In Omsk, protesters against police brutality are suspected of extremism

On October 23, 2009, in Omsk, at a picket against police brutality, 23-year-old Anatoly Yurkovets was beaten by unknown people. After he applied to the regional police department regarding the beating, a criminal case was initiated against him under Part 1 of Article 213 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (hooliganism motivated by political, ideological, racial, national or religious hatred or enmity, or motivated by hatred or enmity against any or social group).

The picket was held by the youth Yabloko and the Siberian Confederation of Labor, and Yurkovets, a member of the Red Youth Vanguard and the Left Front, attended the picket, he said, as an observer.

During the picket, unknown persons, in whom some participants recognized cadets of the Academy of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, launched a provocation: holding the flags of the Russian Federation in their hands, they attacked the protesters, beating them and tearing out posters.

When Yurkovets turned to the Department of Internal Affairs-2 of the Central District, they did not want to accept his statement about the attack and beatings. Instead, he was searched and found among his belongings was a leaflet with a swastika and "text of nationalistic content." According to Yurkovets, the leaflet had nothing to do with him. In addition, he is accused of desecrating the flag of the country. A house search was also carried out, a computer, several communist newspapers and one copy of the Limonka newspaper were confiscated.

In our opinion, it is absurd to accuse a left-wing activist of hooliganism motivated by hatred on the grounds that one leaflet with a swastika was found on him, and links to Nazi sites are stored on his computer. With the same success, any employee of the "E" center, who, on duty, collects and stores materials on the relevant topic, can be accused of extremism. In addition, the very fact of committing an act of hooliganism raises serious doubts.

The direct organizers of the picket also faced difficulties: some of them were included in the unofficial "lists of extremists" at the place of study, they are under pressure, they receive calls with threats that "skinheads" might kill them.

We also recall that in October and November of this year, a series of neo-Nazi attacks on activists of the anti-fascist movement took place in Omsk, in which the victims faced the inaction of law enforcement agencies.

Sources

• Symbols found at the picketer // RIA "Omsk-press". 2009. October 26.
• Omsk. The leadership of the Internal Affairs Directorate suspects the activists of the Left Front and the youth "Yabloko" of fascism, and meanwhile the latter receive threats of physical violence // New Newspaper.
• Omsk police for students: Do you want to be persecuted? You will! // Free press. 2009. November 11.