Amnesty International Recognizes Artist Sasha Skochilenko as a Prisoner of Conscience

The international human rights organization Amnesty International has declared St. Petersburg artist Sasha Skochilenko, who was arrested for an anti-war action under the article on “fakes” about the Russian army, a prisoner of conscience .

Human rights activists demanded that the criminal prosecution of Skochilenko be stopped and that the “repressive” Article 207.3 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation be repealed.

Article 207.3 of the Criminal Code effectively criminalizes criticism or dissemination of information about the Russian Armed Forces and their human rights violations. Its deliberately broad and vague definitions allow arbitrary use and serve to suppress free public debate about the ongoing war in Ukraine. The article violates the right to freedom of expression, including the right to seek, receive and disseminate information, guaranteed by the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Russian Constitution.

• Artist Sasha Skochilenko was arrested in mid-April on charges of disseminating "deliberately false information" about the actions of Russian armed forces in Ukraine because she placed anti-war leaflets in Perekrestok instead of price tags. She faces up to ten years in prison.