Today in Moscow, four Russian journalists went on trial — in a single proceeding — on charges of having worked with an “extremist organization” in 2021. That organization: the late Alexei Navalny’s Anti-Corruption Foundation (ACF). The “crime” with which they have been charged carries a penalty of up to six years in prison. All four have, rightly, pled not guilty.

Three of the four — Gabov, Favorskaya and Karelin — had already made it onto my earlier hostage list; Artyom Kriger will be added now.**

Favorskaya and Kriger worked with SotaVision, an independent Russian news outlet that covers protests and political trials. Gabov, a freelance producer, has worked for multiple organizations, including Reuters. And Karelin, a freelance video journalist, has also worked for Western media outlets, including the Associated Press. [Dasha Litvinova, Associated Press, October 2, 2024.]

Unusually, the defendants were permitted to speak from behind the glass of the prisoners’ box before the court declared the proceedings closed. Kriger advised independent journalists remaining in Russia to leave, saying, “It is not a joke, any person can be charged with anything.” [Id.]

And Favorskaya took advantage of the opportunity to strike a note of hope: “Everything that is happening now, the darkness that surrounds us, it is not forever, and we will definitely see the country that Alexei (Navalny) dreamed of, we will definitely live in a country where rights and freedoms will be (respected) and journalists and other people will not be jailed for their views.” [Id.]

And then the doors were closed, at the request of the prosecution, despite defense objection. As in the other politically-motivated cases, the verdict is assumed to be “Guilty,” with only the length of the sentence remaining in question.

In an interview with the Associated Press, SotaVision founder Alexandra Ageyeva said that her journalists are regularly detained while working. She specifically mentioned instances when Kriger and Favorskaya were followed — Kriger while covering protests, and Favorskaya while reporting on Navalny’s court cases.

She said as to the trial, “. . . we expect the worst. And we expect a further crackdown on our news outlet. Of course, we’re not violating any laws, we’re working completely openly. But, apparently, independent journalism is too dangerous for the current regime.” [Id.]

That statement alone required an act of great courage on Ageyeva’s part.

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
10/2/24

** NOTE:

The list of hostages originally included four Americans who were among the prisoners released in the historic spy swap of August 1, 2024:

Evan Gershkovich
Vladimir Kara-Murza
Alsu Kurmasheva
Paul Whelan

Those remaining, to my knowledge, are:

Ilya Yashin
Staff Sgt. Gordon Black
Robert Woodland Romanov
Marc Hilliard Fogel
Ksenia Karelina
Stephen James Hubbard
Robert Gilman
David Barnes
Eugene Spector
Michael Travis Leake
Boris Akunin
Asya Kazantseva
Ilya Barabanov
Aleksandr Skobov
Antonina Favorskaya
Oleg Orlov
Boris Kagarlitsky
Oleg Navalny
Ksenia Fadeyeva
Lilia Chanysheva
Vadim Ostanin
Sergei Udaltsov
Danuta Perednya
Olesya Krivtsova
Konstantin Gabov
Sergey Karelin
Sergey Mingazov
Artyom Kriger

And perhaps more . . .