People in Russia are not able to protest peacefully without fear of reprisals. A week into its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Russia introduced war censorship laws to make criticism the invasion a grave offence. Two years on, many people are serving lengthy prison sentences for peaceful anti-war dissent.
Russia’s war censorship laws, introduced in March 2022, criminalized criticism of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, and of war crimes committed by Russian forces, as “fakes” and “discreditation” of the Russian Armed Forces (Articles 207.3 and 280.3 of the Criminal Code), carrying a maximum sentence of 15 years’ imprisonment.
The laws led to an exodus of independent media and activists from Russia and a crackdown on any form of anti-war dissent. Even calling the war “a war” instead of a “special military operation” is considered a crime.
Two years after the adoption of the war censorship laws, people in Russia continue to protest against the war in Ukraine. However, the Russian authorities are determined to shut them down completely. In 2023 the number and length of prison sentences for anti-war posts on social media increased. In 2024, a new law was introduced to allow confiscation of the property of people who were charged under the war censorship laws.
Russia must repeal these repressive laws and immediately release all those imprisoned for raising their voices against the war of aggression. Help us protect the protest.
anti-war stance
Despite the severe punishments, people in Russia continue to protest against the war in Ukraine. However, the Russian authorities are determined to shut down dissent completely. Many people are imprisoned for anti-war protest. You can show your solidarity by sending a personal message to some of them here.
Dmitry Skurikhin painted the front of his village shop in north-west Russia with anti-war messages and continued to protest after being fined. In August 2023 he was sentenced to 18 months in a penal colony.
Natalya Filonova is an activist and journalist. She was detained during a peaceful anti-war protest in September 2022 and later sentenced to almost three years in prison for allegedly scratching two police officers with a pen.
Aleksandra Skochilenko replaced price tags in a local supermarket with small anti-war labels. She has been sentenced to 7 years in prison and is a prisoner of conscience.
Aleksei Gorinov is a local opposition politician in Moscow. He publicly criticized the war of aggression and was the first person to be sentenced under the new legislation for distributing “false” information about the Russian Army.
Maria Ponomarenko has been imprisoned for sharing information about the deadly Mariupol theatre attack. Authorities claimed it was “false”. Her ill-treatment in detention has led to the deterioration of her mental health.
Vladimir Rumyantsev built a portable radio station to transmit uncensored news about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Russian authorities tracked the source of the radio signal and he was sentenced to three years in prison.
In 2024, people in Russia are not able to protest peacefully without fear of reprisals. This didn’t happen overnight. Most legislative amendments used to curtail the right to the freedom of peaceful assembly in Russia were introduced after Russia illegally annexed Ukraine’s Crimea in 2014. Later, the Covid-19 pandemic was used as a pretext to enforce a ban on assemblies in major cities across Russia that is still in place today.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine drastically reshaped the civic space for protest in Russia. Over 20,000 individuals have been subjected to severe reprisals for their anti-war positions. Protesters continue to face reprisals even in custody – some are denied healthcare they require or are subjected to forced psychiatric treatment, placed in isolation, or receive new arbitrary charges. There are cases of anti-war protesters being deprived of, or threatened with, the removal of their parental rights.
The Russian government’s crackdown on freedom of peaceful assembly and freedom of expression aims to eliminate peaceful protest Those who defend these rights have been facing reprisals too. Journalists and independent monitors have been silenced in order to prevent reporting of protests.
Amnesty International works to protect the protest in Russia and globally.
“Your children will go to an orphanage”: Children and the crackdown on protest
Children are being punished in Russia for anti-war dissent. They are becoming victims of political persecution for their own anti-war views, and those of their parents. Their right to freedom of expression is being trampled, a blatant disregard of the international obligations of Russia. Instead of being a place for the free exchange of opinions, schools are a platform for indoctrination and suppression of dissent. Families are forcibly separated as an instrument for the repression of both adults and children.
12-year-old Maria Moskalyova from the town of Yefremov in Tula region was separated from her father and placed in an orphanage after her father was arrested for his social media posts condemning the actions of the Russian army in Ukraine. The son of activist Natalya Filonova was sent to an orphanage after Natalya’s arrest on false accusations of violence against police officers.
Varvara Galkina, a 10-year-old school student from Moscow, was reported by her school principal for a WhatsApp profile picture symbolizing support for Ukraine. Authorities searched Varvara’s home and threatened her mother with disciplinary measures and the deprivation of her parental rights. Varvara’s entire family had to leave Russia.
We left Russia solely because I was afraid that my children would be taken away. Police in Russia are doing what they want. They had said directly: we’ll lock you up and your children will go to an orphanage.
Varvara’s mother, Elena
Amnesty International calls on Russian authorities to stop persecution of children and to respect their rights to freedom of expression, and to create an environment where children could grow and study without fear of repression. Read Amnesty International’s full report here.
Deprivation from contacts with family as a reprisal
The Russian authorities impose systematic denial of family contacts on arbitrarily detained government critics. This is especially evident in cases of those who have spoken out against Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine, prominent political activists and those whom the authorities associate with banned opposition movements. This practice aims to isolate and silence dissenters, inflicting additional suffering on them and their families.
Authorities use various tactics to sever these contacts by:
- frequently denying requests for visits and calls during pretrial detention, often without justification,
- labelling family members as “witnesses” in trial proceedings, effectively barring them from contact,
- using manipulative tactics by transferring prisoners to another institution or
- placing prisoners in disciplinary cells for minor or fabricated violations right before a scheduled visit.
These tactics extend the punishment to the prisoners’ families, causing significant psychological distress. For example, the opposition politician Vladimir Kara-Murza sentenced to 25-year imprisonment was denied contact with his family for over a year, and artist Aleksandra (Sasha) Skochilenko, serving 7-year imprisonment, was isolated from her partner for a year.
After a year of separation, I am so glad I can see Sasha. I would love to hug her, but it is impossible.
Sonya Subbotina, Sasha Skochilenko’s partner
The denial of contact with families not only violates international human rights standards of treatment detainees and prisoners but may also constitute cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment. Amnesty International’s underscores the systematic and politically motivated use of isolation against dissenters in its latest report.
Russia’s War CensorSHIP Laws Must go
We must act in solidarity with people in Russia who dare to protest its war against Ukraine.