June 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.

• 300,832 users were connected to our Telegram-bot
• our legal instructions were viewed 16,109 times
• we received 1,236 calls on our hotline

In total, our operators and volunteers spoke on the phone for 57 hours, 2 minutes and 17 seconds.

Lawyers of the hotline

• conducted 99 consultations by phone;
• responded to 145 letters received at legal@ovdinfo.org;
• audited 5 appeals received through the generator.

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 June, our lawyers, jurists, and defenders

• went to the police departments 53 times, where they helped 144 detainees.
• helped 144 people in court sessions on administrative cases.
• managed to terminate, cancel or return at least 14 cases of administrative offence.

Criminal cases

Our lawyers and jurists in June 2023

• Were present during 2 searches;
• Accompanied clients on 7 interrogations;
• Entered into 4 new criminal cases;
• In total, at the end of June, lawyers from OVD-Info worked on 63 criminal cases against 80 people in 35 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 25 complaints to the European Court of Human Rights.
• A total of 2,904 complaints were submitted during the campaign.
• On 425 complaints, ECHR issued judgements — all in favour of the applicants; the remaining complaints are pending trial or registration.
• We have also launched a campaign to submit complaints with the United Nations Human Rights Council. While we analyse the practice and prepare cassation appeals, it is necessary to go through two more instances to apply to the Council. Then, we will be able to send complaints to the Committee. 

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

• 405 express news about political persecution in 70 regions of Russia;
• 9 longreads on political persecution.

What you should pay attention to

• «He will be released, and they will meet up with Masha to discuss everything»
  Since late February, numerous media outlets have covered the story of Alexey and Masha Moskalev. During this time, Alexey has undergone legal proceedings and an unsuccessful attempt to escape from house arrest, while Masha, after spending several weeks in a shelter, now resides with her mother. In collaboration with Spectr, we revisit the central figures of this story and delve into their experiences over the past six months.
• Igor Baryshnikov sentenced to 8 years for ‘fakes’
  The 64-year-old activist from Sovietsk is charged with spreading 'fake news' about the Russian army. He is suspected to have cancer and urgently requires an operation. Moreover, he has a paralyzed mother who needs care. In this longread, we share their story.
• 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.

• The Constitutional Court declined to acknowledge the article on ‘discrediting’ as being in violation of the Constitution.
  In the spring, OVD-Info, in collaboration with Memorial, Russia Behind Bars, and other Russian human rights advocates, submitted a joint complaint to the Constitutional Court, requesting the recognition of the administrative article on discrediting the army as unconstitutional. Soon afterwards, in June, the Constitutional Court issued 13 denial verdicts that appear more like ideological statements rather than legal documents. We provide a comprehensive explanation of this in our article.
  The constitutional complaints did not achieve their primary goal of repealing the article on ‘discrediting’. Nevertheless, this effort was not futile: the informational campaign raised awareness about the repression, and numerous internationally renowned lawyers expressed their opposition to the said article. Although all possible domestic avenues for protecting rights have been exhausted, we still have access to certain international protection mechanisms.
• We’ve released a report titled «Apologies on Camera and Beyond: Analysis of extra-judicial pressure after the outbreak of full-scale war»
  Pressure outside the judicial framework is a crucial tool for military repression in Russia. One of the most common forms of such pressure is public apologies on camera, which emerged in Chechnya several years ago and gradually spread throughout the country. Using them as an example, our report explains how mechanisms of extra-judicial pressure operate after the outbreak of full-scale war in Ukraine.

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:

Subscribe to the newsletter

How much we collected

Total transfers

• 16,535 donations
• RUB 17,763,227

The figure includes

• 2,501 donations made through the GlobalGiving platform (RUB 8,286,867). As per our agreement with GlobalGiving, we are currently receiving deferred transfers from the previous year.
• 362 direct transfers made to OVD-Info clients through the Zaodno platform, totalling RUB 310,247.

How much we spent

In June, we expended a total of RUB 20,771,556, all of which was funded by your donations and transfers from various sources. Here’s a breakdown of how the funds were used:

• RUB 7,822,098 — 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 1,958,046 — 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 2,300,525 — 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 1,348,459 — 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 1,193,178 — 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 666,235 — 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 3,299,719 — 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 1,369,788 — 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 360,014 — 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 453,494 — 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!