A Russian court sentenced Vladimir Kara-Murza on Monday for treason and for publicly opposing the war in Ukraine. He was sentenced to 25 years in prison.
Kara-Murza reacted calmly as the judge read out the verdict and sentence in a rapid, monotone. His lawyer, Maria Eismont, later quoted him as saying: “My self-esteem has gone up: I realized that I did everything right. Twenty-five years is the highest rating I could receive for doing what I did and believed in, as a citizen, patriot, and politician.”
The charges against Kara-Murza, who has been behind bars since his arrest a year ago, stem from a March 2022 speech to the Arizona House of Representatives in which he denounced the Russian invasion of Ukraine, as well as other speeches. abroad.
Days after the invasion, Russia adopted a law criminalizing the spread of “false information” about its military. Authorities have used the law to silence criticism of what the Kremlin calls a “special military operation.”
Initially, Kara-Murza was only charged with spreading “false information” about the military, but authorities later added charges of working with an “undesirable” organization, also a criminal offense, and treason.
Another leading opposition figure, Ilya Yashin, was sentenced to 8½ years in prison last year on charges of spreading false information about the army.
Last month, a Russian court convicted a father over social media posts critical of the war and sentenced him to two years in prison. His 13-year-old daughter, who drew an anti-war sketch at school, was sent to an orphanage.
Days later, Russia’s security service arrested Evan Gershkovich, an American reporter for The Wall Street Journalfor espionage charges.
Associated Press/Reuters/OnCuba
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