25 years in prison required against opponent Vladimir Kara-Mourza accused of treason

This is an emblematic affair of the all-out repression in Russia since the start of the offensive in Ukraine. The Russian prosecutor’s office requested, Thursday, April 6, 25 years in prison against the opponent Vladimir Kara-Mourza, accused of “high treason”, of spreading “false information” on the Russian army and of illegal work for an organization ” undesirable”. His lawyer, Vadim Prokhorov, confirmed with AFP the requisitions of the prosecution after a hearing of this trial which takes place behind closed doors.

Vladimir Kara-Mourza, in pretrial detention since April 2022, is a longtime opponent of Vladimir Putin. He nearly died after being, he says, poisoned twice, in 2015 and 2017, from assassination attempts he attributes to the Russian regime. Several hearings of his trial, which opened on March 13, have also been postponed due to his fragile state of health.

According to his lawyer, the opponent suffers from polyneuropathy and neuromuscular pathology, a consequence of the two poisonings. Maria Eismont, a lawyer who also defends Vladimir Kara-Mourza, explained to AFP that the opponent was able to attend the hearing on Thursday and that he seemed “get a little better”.