Human rights activist Alexandra Garmazhapova put on Russia’s federal wanted list

The Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs has put Alexandra Garmazhapova, human rights activist and founder of the Free Buryatia Foundation, on the federal wanted list. Garmazhapova reported the information herself to Mediazona.

Official documents say Garmazhapova is wanted for criminal activity, though the specific charges are not known. The activist believes she may have been charged in a case about “discrediting” the Russian army.

The Free Buryatia Foundation started shortly after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Among other things, it helps soldiers from the Siberian Republic of Buryatia to terminate their contracts with the Russian defense ministry. In the summer of 2022, the Free Buryatia Foundation reported that 150 Buryat service members who refused to fight in Ukraine would return home. Garmazhapova was declared a “foreign agent” in November 2022. She currently resides outside of Russia.