21:44, 16 March 2021

Ingush protest leaders go on hunger strike

Bilan Dzugaev. Screenshot of the video by Fortanga.org https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HFvrwTUw3nI

Ingush activists accused in a rally case went on a hunger strike and refused to participate in the trial, Bilan Dzugaev reported. The protest action followed the court's decision to return Zarifa Sautieva to custody.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on March 10, Zarifa Sautieva was placed under house arrest. The activist was detained on July 12, 2019 and spent 21 months under arrest. The defence of Zarifa Sautieva complained about pressure from the law enforcement bodies after their release. Advocate Magomed Bekov reported that his client was obliged to wear a police bracelet, but was allowed to communicate with her relatives. Today, the court has cancelled the decision on house arrest for Zarifa Sautieva and ordered to transfer her to SIZO (pre-trial prison).

Starting from November 24, 2020, the court has been considering the case against Zarifa Sautieva and six other leaders of the protest in Ingushetia, accused of creating an extremist community. Almost all questioned participants of the trial evidenced in favour of the defendants. A witness, who said that Zarifa Sautieva had given instructions to protesters in Magas to resist law enforcers, failed to describe her appearance correctly, advocate Djabrail Kuriev reported. The Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial"* recognized Zarifa Sautieva as a political prisoner, and she became the first Ingush woman arrested for political reasons.

* the HRC "Memorial" is recognized in the Russian Federation as a foreign agent.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on March 16, 2020 at 11:46 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here .