10:56, 17 October 2016

HRC "Memorial" recognizes Zhalaudi Geriev as political prisoner

Zhalaudi Geriev, a correspondent of the "Caucasian Knot", has been prosecuted for his journalistic activities. This was stated by the Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial".

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on September 5, in Chechnya, the court sentenced Zhalaudi Geriev to three years of imprisonment on the charge of possession of marijuana. The defence has filed an appeal against the sentence. In the appeal, the advocate has pointed to numerous examples of falsification in the case materials and obvious contradictions in the evidence-based indictment.

"The 'Caucasian Knot' is widely known for its materials on human rights violations in Chechnya. The Chechen authorities have repeatedly expressed their dissatisfaction with the publications of the portal," claims the statement released by the HRC "Memorial".

The human rights defenders demand the immediate release of Zhalaudi Geriev. Besides, on the eve of consideration of the appeal against the verdict by the Supreme Court of Chechnya, the human rights defenders call on people to sign a petition on the civil platform "Change.org".

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.