were introduced immediately after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine to suppress dissent. In practice, these laws ban any criticism of the war or of the authorities in violation of the right to freedom of expression and the principle of legal certainty. These laws should be rescinded, all related criminal convictions should be quashed, and ongoing prosecutions should be dropped.
The comment, which the court considered ‘justification of terrorism’, may, formally, be considered to contain calls to engage in violence. However, the court failed to take into account that, in reality, the comment posed a minimal threat to the public.
Berezhinskaya wrote her comment in the context of Russia’s ongoing war of aggression against Ukraine, which has already claimed hundreds of thousands of lives. The prosecution did not present any evidence that her words had caused, or were likely to cause, any real-world consequences. Her remarks were not directed at any audience but appeared as personal diary-style entries on VK, expressing emotional distress at the ongoing events. According to an independent linguistic expert, her comments did not constitute calls to action and had minimal publicity.
In Russian court practice, anti-war speech of this kind is routinely punished with lengthy prison sentences. At the same time, calls for violence in pro-government media outlets go entirely unpunished. This selective prosecution and disproportionate punishment underline the political nature of the case against Berezhinskaya.
A detailed description of Anastasiya Berezhinskaya’s case and of our position 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, their views, statements, or actions.
How can you help?
You can write to Anastasiya Berezhinskaya at the following address:
RU: 404621, Волгоградская область, г. Ленинск, ул. Промышленная, д. 12, ФКУ ИК-28 УФСИН России по Волгоградской области, Бережинская Анастасия Александровна, 1981 г. р.
EN: Anastasiya Aleksandrovna Berezhinskaya (born 1981), Penal Colony No. 28, Federal Penitentiary Service of Russia for Volgograd Oblast, 12 Promyshlennaya Street, Leninsk, Volgograd Oblast, 404621, Russia.
You can also send an email using ZT (for payment with all bank cards), OVD-Info and Memorial-France (free of charge).
Please note that letters in languages other than Russian are highly unlikely to reach the intended recipient.
You can donate to help all political prisoners in Russia.
