Memorial recognized Vitaly Shishkin, convicted of calling for a rally, as a political prisoner

The Memorial Human Rights Center recognized Vitaly Shishkin as a political prisoner, sentenced to four years in a penal colony under part 3 of article 212 (calls for mass riots) and part 1 of article 282 (actions aimed at inciting hatred or enmity) of the Criminal Code.

According to Memorial, Shishkin was convicted because “impressed by the events in Ukraine, he began to call for the organization of a mass peaceful rally on May 18, 2014 on Manezhnaya Square in Moscow.” Shishkin, through his social network page and videos, which, according to the Memorial, do not contain calls for violence and do not incite hatred towards representatives of certain national-religious groups, urged his small audience to take part in the action. However, these actions did not lead to any consequences: on May 18, there were no protest rallies in Moscow.

According to Memorial, calls to participate in an unauthorized rally cannot be regarded as calls for mass riots, the conclusion of the investigation that such a rally should have turned into mass riots seems far-fetched. In itself, participation in an unauthorized rally, its organization or invitation to it do not violate the norms of the criminal law (and, moreover, correspond to the letter and spirit of the Constitution).

Shishkin himself explains his admission of guilt and the choice of a special procedure for considering the case by the fact that the case against him is fabricated and it is pointless for him to hope for justice, as for a political opponent of the existing government.

The Memorial Human Rights Center calls for the immediate release of Vitaly Shishkin and a review of his criminal case.