Press Release, 13.07.2026

Photo: Mikhail Afanasyev / Photo by the Yabloko Press Service

On 12 July, Yabloko member Mikhail Afanasyev, a journalist of the online media Novy Fokus, a Free Media Awards laureate, and a two-time recipient of the Andrei Sakharov Prize “For Journalism as an Act of Conscience”, turns 50. Yabloko Chairman Nikolai Rybakov has congratulated Mikhail Afanasyev on his anniversary.

Dear Mikhail Vyacheslavovich,

On behalf of the whole of Yabloko party, and on my own behalf, I congratulate you on your anniversary!

You are one of those who embody the honour and conscience of our party, and of Russian journalism as a whole, in the best sense of that word. Your path is an example of loyalty to your profession, your ideals, democratic values, and an example of civic courage.

Your fortitude, your outlook on life, and your selfless work and fight for truth and justice in our country command deep respect.

Above all, I would like to wish you health and optimism. May your heart never know despondency, and may your faith that our joint work will change the course of history give you strength every day. We all wish you the swiftest possible release!

Happy anniversary! Peace, kindness, and a swift return home!

Mikhail Afanasyev was arrested on 13 April 2022 and sentenced by the court to five and a half years’ imprisonment in a general-regime penal colony on a charge of “spreading fake news about the army”. Mikhail’s final statement in court can be read here.

One can send Mikhail words of congratulation and good wishes at our letter-writing evenings held across the country, or independently via Russian Post or through the Federal Penitentiary Service’s online letter service. The details are here.