Circassian activists called on the Attorney General to stop the persecution of Larisa Tupcokova.

Human rights defenders and activists addressed the Attorney General of Russia, pointing out the facts of the falsification of the criminal case against Larisa Tupcokova and called for the cessation of her persecution.

As reported by "Caucasian Knot", on November 7, 2025, [........] Kabardino-Balkaria reported that activists from Kabardino-Balkaria, who signed an appeal to the head of Adygea Murat Kumpilov in defense of Larisa Tupcokova, faced pressure. They received calls from people who introduced themselves as law enforcement officers and demanded to appear at the police for "explanations" regarding the appeal. Although activists from different regions signed the appeal, instances of pressure were noted only in Kabardino-Balkaria, human rights defenders noted. Law enforcement did not exert pressure on the signatories of the appeal in defense of Larisa Tupcokova, explained the prosecutor's office of Kabardino-Balkaria in its refusal to take action on this matter. Human rights defenders called this response a formality.

Today, an appeal from Circassian activists to the Attorney General of Russia regarding the persecution of Larisa Tupcokova was published on the website of the Kabardino-Balkarian Human Rights Center.

"We, representatives of the Circassian community, figures of science and culture, address you regarding the outrageous case of unjust criminal prosecution, which has already received wide public resonance both in the Russian Federation and beyond its borders. This concerns the case against the recognized scholar-philologist, teacher of the native language, poet, and translator Larisa Tupcokova, who is accused of participating in the activities of an organization recognized as extremist," the appeal states.

This is not the result of a good-faith investigation, but a deliberate fabrication of charges aimed at criminalizing the legal cultural activities of a person whose only "guilt" lies in serving her people and her language.

The authors of the appeal noted that Larisa Tupcokova's lawyer finally managed to familiarize herself with the materials of the criminal case. The study of these documents confirmed that "the criminal case has no factual basis and is built on gross distortions of facts." "This is not the result of a good-faith investigation, but a deliberate fabrication of charges aimed at criminalizing the legal cultural activities of a person whose only 'guilt' lies in serving her people and her language. The content of the ruling to bring her as a defendant is rife with factual errors, each of which is refuted by official documents. First of all, the investigation deliberately misrepresents the status of the Circassian Cultural Center in Tbilisi (recognized as extremist in Russia), where Tupcokova worked. In the case materials, it is presented as an 'foreign non-governmental non-profit organization,' whereas in reality it is a state institution that is part of the Ministry of Culture of Georgia, as confirmed by official information from the Georgian government and is not subject to dispute. The Supreme Court of the Russian Federation recognized a non-existent structure under a different name as extremist, yet the investigation continues to insist on its erroneous qualification, ignoring obvious facts," the human rights defenders noted.

Moreover, Tupcokova is attributed the position of senior researcher, which she has never held, and it is claimed that she continues to work at the center to this day. However, according to the official employment contract and the dismissal order signed on August 27, 2024, she held the position of specialist and ceased working at the center long before the Supreme Court of Russia made its decision in June 2024 to recognize the organization as extremist. In fact, her activities at the center ended back in the fall of 2023. Thus, the accusation of participating in the activities of the organization after its recognition as extremist is chronologically impossible and documentedly refuted. Equally outrageous is the situation with attributing the authorship of the Circassian Media project to Tupcokova. The investigation deliberately or negligently names her as the author of this project, although the creator and leader is a completely different person," the human rights defenders pointed out, emphasizing that "the case materials lack any specific references to publications, interviews, or releases that contained calls for illegal actions."

"Not a single quote has been provided, it has not been indicated whether a linguistic or political expert examination of these materials was conducted, and no evidence has been named on the basis of which the investigation makes such serious conclusions. Such a construction of charges is a direct violation of the principle of specificity and justification provided for by criminal procedural law," they noted.

The authors of the appeal emphasized that even personal data is distorted; thus, the ruling states that Tupcokova has no minor children, whereas she is the mother of three children, one of whom is a citizen of the Russian Federation, and this fact is confirmed by birth certificates.

