Pickets in support of political prisoners were held in a number of Russian cities

In Khabarovsk, Komsomolsk, and Novosibirsk, activists went on traditional single pickets on Saturday to support political prisoners and the ex-governor of the Khabarovsk Territory, Sergei Furgal. RusNews published a video of the actions, notes Sibir.Realii.

An activist from the city of Komsomolsk-on-Amur, Khabarovsk Krai, stood in a single picket on Volodarsky Square in support of Sergei Furgal.

A participant of the picket in Khabarovsk spoke about the warnings that the police give to activists. “This is what is meant by a warning? I have the second group of disabilities… What can I break? A glass [бросить]? Turn on the microphone? I have a lot [предостережений], I consider them to be a filkin letter. I am unarmed, I do not burn balloons… I come to the authorized place to support Furgal, our compatriots!” said the activist.

In Novosibirsk, residents held pickets to support journalist Maria Ponomarenko, Sergei Furgal, Tomsk city council member and ex-coordinator of Alexei Navalny’s headquarters Ksenia Fadeeva. On Friday, a court in Tomsk sentenced her to 9 years in prison on criminal charges of organizing the activities of an extremist community using official positions and participating in a non-profit organization that encroaches on the personality and rights of citizens.

“In the coming year, I want all Russians to find out who is the true enemy of the people, who accepts anti-people laws,” said one of the participants of the protest action in Novosibirsk.

There are no reports of arrests at Saturday’s rallies.

• A new criminal case was recently opened against the journalist Maria Ponomarenko. Earlier, she was sentenced to six years in the colony on the article about “fakes” about the Russian army.
• In July 2020, the ex-governor of the Khabarovsk Krai, Sergei Furgal, was arrested together with his former business partner Mykola Mystryukov on charges of attempted murder in the murders of businessmen in the early 2000s. The former official did not admit his guilt and called his prosecution politically motivated. On November 15, the Moscow Regional Court confirmed the indictment of the ex-head of the Khabarovsk Krai, Sergei Furgal, who was sentenced to 22 years of strict regime.
• According to one of Ksenia Fadeeva’s lawyers, the principle of adversariality was “grossly violated” during her trial, and the defense was given only four days to review the indictment.

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