Portraits of political prisoners

Katya Muromtseva

Lilia Chanysheva, born in 1982

Lilia was the head of opposition leader Alexey Navalny’s headquarters in Ufa. The activist was among the few members of Navalny’s team who did not leave Russia. She was sentenced to 7.5 years in prison for the establishment of an extremist community.

Alexey Moskalev, born in 1968

Alexey’s daughter made an anti-war drawing in her art class on April 24, 2022. As a consequence, her father was placed under house arrest. Alexey tried to escape from his home, but the police caught him and he was sent to a pre-trial detention center. He has this year served a two year sentence and is again free.

Maxim Lypkan, born in 2005

Maxim graduated from high school in 2022 and planned to study law. He was arrested for his anti-war positions and activism. Maxim has been charged with the “Distribution of fake news about the Russian army”. He is at a pre-trial detention center now and faces up to 10 years in prison.

Evgeny Bestuzhev, born in 1960

Evgeny is a political scientist and publicist. He worked at the Higher School of Economics in St Petersburg and was the coordinator of «Democratic Russia». Yevgeny is charged with «Public dissemination of deliberately false information about the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation on the grounds of hatred or enmity». Yevgeny has been at a pre-trial detention center since November 2022 and faces up to 10 years in prison.

Vladimir Kara-Murza, born in 1981

Vladimir is a Russian journalist, television and radio speaker, and an opposition politician. He was sentenced to 25 years in a maximum-security prison camp for spreading “fake news” about the Russian army, cooperating with undesirable organizations and treason. He was 2024 set free in the big prisoner exchange between Russia and the West.

Lyudmila Razumova, born in 1967

Lyudmila and her husband painted anti-war graffiti and published information about the war in Ukraine. She was detained and charged with «Public dissemination of deliberately false information about the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation on the grounds of hatred or enmity» and «Vandalism committed by a group of persons motivated by political or ideological hatred or enmity». Lyudmilla was sentenced to seven years in a prison camp.

Maria Ponomarenko, age 45

Maria Ponomarenko is a journalist and activist. She was sentenced to six years in prison for a post on a telegram-channel about the bombing of the theater in Mariupol.

Ivan Safronov, born in 1990

Ivan worked as an advisor to the head of the Russian space agency “Roskosmos” and as a journalist for the daily newspapers “Komersant” and “Vedomosti”. He was sentenced to 22 years in a maximum-security prison for treason.

Zarema Musaeva, born 1969

Zarema was detained because her sons engaged in opposition activities. The court fabricated a fraud case against her. She was arrested by the police in her home and faces up to 10 years in prison. One of her sons offers a trade to the authorities: he says he is ready to go to prison instead of his mother.

Sasha Skochilenko, born in 1990

Sasha is an artist and activist who lives in Saint Petersburg. She is prosecuted for exchanging price tags for anti-war messages in a supermarket. Sasha has been detained since April 11, 2022. In November 2023 she got her final sentence of 7 year in prison camp. She was in 2024 released in the big prisoner exchange between Russia and the West. She now lives in Germany.

faces 5 to 15 years in prison.