Blind political prisoner Oleksandr Sizikov sentenced to 17 years in prison by Russian occupiers in Crimea

Photo: Krimskaya Solidarnost (Crimean Solidarity)

Political prisoner Oleksandr Sizikov has been sentenced to 17 years’ imprisonment by a Russian court in occupied Crimea despite being totally blind – a category 1 disability.

Source: Dmytro Lubinets, Verkhovna Rada (Ukrainian Parliament) Commissioner for Human Rights, on Telegram; public movement Krimskaya Solidarnost (Crimean Solidarity)

Details: After the verdict was announced, Sizikov was taken to an unknown destination.

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Lubinets noted that seven people were detained in Crimea during large-scale searches on 7 July 2020. Six of them were sent to a pre-trial detention centre. Oleksandr Sizikov, who completely lost his sight in a car accident, was placed under house arrest.

On 14 September, Crimean police came to Sizikov’s home and took him to an unknown location.

Lawyer Lilia Gemedzhy said the police’s actions were illegal, noting that they had even threatened to use force and to hold Sizikov accountable for “contempt of court”.

Lubinets pointed out that according to a Russian government decree, people with severe disabilities, including those with complete sight loss, cannot be held in custody.

He urged the international community to increase pressure on Russia and demand the immediate release of Oleksandr Sizikov, as well as all Ukrainians illegally detained in the temporarily occupied territory of Crimea and in Russia.

Quote from Lubinets: “The actions of the Russian security forces against this person with a disability violate fundamental human rights, specifically the right to a fair trial and defence.”

Background:

• Sizikov, along with the other six detainees, was accused of being involved in Hizb ut-Tahrir, a Muslim political party which Russia recognised as a terrorist organisation in 2003. However, the party operates without restriction in Ukraine and most other countries of the world.
• The persecution of this organisation in Crimea started after the peninsula was occupied by Russia in 2014. Members of Hizb ut-Tahrir were accused of terrorism, even though human rights activists insist that the organisation has nothing to do with violent action and its only purposes are to fight against political repressions and oppose Russian government policy on Crimea.

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