From a Russian prison: “Give people freedom, let them be carefree”

On Saturday 19 January we will be demonstrating in London in solidarity with Russian anti-fascists, including those being incarcerated and tortured by the security services. Please come to join us – meeting at the mural in Cable Street, London E1 0BL at 2.0pm. There will also be events that day – the tenth anniversary of the notorious killing of anti-fascists Stanislav Markelov and Anastasia Baburova in Moscow – in Russia and Ukraine, and other European countries.  

Here is a message to supporters, sent to mark the new year by the imprisoned anti-fascist Viktor Filinkov, who was arrested in St Petersburg in January 2018 and tortured by officers of

Viktor Filinkov, under guard, on his way to a court appearance. Photo: Rupression

the federal security service (FSB). He and 10 others are in detention, awaiting trial on trumped-up “terrorism” charges denounced as fraudulent by human rights organisations, in the so-called “network case”. Please share and re-post.

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Viktor Filinkov wrote a letter to Grandad Frost [a Russian fairytale character, like Santa Claus] in Veliky Ustyug [where he lives, according to legend] and sent us a draft for review.

Hello, Grandad Frost!

I am writing to you from St Petersburg, from the same place where Lenin served time.

In the new year 2019, I would like you to give at least a little justice to all those in need.

Help the regional heads of Memorial, Yuri Dmitriev from Karelia and Oyub Titiyev from Chechnya. [Memorial is Russia’s largest human rights campaign organisation. Dmitriev was framed by local security services on child pornography charges. A court found him not guilty but his persecutors appealed. Titiyev has been in prison for a year awaiting trial, charged with possession of 200 grams of marijuana that he says was planted on him.]

Help the Ukrainian political prisoners, led by Oleg Sentsov [a film director from Crimea sentenced in 2015 on trumped-up “terrorism” charges to 20 years imprisonment.]

Help the Russian re-post “extremists” [more than 600 people facing jail sentences for re-posting “extremist” social media content].

Let the participants of the “navalnings” [meetings organised by the Russian opposition politician, Alexei Navalny, often brutally broken up by the security forces] out of the prison cells – they already have a headache from police batons.

Grandad Frost, let’s stop the tortures by the security officials all over the country! Can I join your team?

And, you know what, let’s help everyone! Give people freedom, let them be carefree like children, in the new year and all subsequent years.

V.F., 12.24.2018.

■ Details of the London event on 19 January

■ The Rupression site, by supporters of the “network case” defendants

■ Viktor Filinkov’s account of being tortured by the FSB – Open Democracy

■ “Electric shock is our way of doing things” – updates on cases of torture

■ “Convoyed”. Includes a compendium of reports on the “network case” – the Russian Reader