Press release, 23.12.2016

On December 22, Pertozavodsk City Court refused to release Svetlana Chechil on parole. YABLOKO Federal Council member Svetlana Chechil is serving one and a half years sentence in a Prison Settlement No. 9 in Russia’s northern Karelia Region (a penal colony in a remote area where prisoners are free to roam the village but under the guards’ watch) as a result of fabricated charges.

The day before the court hearing, on December 21, it came to be known that Chechil was reprimanded by the prison administration for not greeting one of correctional workers. Naturlly she had no time to appeal against the punishment.

Several months ago Svetlana Chechil was reprimanded by the prison administration for sharing a patty with the other inmate. According to YABLOKO Chair Emilia Slabunova, the penalty was meant to prevent her from winning early release. On December 14, the court considered Svetlana Chechil’s appeal against the absurd penalty of the prison administration and ruled it as illegal.

The criminal case against Svetlana Chechil was filed right after the elections of 2013. On the eve of the election Governor of Karelia Alexander Khudilainen warned Svetlana Chechil that she would have to talk to an investigator soon. Earlier First Deputy Governor Oleg Gromov had hinted Chechil at the possible consequences of her political disobedience.

During 2013-2015 a large number of criminal cases were filed against the members of YABLOKO’s team: Deputy Mayor of Petrozavodsk Evgenia Sukhorukova, deputy of the Legislative Assembly of Karelia Anastasia Kravchuk, leader of the regional YABLOKO branch Vasily Popov, Chair of the army veterans council of the city Galina Karasova, deputy of Petrozavodsk City Council Olga Zaletskaya and other party members. The elected mayor of Petrozavodsk Galina Shirshina was illegally ousted from her position.