'Miss Crimea 2022' fined for singing Ukrainian song

A Russian court has fined 2022 Miss Crimea pageant winner Olga Valeyeva 40,000 rubles ($681) for singing the patriotic Ukrainian song Chervona Kalyna (“Red Guelder Rose”) in a video posted to Instagram, RIA Novosti reported on Monday. A friend of Valeyeva who also appeared in the video was sentenced to 10 days in prison.

Both women were charged with “discrediting” the Russian army and spreading propaganda for an extremist organization. According to the Russian news outlet Life, Valeyeva was given a lighter sentence because she has young children.

A video posted on the Crimean Interior Ministry’s Telegram channel Monday shows the women apologizing for singing the song.

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The song Chervona Kalyna has long been a symbol of Ukrainian independence. Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, a number of Ukrainian artists, as well as Pink Floyd, have released recordings of the song. Russian state media has written that the song is “considered an anthem of Ukrainian nationalist formations, including groups banned in Russia.”