"The investigation also claims that she left Russia in 2017 to carry out extremist activities, however, it is documented that she has been living in Georgia since 2011 due to her marriage to a Georgian citizen, as confirmed by the marriage certificate dated February 10, 2012, and all her subsequent trips to the Russian Federation were purely personal. The assertion that she is hiding from the investigation is also untrue, as she has not changed her place of residence, has not changed her passport data, and her contact phone number has remained unchanged since 2011 and has been publicly available. The investigation had every opportunity to contact her but chose to proceed with a remote arrest and announcement in search, which is a clear abuse of procedural rights," the appeal states.

The absence of specific evidence, expert opinions, and even simple quotes of the incriminated statements in the case indicates that the objective side of the crime is simply artificially constructed.

The accusation is built on systematic substitution of facts—from the status of the organization and the position of the accused to her family situation and dates of relocation, the human rights defenders emphasized.

"Every significant point of the accusation is refuted by official documents, which Tupcokova has already provided to her lawyer and which are ready to be presented at any moment. The absence of specific evidence, expert opinions, and even simple quotes of the incriminated statements in the case indicates that the objective side of the crime is simply artificially constructed. For us, as representatives of the public, the true reason for what is happening is obvious. This is not a fight against extremism, but a politically motivated action aimed at suppressing the Circassian national movement and criminalizing scholars and cultural figures who preserve their native language and historical memory," the authors of the appeal pointed out.

They emphasized that Tupcokova is one of the most respected representatives of the Circassian intelligentsia, whose activities have received recognition not only in her homeland but also in the diaspora. Appeals in defense of Tupcokova have come from Circassian organizations and public figures from many countries around the world, which indicates the scale of the injustice we are facing.

"We are forced to state that this criminal case is an example of gross judicial and investigative error bordering on falsification. The criminal prosecution is being carried out for actions that the accused did not commit, and the very fabric of the case does not correspond to the factual circumstances in any of the key elements of the crime composition," they noted, emphasizing that a "dangerous precedent arises when cultural activities, scientific research, and literary creativity can be arbitrarily declared a crime."

"We appeal to you as the highest official of the prosecutor's office of the Russian Federation, authorized to oversee the precise and uniform enforcement of laws during the inquiry and preliminary investigation. We are convinced that sending this criminal case to court will lead not only to a judicial error but to a conscious legitimization of knowingly false accusations, which is unacceptable both from the standpoint of strict adherence to the law and from the perspective of fundamental principles of justice. In this regard, we ask you to promptly investigate all the circumstances outlined in the appeal, to give an appropriate assessment of the actions of the investigators who committed gross factual errors and ignored obvious documentary evidence. We also ask you to take prosecutorial measures provided for by law and to cease the criminal prosecution of Larisa Tupcokova due to the absence of both a crime event and the composition of a crime in her actions. We are convinced that only your direct intervention can stop the outrageous arbitrariness and restore the violated justice," the authors of the appeal stated.

It was signed by the chairman of the Kabardino-Balkarian branch of the "Russian Association of Victims of Political Repression" (Nalchik) Marks Shakhmurza, the chairman of the Kabardino-Balkarian Regional Human Rights Center (Nalchik) Valery Khatazhukov, retired police colonel, honorary employee of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation Ramazan Achmizov, public figures Ruslan Gvashev (pos. Lazarevskoye, Sochi), Albert Adamokov and Mukhamed Cherkesov (Cherkessk), Ruslan Achmiz (Maykop), Alik Shashev, Ismel Meshev, and Azamat Shormanov (Nalchik), honored cultural worker of the Republic of Adygea Abid Gissa (Maykop), teacher of the Adyghe language Dahanagu Achoh (Tuapse), artist Zaudin Tokov (Nalchik), people's artist of the Republic of Adygea and honored artist of the KCR AAdullah Bersirov, and honored doctor of the Russian Federation Bayzet Skhalyakho.