April 2023

A call to OVD-Info hotline or a message to our Telegram bot are the easiest ways to report persecution and get a free consultation. Specialists will advise you on how your situation may develop, and instruct you about your next steps.

• 298,905 users were connected to our Telegram-bot
• our legal instructions were viewed 26,867 times
• we received 1,468 calls on our hotline

In total, our operators and volunteers spoke on the phone for 57 hours, 45 minutes and 15 seconds.

Lawyers of the hotline

• conducted 124 consultations by phone;
• responded to 113 letters received at legal@ovdinfo.org;
• audited 10 appeals received through the generator;
• prepared and submitted 7 cassation appeals.

Legal aid

We provide and coordinate legal assistance in cases related to the restrictions of freedom of peaceful assembly or freedom of speech. Our attorneys visit those detained in police departments, support defendants in Russian administrative and criminal courts, and file complaints with the European Court of Human Rights.

Assistance on cases of administrative offences

In April, our lawyers, jurists, and defenders

• went to the police departments 12 times, where they helped 16 detainees.
• helped 138 people in court sessions on administrative cases.
• managed to terminate, cancel or return at least 12 cases of administrative offence.

Criminal cases

Our lawyers and jurists in April 2023

• Were present during 1 search;
• Accompanied clients on 3 interrogations;
• Entered into 4 new criminal cases;
• In total, at the end of April, lawyers from OVD-Info worked on 67 criminal cases against 84 people in 34 cities.

We consider all the charges and criminal cases brought in connection with them to be illegal and politically motivated.

European Court of Human Rights complaints campaign

• We have sent 13 complaints to the European Court of Human Rights.
• A total of 2,830 complaints were submitted during the campaign.
• On 374 complaints, ECHR issued judgements — all in favour of the applicants; the remaining complaints are pending trial or registration.

News and media

The authorities that violate human rights prefer to avoid publicity. But as they say, silence in the face of evil is itself evil. We believe that information protects, and that media and social attention can prevent violations and change the whole picture.

We have prepared and released

• 415 express news about political persecution in 73 regions of Russia;
• 3 longreads on political persecution

What you should pay attention to

• «Life feels surreal these days». A woman fined for a cafe argument about Ukraine
  On April 5, a Moscow resident, Irina (name changed at her request), was fined 30,000 rubles (US$365) under an article about «discrediting» the Russian army. A week earlier, a protocol was drawn up against her after she had got into an argument in a coffee shop with a man who was disparaging Ukrainians. He recorded a part of the conversation on his phone, and then proceeded to call the police.
• «Blessed are the peacemakers». What Christian religious leaders face when speaking out against the war
  Protestant preacher Eduard Charov was fined 65,000 rubles (roughly $800) for anti-war posts on social media and criticizing the state. We discuss how Russian authorities persecute Orthodox clerics and Christian leaders of other denominations if they disagree with the official position on the war in Ukraine broadcast by the Russian Orthodox Church and the government.
• The Dissident Digest — free weekly newsletter in English!
  The Digest is your window into the dark world of the Kremlin’s war on human rights and civil society in Russia. The Dissident Digest informs you through data, news and explainers. The newsletter is by no means all-encompassing but we strive to provide you with a snapshot of most important developments.

If you want to be informed about political repressions in Russia you can subscribe to our Digest, follow us on Twitter or visit our website! Everything helps.

Reports, research, and advocacy

At our organisation, we examine emerging problems from various angles, which helps us work out present-day tactical solutions and lay the strategic foundation for future systemic change. The results of our analyses are published as reports, data sets, or special projects.

• Wartime Repressions Report. April 2023
  Fourteen months ago Russia launched its full-scale war against Ukraine. It also marked the start of a new wave of repressions against people inside Russia. Almost 20 thousand people have so far been arrested for their antiwar position and more than 500 people, including minors and pensioners, have been charged with criminal cases.
• «According to OVD-Info» newsletter
  Our research team is very active, and it is difficult to put all of their work into one letter. Therefore, we have a newsletter available in English. You can subscribe to follow our news and publications of upcoming reports and datasets.

 

How much we collected

Total transfers

• 16,447 donations
• RUB 17,603,619 

The figure includes

• 1,914 donations made through the GlobalGiving platform (RUB 8,067,066). These donations were received by us during the spring and summer of 2022. As per our agreement with GlobalGiving, we are currently receiving deferred transfers from the previous year.
• 228 direct transfers made to OVD-Info clients through the Zaodno platform, totalling RUB 218,044.

How much we spent

In April, we expended a total of RUB 21,378,713, all of which was funded by your donations and transfers from various sources. Here’s a breakdown of how the funds were used:

• RUB 8,118,137 — legal assistance. Our lawyers and human rights defenders worked tirelessly to provide legal aid to detainees in police departments and courts, and coordinated assistance in criminal cases throughout the month.
• RUB 1,931,541 — work of our hotline operators and reporters. Our monitoring group received calls to the hotline and messages in the telegram bot every day, and reported news to aid detainees, not only during large-scale actions, but also for regular detentions that occur almost every day in Russia.
• RUB 2,051,961 — the work of our media team. We believe that information can be a powerful tool in protecting political rights. To make information about political rights violations public, we prepared and published significant articles, created guides for major criminal cases, launched special projects, gave interviews, and talked about it on all available social networks.
• RUB 1,649,615 — data projects, reports, research, and advocacy. We collect and analyse data on political persecution to make informed decisions and help journalists and researchers understand the situation. Based on the collected data, we prepare comprehensive reports that analyse how legislative practices and repressive laws enable political persecution.
• RUB 2,208,908 — the work of our IT team. We developed tools and services that help to protect ourselves and others, ensure the stable operation of our entire system, and share our work with other initiatives.
• RUB 665,514 — volunteer coordination. Our volunteers are our backbone and the best team of like-minded individuals. We are committed to expanding our community and ensuring that volunteers actively participate in the project’s life.
• RUB 3,043,637 — operational support of the project. Thanks to this work, which is not always visible, we continue to help those who need help and spend our energy and resources more efficiently. It includes the costs of team members who ensure the daily work and planning of the project and are responsible for the sustainability of OVD-Info in the long term, budget planning, strategic goals, communication with donors and financial transparency. This also includes the costs of caring for team members: psychological assistance, development of the competencies of participants and their safety.
• RUB 754,234 — infrastructure costs (office rent, phone and Internet). This helps us to work more cohesively and efficiently, as well as to take calls to the hotline and write news stories.
• RUB 365,952 — bank account maintenance and payment systems commission. We use several payment systems, and the interest rates are all different. This amount is calculated as a percentage of donations and expenses on the account. It depends not only on our expenses but also on the amount of income. The increase in the amount was also influenced by an increase in the commission from the payment system that we use to accept and process donations.
• RUB 589,214 — additional taxes and fees. We have separated this portion of fees in the expense structure to cover taxes that are not included in other expense items.

Thank you so much for being with us!