January 2025

What We Achieved Thanks to Your SupportKey HighlightsLaunched a Second Campaign in Support of the Baymak Case DefendantsA year ago, in January 2024, the city of Baymak in the Republic of Bashkortostan witnessed a public gathering in support of local activist Fayil Alsynov. People from across the republic came to stand with him during his sentencing. However, what began as a peaceful assembly ended in a brutal crackdown by riot police, followed by mass arrests and criminal prosecutions.A year later, 81 people are now facing criminal charges in connection with the so-called Baymak Case, and OVD-Info is providing legal defense for 20 of them. In January, we launched a fundraising campaign to support lawyers working on these cases and to cover travel expenses. As part of the campaign, we held a livestream on Echo Radio together with the publication Aspekty.Bashkortostan — the recording is available on our channel. Thank you to everyone who contributed!Launched a Campaign to Support Dmitry BogmutIn pre-trial detention, Dmitry Bogmut lost 20 kilograms — at a height of 182 cm, he now weighs only 50 kg. Before his arrest, he was in good health, but within six months, his condition deteriorated sharply. Despite repeated complaints, he has not been given a medical examination, and the cause of his extreme weight loss remains unknown.Thanks to your activism, authorities received thousands of letters about his case. However, so far, Dmitry has been denied proper medical care, and his health continues to worsen. The Federal Penitentiary Service (FSIN) sent us standard bureaucratic responses, citing a lack of documentation as the reason for refusing to transfer him to a hospital. However, the Prosecutor’s Office cannot ignore such appeals — after receiving a request, investigators are obligated to conduct an inquiry and inform us of the results.We closed the petition campaign, but we will continue to fight for Dmitry’s right to medical treatment. If further support is needed, we will let you know.Mourning a Loss: Sergey Nevorotin Passed AwayBack in September, we celebrated a small victory: Sergey Nevrotin was released due to his deteriorating health. Unfortunately, his illness was too severe, and in January, Sergey passed away.We are deeply grateful to everyone who helped raise 150,000 rubles to cover his funeral expenses and support his family. This experience once again showed that, even in the hardest moments, we are not alone. Sergey was able to spend the last four months of his life in freedom.How You HelpedFinancial SupportIn January, OVD-Info received 15,498 donations totaling 12,905,494 rubles.Here’s how the funds were distributed:Direct support to OVD-Info’s defendants via the “Zaodno” platform — 507 donations totaling 605,468 rubles;Donations for care packages and medical aid for politically persecuted individuals — 332 donations totaling 371,361 rubles.We’ve attached a list of these transactions, carefully removing any personal data.Writing Letters & Sending Appeals“Lifeline” — Letters to Political PrisonersEven after the holiday season, you continued writing letters to politically persecuted individuals through the Lifeline service.In January, you wrote 312 letters;Since the launch of Lifeline, a total of 12,379 letters have been written to 894 people;We’ve already received 3,204 responses and forwarded them to the senders.Through Lifeline, you can write to a randomly selected person imprisoned for political reasons. This way, even those who are not well-known but have been persecuted for their beliefs can receive words of support.“Dyatel” — Mass Appeals to Authorities2,775 appeals were sent to the Prosecutor’s Office and FSIN, demanding medical care for Dmitry Bogmut;Since Dyatel was launched, over 121,000 appeals have been sent to FSIN, the Prosecutor’s Office, and other government agencies.What is “Dyatel”?It’s a service that allows you to quickly and easily file complaints about human rights violations with Russian government bodies. Why is this important?It makes it harder for authorities to violate our rights in silence;If enough complaints are submitted, they can’t just ignore them with standard bureaucratic responses.What We DidProvided ProtectionExpress helpIn January, we continued providing urgent legal help through our hotline, Telegram bot, and legal consultations.