Human rights activist arrested in Ulan-Ude goes on hunger strike

Human rights activist Nadezhda Nizovkina from Buryatia has announced the start of a dry hunger strike, refusing to be hospitalized. On March 5, a court in Ulan-Ude arrested her for 7 days under the article on evading compulsory work (part 4 of article 20.25 of the Code of Administrative Offenses), assigned to her on charges of participating in a rally on January 31, 2021 in support of Alexei Navalny.

This is not Nizovkina's first arrest for refusing to perform compulsory work. She was arrested under this article twice: in April and July 2021; in July she also went on a hunger strike. Nizovkina repeatedly stated that she did not participate in the action, but helped the detainees as a lawyer.

In connection with the detention of Alexei Navalny in 2021, a series of protests took place across Russia. The most massive actions took place on January 23 and January 31. The security forces reacted harshly to the protests: on January 23, more than 4,000 people were detained, and on January 31, more than 5,500.