The criminal court hearing against Yulia Tsvetkova, an artist and activist from Komsomolsk-on-Amur in the Russian Far East, resumes on March 14, 2022. She is facing up to six years in prison if convicted under the absurd charges of “production and dissemination of pornography” for posting online her body-positive drawings of the female body.
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- Please take action as-soon-as possible. This Urgent Action expires on April 13, 2022.
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Boris Viktorovich Kononenko
Prosecutor of Komsomolsk-on-Amur
34 Krasnogvardeiskaya street
Komsomolsk-on-Amur, 681013
Russian Federation
Email: [email protected]
Ambassador Anatoly Antonov
Embassy of the Russian Federation
2650 Wisconsin Ave. NW, Washington DC 20007
Phone: 202 298 5700 I Fax: 202 298 5735
Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @RusEmbUSA
Facebook: @RusEmbUSA
Instagram: @RusEmbUSA
Salutation: Dear Ambassador
SAMPLE LETTER
Dear Prosecutor,
I am writing to urge you to stop the prosecution of Yulia Tsvetkova under false charges of “production and dissemination of pornography” (Article 242(3b) of the Russian Criminal Code). The court hearing in her case will resume on March 14, 2022. Yulia Tsvetkova’s has committed no recognizable criminal offence, and her only “crime” has been her artistic drawings of the female body as part of her activism for women’s rights.
An artist and activist from Komsomolsk-on-Amur, Yulia Tsvetkova has been continually targeted for her activism for women’s rights and the rights of LGBTI people. Since 2019, she has been prosecuted for her drawings, and faced harassment by police, and repeated house and workplace searches. She spent almost four months under house arrest until March 2020 and was deprived of access to the medical care she required. She has been under travel restrictions since. Yulia Tsvetkova has also repeatedly faced administrative proceedings and fines under the homophobic “gay propaganda” legislation (Article 6.21 of the Code of Administrative Offences). She has also faced homophobic threats, abuse, and harassment, over the phone, via social networks, and by mail, as has her mother.
Yulia Tsvetkova is facing reprisals for her human rights activism and for exercising her right to freedom of expression, which violates both Russia’s Constitution and its obligations under international human rights law.
In the light of the above, I urge you to immediately drop the criminal case and end all administrative proceedings against Yulia Tsvetkova.
Sincerely,
[YOUR NAME]
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