A woman from Russia's Urals city of Yekaterinburg is standing trial for sharing pictures relating to the conflict in eastern Ukraine on the Russian social network VKontakte, news reports said Wednesday.
Yekaterina Vologzheninova, 46, is a single mother, according to the Znak.com news website. She has been charged with inciting hatred or animosity toward a social group and faces a fine, community service or up to four years in prison.
Last year Vologzheninova reposted several pictures on VKontakte that the local branch of the Federal Security Service (FSB) considered extremist.
One of them depicted Russian President Vladimir Putin staring at a map with a knife in his hand, while another showed a woman with a rifle calling for “death to the Moscow occupiers” in eastern Ukraine. A third said “volunteers from Russia” shouldn't go to Ukraine because its “morgues are full,” Znak.com reported.
The woman, who works as a store assistant, denied any wrongdoing.
“I consider the charges groundless. I was exploring materials about the situation in Ukraine that are distributed on the social network VKontakte. … These materials are not extremist, they are not banned by anyone, so I don't think I did anything wrong,” she was cited by Znak.com as saying last week, when the trial commenced.
Despite the fact that the court hasn't yet reached a verdict, Vologzheninova's credit card has already been blocked by Rosfinmonitoring, the state financial watchdog, Znak.com reported. The decision was based on a law that outlaws financing terrorists, the report said.
On Tuesday a hearing into the case was postponed until Nov. 10 due to witnesses for the prosecution not showing up, Znak.com reported.
A Message from The Moscow Times:
Dear readers,
We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."
These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.
We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.
Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.
By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.
Remind me later.
