Investigators accuse protesters of ‘armed resistance’ amid continuing crackdown in Russia’s Bashkortostan
Back in January, Bashkortostan saw some of the largest protests in Russia since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The protesters rallied to show support for prominent Bashkort activist Fayil Alsynov, who was on trial for allegedly “inciting ethnic hatred.” The demonstrations began outside of the courthouse in the town of Baymak, where Alsynov was sentenced, and then spread to the regional center of Ufa. Russia’s top investigative authority immediately launched a criminal case in response to the demonstrations and began arresting dozens of activists and protesters on charges of “mass rioting.”
According to case materials obtained by Mediazona, a group of 33 Investigative Committee officials are carrying out an ongoing investigation under the Criminal Code articles for “mass rioting” and “violence against government officials.” Investigators claim that protesters in Baymak used “stones, wooden sticks, and metal rods” as weapons and allegedly injured several police and National Guard (Rosgvardia) officers by throwing “chunks of frozen snow.” Investigators also accuse demonstrators of damaging property, using “dangerous objects,” and putting up “armed resistance” against the security forces.
As Mediazona recalls, the Russian authorities have a long history of charging protesters with “mass rioting.” However, past cases have not involved accusations of “armed resistance.”
Investigators have named exiled Bashkort activist Ruslan Gabbasov as the “organizer” of the January 2024 protests, accusing him of using Telegram and YouTube to incite residents of Bashkortostan to “participate in mass riots.” Gabbasov, who fled Russia and received asylum in Lithuania in 2021, maintains that he made no such calls and simply shared posts about the protests from other people.
A few days before the protests, Gabbasov released a video about the trial of his half-brother, Rustam Fararitdinov, who was arrested on “terrorism” charges in November 2023. He also mentioned Alsynov’s case, urging people “not to be silent.”
The number of suspects in the Bashkortostan “mass rioting” case remains unknown. In early February, the rights group OVD-Info reported that there were 68 people facing charges. The media outlet Prufy later reported that at least 74 people had been arrested. A source familiar with the case told Mediazona there are rumors that the authorities want to bring charges against “hundreds” of people. According to this same source, law enforcement officers are using photos and videos to identify protesters, arresting them on misdemeanor charges of disobeying police orders, and then filing criminal charges against them.
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According to OVD-Info’s tally, Bashkortostan courts have received more than 160 misdemeanor reports of disobeying police officers, “organizing an unauthorized event and participating in an unauthorized rally,” and “interfering with infrastructure.”
Activist Dim Davletkildin, who was jailed on January 22, was later hospitalized in critical condition due to a spinal fracture. According to his relatives, Davletkildin was severely beaten in detention and forced to testify under duress.
At least one person has died in custody during the crackdown, according to media reports. Police in Ufa arrested Rifat Dautov on January 25 and his whereabouts were unknown until a morgue contacted officials in the village where his parents live, looking for relatives to identify his body, his sister Zaliya told journalists.
Ruslan Gabbasov told Mediazona that the protests in Bashkortostan were a grassroots show of support for Alsynov and that there was no “organizer” behind the demonstrations. Popular outrage over the charges leveled against Alsynov prompted “a huge number of ordinary people” to come out and protest, Gabbasov said. “And the security services took advantage of the situation, to stamp out the huge protest potential that exists in [Bashkortostan],” he added.
