Russia has demanded the extradition of a Moscow activist from Armenia

Russian citizen Liliya Manyukhina, convicted after posting anti-war leaflets in Moscow, has been arrested in Armenia. Human rights activists in Russia consider Manyukhina a political prisoner. 

As reported by the " Caucasian Knot ," Russian citizens who have moved to Armenia periodically face search warrants and extradition requests. For example, on October 21, 2024, security forces in Yerevan detained Russian citizen Roman Shklover, who is suspected in Russia of publicly justifying terrorism. In Armenia, this act is not a crime, and detention for political reasons is a gross violation of human rights, stated human rights activist Artur Sakunts. Shklover was released on October 22. On August 5, it was reported that Russian authorities had issued an extradition request for Roman Shklover. In May, Kazan activist Mark Serov, who lives in Georgia, was detained upon entering Armenia. He is wanted in his home country for vandalism motivated by political hatred. According to Sakunts, Armenia has not extradited activists persecuted in their home country for their political views to Russia in recent years. 

Liliya Manyukhina, a 29-year-old Muscovite who moved to Armenia in 2024, has been in custody since August 30. Law enforcement in Yerevan detained her at Russia's request. A court initially remanded her in custody for 40 days, then extended her pretrial detention for another two months, the Vanadzor office of the Helsinki Citizens' Assembly reported on October 8. 

While in pretrial detention, Lilia applied for political asylum and is currently awaiting a decision from the Armenian Migration Service. Prior to her arrest, she lived in Armenia for almost a year, running a business and purchasing real estate in the country, according to a publication on the organization's website. 

In Russia, Manyukhina was persecuted for posting leaflets with pacifist slogans around Moscow. During one such protest in 2022, Manyukhina and her friends were attacked by an armed man, but Liliya managed to subdue him by taking his weapon and throwing it in a trash bin. Manyukhina was subsequently charged with robbery and arrested. In 2023, Liliya received a 2.5-year prison sentence, but the sentence was commuted to forced labor for the same period, with 10% of her salary withheld for the benefit of the state, as reported by the "Support for Political Prisoners. Memorial" project*. 

Human rights activists have recognized Manyukhina and her co-defendants, Kirill Timofeev and Anastasia Polyakova, as political prisoners. The young men "acted solely in self-defense," and their criminal prosecution is related to their active civic activism and began "only after the direct intervention of the Center for Combating Extremism," according to a publication on the project's website. 

As a result, Manyukhina, after serving a year of her sentence, was released and left for Armenia in 2024. After her departure, a Russian appellate court reclassified her case to a more serious charge—theft of weapons, which carries a prison sentence of up to ten years, said the activist's lawyer, Ruben Yeritsyan. 

According to Armenian human rights activists, Armenia has rejected seven extradition requests from Russia over the past month due to politically motivated persecution. However, courts have already extended Manyukhina's detention twice, failing to find any political motive in her case.

"Although she didn't steal anyone's weapons, she simply neutralized the attacker and threw the gun in the trash. (...) Her accomplice has already received a prison sentence, even though she wasn't involved in distributing leaflets. This is a political case, and Armenia is obligated to protect such people," CivilNet.am quotes the lawyer as saying.

Moscow's Tverskoy District Court arrested Liliya Manyukhina and Kirill Timofeev in absentia in June 2024, placing them on the wanted list. A third defendant in the case, Anastasia Polyakova, was sentenced to six years in prison on October 25, 2024, on charges of weapons theft, according to reports from the human rights project OVD-Info*.

Translated automatically via Google translate from https://www.kavkaz-uzel.eu/articles/416153