Krasnodar activist Antonova charged

On May 21, the indictment was presented to Yana Antonova, the coordinator of "The Open Russia"* in the Krasnodar Territory, within the criminal case on participation in an organization that is undesirable in Russia.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on April 9, 2019, law enforcers searched Yana Antonova's home and the office of the "Ecological Watch for Northern Caucasus" (EcoWatch). A criminal case was initiated against Ms Antonova under Article 284.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation for participation in an undesirable organization.

"I was charged under Article 284.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. The case will soon be brought to the court. I've committed no crimes," Yana Antonova wrote in her Facebook page on May 21.

The first case in Russia, initiated under Article 284.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, was the case of Anastasia Shevchenko, a member of the Federal Council of "The Open Russia"* Movement, an activist from Rostov-on-Don, who is under house arrest since January 23. Earlier, activists stated that they feared a wave of persecutions after Shevchenko's case.

*The activities of two organizations registered in Great Britain and containing the words "Open Russia" in their names have been recognized as undesirable in Russia by the Russian General Prosecutor's Office.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on May 22, 2019 at 01:15 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.