Igor Paskar recognized as political prisoner

The human rights project "Support for Political Prisoners. Memorial" has recognized Igor Paskar, convicted of setting fire to a rug near the FSB building in Krasnodar, as a political prisoner, demanding his release and an investigation into his allegations of torture.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that Paskar stated that he had set fire to the rug and the banner with the Z sign "at the behest of his conscience" and refused to renounce his convictions. The Southern District Military Court sentenced him to 8.5 years in prison.

He is recognized as a political prisoner, because human rights defenders believe that his actions were qualified incorrectly by the court, and "the punishment imposed on him is politically motivated and inadequate to the social danger of his offence."

Investigators have qualified Igor's attempt to set fire to the FSB building as a terror act, since, according to the prosecution, Paskar's goal was "to intimidate the population," human rights defenders have recalled. "However, he himself denies the presence of such intent; and the court has failed to interrogate a single witness who could be frightened by Pascar's actions," the message of the above project states.