08 March 2025, 22:56
Ulker Gashimova recognized as a political prisoner
The verdict in the case against Derbent native Ulker Gashimova is disproportionate to the degree of public danger of her statements and has signs of political persecution, human rights defenders have pointed out. They request the court to reconsider the Ulker Gashimova’s case.
The “Caucasian Knot” has reported that on October 8, 2024, in Rostov-on-Don, a military court sentenced activist Ulker Gashimova to four years and six months of imprisonment in a penal colony, finding her guilty of calls for terrorism and extremism.
In the spring of 2023, Ulker Gashimova, a 23-year-old activist from Derbent, was detained at a Moscow airport while she was trying to fly out of Russia. Her fiancé explained that Ulker Gashimova planned to seek political asylum in the Netherlands. After two arrests in the Moscow Region, Ulker Gashimova was sent to Dagestan and placed to a SIZO (pre-trial prison), after which she refused an advocate and decided to defend herself on her own. Ulker Gashimova complained about pressure from an investigator in her case.
On February 27, 2025, a judge of the Military Court of Appeal upheld the verdict in the Ulker Gashimova’s case, the “Support for Political Prisoners. Memorial”* human rights project reported.
The human rights defenders have pointed out that under the article on calls for terrorism, the sentence was politically motivated and the sentence imposed was excessive. They have also noted that political motives were also clear in the court’s decision on the article on calls for extremism. The punishment has been disproportionate to the real public danger of the act and has been applied against Ulker Gashimova in violation of the right to a fair trial, other rights, and freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution of the Russian Federation and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
*Included by the Russian Ministry of Justice (MoJ) into the register of foreign agents.
This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on March 7, 2025 at 04:37 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.
Source: Caucasian Knot
