Human rights activist Lev Ponomarev is sentenced in absentia to five and a half years in prison for founding the ‘undesirable’ Andrei Sakharov Institute
The Khoroshevsky District Court in Moscow has sentenced Lev Ponomarev, an 84-year-old human rights activist, in absentia to five and a half years in prison, the independent Russian news outlet Mediazona reported.
Ponomarev was found guilty of running the operations of an “undesirable” organization and of evading his obligations as a so-called “foreign agent.” The judge also banned him from administering websites for nine years.
The “undesirable” organization charge stemmed from the Andrei Sakharov Institute, which Ponomarev founded in Paris in November 2022. Russia’s Justice Ministry declared the institute “undesirable” in the summer of 2024. Ponomarev continued to organize the distribution of its materials anyway — materials the indictment said were “aimed at fostering protest sentiment and discrediting the Russian authorities.”
The second charge arose from his refusal to attach the required “foreign agent” disclaimer to his publications.
The Andrei Sakharov Institute says its goals are to support Russian civil society amid repression, assist political refugees and deserters from Russia, and provide a platform for expert discussion about ending the war and building democracy in Russia.
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