Since 1994 Oleg has been working in the zone of military conflict in Chechnya, documenting human rights violations and defending the rights of the civilian population. In 1995 Orlov took part in negotiations with terrorists in Budennovsk, in 2007 he survived an assault in Ingushetia and in 2009 a lawsuit from Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov after the murder of Natalia Estemirova, a fellow human rights defender.

Today Oleg Orlov, co-chair of Nobel Peace Prize winning Human Rights Center Memorial, was sentenced to 2,5 years in prison for protesting against the war in Ukraine and calling Russian regime “fascist”.

In his final statement in court Orlov once again explained, why he was sadly right, giving just a few examples, that illuminate the nature of repressions not only in social, political and economic sphere, but also in culture and science in present-day Russia: banning of books, banning of non-existent LGBT movement that gravely interferes with private life, prosecution of scientists whose views differ from the official position, prosecution of any dissent.

“We are accused of discrediting [die Armee] without explaining what it is and how it differs from legitimate criticism. We are accused of disseminating deliberately false information without bothering to prove that it is false — just as the Soviet regime declared any criticism, a lie. […] We are convicted for doubting that an attack on a neighboring state has the goal of maintaining international peace and security. […] We are being punished for taking it upon ourselves to criticize the authorities. In today’s Russia, this is absolutely forbidden. […] In recent days, people have been detained, punished and even imprisoned just because they went to monuments to the victims of political repression to honor the memory of the murdered Alexei Navalny. A remarkable man, brave and honest, who under incredibly difficult conditions did not lose his optimism and faith in the future of our country. Of course, it was murder, regardless of the specific circumstances of this death. Now the authorities are even at war with the deceased Navalny. They fear him, even when he is dead. And rightly so. […] They do it in the hope that in this way they will demoralize the part of Russian society that continues to feel responsibility for their country. Their hope is in vain. We remember Alexei’s appeal: “Don’t give up.” I would add to that: Don’t lose heart, and do not lose optimism. Truth is on our side.“

At the end Orlov said he did not regret anything and did not repent of anything – and this is very much true about Orlov, a man of both word and action.

We demand freedom for Oleg Orlov and all political prisoners!

WHAT YOU CAN DO NOW

Political prisoners need our support! What can you do personally? Let Oleg and other prisoners know that they are not alone by writing them a letter. The media outlet ‘Doxa’ has created a guide for this: Как писать письма политзаключенным? — DOXA (in Russian). If necessary, you can use translation software to translate the website and your letters directly into Russian.