Russian court sentences 6 members of opposition movement Vesna to up to 12 years in prison

A St. Petersburg court has sentenced six members of the opposition movement Vesna to terms of up to 12 years in a general-regime penal colony, the St. Petersburg media outlet Bumaga reported.

Anna Arkhipova received 12 years; Yan Ksenzhepolsky, 11 years; Vasily Neustroev, 10 years; Pavel Sinelnikov, seven years and six months; and Yevgeny Zateyev, six years and two months.

Valentin Khoroshenin received six years and two months. He was the only defendant to plead guilty and give detailed testimony against the other defendants — both those in custody and those who had left Russia — as well as against people who had not even been mentioned in the investigation or prosecution materials, the independent Russian news outlet Mediazona reported.

In a letter from pretrial detention, Arkhipova wrote that after giving his confession, Khoroshenin told the other defendants: “In the end, what matters is not what actually happened, but what the investigator wrote.” Arkhipova’s support group published the letter. In it, she wrote that she did not want to blame anyone. “It’s everyone’s choice whether to live by their conscience or not,” she said.

The case against the former activists was built on posts from Vesna’s social media accounts, including announcements of anti-war events. Neither the investigation nor the court made any effort to establish who had authored the posts, Mediazona reported. During closing arguments, the prosecutor said the publications had been made “with the silent consent” of all the activists, meaning “everyone was satisfied with the movement’s actions.” The prosecution had sought sentences ranging from eight to 13 years.

Vesna was founded in St. Petersburg in 2013. Before the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, the movement was known for its ironic political performances; afterward, it became one of the leading voices of anti-war protest in Russia.

The persecution of Vesna’s members began in 2022, after activists called on people to take part in the Immortal Regiment march on May 9 carrying anti-war placards. After mobilization began in September 2022, Vesna called on people to join protests against the authorities’ actions. Russian authorities soon designated the movement a “foreign agent” and then an extremist organization.

The so-called big Vesna case came to light in June 2023. Six defendants — all former members of the movement at the time — were arrested following searches in various regions of Russia. A total of 21 people are named in the case; most of them have left the country.