Russian occupation courts increase severity of sentences in cases against citizen journalists of Crimea

The “Bakhchysarai district court” in Crimea refused to transfer political prisoner Marlen (Suleyman) Asanov from IC-7 in the village of Sosnivka, Republic of Mordovia, to a colony that would be located closer to Crimea, where his family lives. Judge German Atamanyuk made a decision to reject Asanov‘s claims in full, ignoring the arguments of the political prisoner. Asanov‘s lawsuit was heard on August 9. This was reported by lawyer Nazim Sheykhmambetov to the Crimean Solidarity non-governmental organization.

The citizen journalist and former entrepreneur, sentenced to 19 years in prison, explained in court that it is now difficult to organize a meeting with relatives for two reasons: the family has to cover the distance from Crimea to Mordovia (more than 1,700 kilometers) and the same distance back, and, in addition, dating trips are given with a large financial burden.

The defense disagreed with the refusal of the ‘”Bakhchysarai district court”‘ and is preparing an appeal. According to lawyer Nazim Sheykhmambetov, the court’s decision “is not based on the law.” However, reviewing it and satisfying the request of the political prisoner seems rather illusory. After all, in the summer of 2023, the Federal Penitentiary Service of the russian federation did not satisfy the appeal of lawyer Emil Kurbedinov in favor of Asanov. He also demanded that the political prisoner be transferred to another colony closer to Crimea. Then the lawyer Nazim Sheykhmambetov tried to challenge the refusal of the Federal Penitentiary Service – he filed a lawsuit for the place of residence of Asanov in the “Bakhchysarai district court.” The court accepted this lawsuit and even began to consider it, but at the request of a Federal Penitentiary Service representative, it was transferred to Mordovia “at the place of serving the sentence” of Marlen Asanov. After the appeal, the case returned to Bakhchysarai again, but to a different judge. No one from Federal Penitentiary Service showed up for the meeting.

Marlen (Suleyman) Asanov is a citizen journalist and a volunteer of Crimean Solidarity. Since 2014, he has been helping families of political prisoners, attending court hearings in politically motivated cases, and publishing videos of searches on his YouTube channel.

The NUJU previously spoke about the falsified case of Marlen Asanov and demanded that all charges against the citizen journalist be dropped and his freedom ensured.

The FSB searched his Salachyk cafe on May 12, 2016. On the same day, four local residents were detained and accused of participating in Hizb ut-Tahrir in Bakhchysarai. Marlen Asanov was not among them. But then he was brought to administrative responsibility for violation of public order and fined RUB 5,000.

He was arrested on October 12, 2017. Other residents of Bakhchysarai, journalists, and activists — Timur Ibragimov, Memet Belyalov, Seyran Saliyev, Server Zekiryayev, and Ernes Ametov — were also arrested. All were accused of participating in a terrorist organization. Asanov was presented with an article about the “organization of terrorist activities” and preparations for a “violent seizure of power,” which was not even in his thoughts.

On September 16, 2020, the Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don sentenced Crimean Muslims to 13 to 19 years in prison. Asanov received the longest term.

Parents, wife, and four minor children are waiting for Asanov at home.

The Islamic political party Hizb ut-Tahrir was recognized as a terrorist on February 14, 2003, by the Supreme Court of the russian federation in a closed court session. Human rights defenders believe that this decision was made without justification, with a violation of the transparency and equality of the parties, since only the prosecution party, namely the FSB, participated in the closed process. The organization’s representatives were unable to present their position to the court. At the same time, on the territory of Ukraine and most countries of the world, the organization operates without restrictions at the level of national legislation.

Since January 2015, criminal cases against Hizb ut-Tahrir began to be initiated in Crimea, which was occupied and came under the de facto control of russia. In Ukraine, the party’s activities are not prohibited; the organization’s activists were involved in publishing a newspaper, could speak openly in the mass media, and hold mass public events.

According to human rights defenders, the organization’s members are not being persecuted for preparing a coup d’état and terrorism but for public actions of party supporters against political repression in Crimea, systemic criticism of the russian government, and mass disloyalty among Crimean Tatars in response to the events of 2014. All the more unfair and illegal are the attempts of the russian courts to use any methods to make the illegal punishment of political prisoners more cruel.

NUJU Information Service