Public figures ask to release Zhenya Berkovich from the pre-trial detention center for her grandmother's funeral

Human Rights Commissioner Tatyana Moskalkova is being asked to release Zhenya Berkovich, who is in pre-trial detention, to attend the funeral of her grandmother Nina Katerli.

“Tatyana Nikolaevna! We ask you for mercy. We ask you to help ensure that the preventive measure for Svetlana Petriychuk and Zhenya Berkovich is changed. At least so that she could bury her grandmother,” says the letter published by Novaya Gazeta.

The appeal was signed by famous actors, directors, writers, as well as public figures. Among them are Chulpan Khamatova, Ivan Urgant, Danila Kozlovsky, Lyudmila Ulitskaya, Alexander Sokurov, Yulia Peresild and Dmitry Muratov. In total, 23 people signed the letter.

in St. Petersburg at the age of 90 . died Earlier today it became known that Zhenya Berkovich’s grandmother, writer and human rights activist Nina Katerli,

Earlier, at meetings to extend her preventive measure, Berkovich repeatedly asked the court to change her detention in a pre-trial detention center to house arrest. “A lot has already happened in these six months: severe psychological breakdowns and physical illnesses. Perhaps only one thing has not happened: so far none of our loved ones have died. Let's stop the crushing machine of Russian justice now, before this happens. This can happen,” Berkovich said at the October 25 meeting.

Director Zhenya Berkovich and playwright Svetlana Petriychuk were detained on May 4. They were charged with “justifying terrorism” (Part 2 of Article 205.2 of the Criminal Code). The reason is the play “Finist Yasny Falcon”. It tells about the fate of Russian women who decided to virtually marry radical Islamists and go to join them in Syria. The premiere of this performance took place in December 2020. And two years later he received the Golden Mask awards in two categories at once.

As part of this case, security forces searched the home of Petriychuk and Berkovich. In addition, the police also searched Nina Katerli's apartment.

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