2023-04-29 19:46:54
Less than two weeks ago, on April 17, the Moscow City Court sentenced Russian opposition politician Vladimir Kara-Murza to 25 years in prison for treason, disseminating false information about the Russian military, and operating an “undesirable” organization. A staunch critic of Putin’s rule and his war in Ukraine, Kara-Murza is among the most jailed Russian opposition figures jailed since the start of the war.
Yevgenia Kara-Murza, wife of Vladimir Kara-Murza, who is in Strasbourg to attend the PACE spring session, told Voice of America in an interview that in today’s Russia, anyone who dares to oppose the official position is treated by the regime as either a criminal, a foreign agent, a spy, or a traitor. is displayed.
Yevgeniya Kara-Murza: “This is the first time in Russia that a person has been sentenced to 25 years in prison. The reason for my husband’s arrest is his condemnation of the war in Ukraine and the crimes of the regime, the violation of human rights in Russia, and the total censorship of the media. All his speeches were open and met the interests of both Russia and the Russian people. But the regime, which identifies itself with the country, naturally sees this as treason. “This is not only against my husband, but in today’s Russia, anyone who dares to oppose the official position is considered a criminal, a foreign agent, a spy, or a traitor by the regime and the authorities.”
In his last speech to the court, which was published in the media, he said that he stood by every word they accused him of, that he was not only sorry for it, but also proud of it. When was the last time you spoke with Vladimir Kara-Murza? Have you been able to get in touch since your arrest last year?
“The last time I spoke to him was in April of last year, so we didn’t discuss prison issues at that time. Neither I nor our children have seen or spoken to him for over a year. In fact, Vladimir has been fighting for the right to talk to his children on the phone for a long time. He was deprived of this right twice. At first, the authorities claimed that such conversations could interfere in some way with the due process of law in the criminal case against him. The second time, they said that they could not talk on the phone because their children live in the United States. I think that the authorities are trying to hint that some state secrets can be leaked during the conversation. But honestly, it’s just psychological torture. Not the worst case, because we know what people behind bars in Russia face every day. Various forms of psychological pressure are one of the mechanisms used by the regime to break people’s resolve.
I know that Vladimir’s view of this arrest is the same as mine. This is a recognition of how afraid the authorities are of him, of his effective work, of being the face of Russia that the democratic world wants to see. This is an alternative. We are often asked what is the alternative to Vladimir Putin? Yes, that is the alternative. Like my husband, there are many who believe that Russia deserves better. There are many people who protest the war, oppose the Putin regime, and want a different future for our country, and Vladimir is one of these people. This is an alternative. And I think that by giving my husband a 25-year maximum prison sentence, the Russian authorities are overly optimistic about their future. I don’t believe they will be around for 25 years. Apparently, they believe it will be possible. Very strange, very strange and completely unfounded optimism.”
Countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom have imposed sanctions on those responsible for the arrest of Vladimir Kara-Murza. Last week, the European Parliament called on the European Union to impose such personal sanctions. There are those who voice these opinions in PACE. What can you say about it?
“I welcome this initiative. Such sanctions have already been imposed by Canada, the United States, Great Britain and Latvia against those involved in the illegal persecution and detention of my husband. I welcome such sanctions at the European Union level. Because, for example, among the 36 people involved in the illegal detention of Vladimir, there are two people who are personally responsible for the death of Sergei Magnitsky in a Moscow prison in 2009. These persons are the judge Podoprigorov and the head of the pretrial detention center where Vladimir is detained, Dmitry Komnov. They have been sanctioned by many countries, including Great Britain and the United States, because they were personally responsible for the death of Sergei Magnitsky. Sergei Podoprigorov was the judge who sentenced Sergei Magnitsky to illegal imprisonment in 2008, and Dmitri Komnov was the head of the detention center where Sergei was detained. It was Komnov who ordered the torture of Sergei and prevented him from receiving medical care. And as a result, Sergey lost his life.
Thus, although these persons were sanctioned by a number of countries, the European Union did not apply sanctions against them. They can still travel freely to all these European countries and enjoy the privileges that the free world provides to its citizens. On the other hand, they are still violating the rights of Russian citizens, continuing to commit crimes similar to those committed against Sergei Magnitsky years ago. We are sure that the sanctions are effective and they are worried. We know for sure that Judge Podoprigorov used the services of a very expensive British-Australian law firm to get these sanctions lifted a few years ago. Despite spending huge amounts of money, his efforts failed. Therefore, I welcome the adoption of sanctions by the European Union against the perpetrators of my husband’s case.”
Kara-Murza, an outspoken critic of Putin’s rule, was one of the close associates of opposition leader Boris Nemtsov, who was killed in Moscow in 2015. He himself fell ill with symptoms of poisoning in 2015 and 2017. Vladimir Kara-Murza received the PACE Vaslav Havel human rights award while he was in prison last year was awarded. PACE leaders called for the release of Kara-Murza and other political prisoners at a special event held on the first day of the spring session.
Voice of America
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