Antonova's defence claims threat of censorship

If the court convicts the Krasnodar activist, Yana Antonova, this will mean an actual introduction of censorship in Russia, her defence has stated.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on May 21, 2019, Yana Antonova was charged under a criminal article of participation in an undesirable organization.

On November 7, the Leninsky District Court of Krasnodar began examining her criminal case on the merits.

According to the prosecution, the proofs of Antonova's participation in the activities of an undesirable organization are her solo pickets and reposts of publications of the "Open Russia"*.

Yana Antonova has stated to the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent that she had refused to plead guilty and did not even understand the claims put forward by the prosecution.

Her defence believes that Antonova was fined three times unreasonably for her solo pickets and reposts, which are not prohibited by the law. Her advocate, Alexander Valyavsky, has treated the indictment as vague and unspecific.

He is sure that Antonova's case is a political one. "Yana poses no public danger; there is no crime; in fact, this verdict will introduce censorship in Russia," Mr Valyavsky has stated.

*The activities of two organizations registered in the UK and containing the words "Open Russia" in their titles has been recognized by the Russian General Prosecutor's Office as undesirable in the country.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on November 7, 2019 at 08:39 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.