Russian artist on trial for anti-war protest appeals for compassion

A Russian artist who replaced supermarket price tags with messages calling for an end to Moscow’s war in Ukraine asked a judge on Thursday, November 16, to exercise wisdom and set her free rather than jail her for eight years.

Alexandra Skochilenko, 33, made the emotional appeal during her final statement to a court in her native St Petersburg ahead of a verdict expected at 1230 GMT.

“Whatever decision you take, you’ll go down in history,” Skochilenko told the presiding judge, according to a recording of her speech made by supporters.

She said she was a pacifist and valued human life above all else.

“Your honor, you have a unique opportunity to show an example to society with your verdict,” she said. “You can show how to resolve conflict with the help of words and compassion.”

Critics say the case is part of a crackdown on anyone who speaks out against Russia’s “special military operation” in Ukraine, which has led to nearly 20,000 detentions and over 800 criminal cases.

After sending troops into Ukraine early last year, Russia tightened its laws on dissent to try to silence critics as it contests what President Vladimir Putin portrays as an existential struggle with the West.

Skochilenko, an artist and musician who has already spent over a year-and-a half in prison, has admitted replacing price tags in a supermarket on March 31, 2022, with pieces of paper urging an end to the war and criticizing the authorities.

But she denies the formal charge of knowingly spreading false information about the army.

A state prosecutor has requested an eight-year jail term for what he called a crime committed out of hatred for Russia.

Skochilenko’s lawyers told the court their client had committed no crime and would not survive jail because of coeliac disease, a severe intolerance of gluten. Amnesty International has declared her a “prisoner of conscience.”

Skochilenko addressed the state prosecutor during her final statement.

“What will you tell your children? That one day you jailed a seriously ill beloved artist for five pieces of paper?” she said.

“I’m not afraid, and maybe that’s precisely why my government is so afraid of me, and keeps me in a cage like the most dangerous of animals.” – Rappler.com