CrimeaSOS: occupation courts issued 389 administrative resolutions on “discrediting the russian army” in Crimea

Since March 2022, the occupation courts in Crimea have issued 389 resolutions on administrative liability for allegedly discrediting the russian army. CrimeaSOS analyst Yevhenii Yaroshenko talked about it.

“As of August 10 this year, there are 389 resolutions in administrative offense cases due to the alleged discrediting of the russian army in Crimea. In addition, it is currently known about three guilty verdicts in criminal cases about the alleged repeated “discrediting of the russian army” on the occupied peninsula” — says Yevhenii Yaroshenko.

Most of the decisions were issued by the following institutions:

• “Kyiv District Court of Simferopol”— 57
• “Yevpatoria City Court”— 34
• “Feodosia City Court”— 34
• “Yalta City Court”— 29
• “Saky City Court”— 26.

The fewest decisions were made by the following institutions:

• “Pervomaiske District Court” — 1
• “Balaklava District Court of Sevastopol” — 2
• “Sovietskyi District Court”— 3

On March 4, russian deputies adopted amendments to the legislation that provide for administrative and criminal liability for “discrediting the armed forces of the russian federation”. This allows people to be prosecuted for spreading information and expressing a position about full-scale war that differs from the Kremlin’s official position.

According to Yevhenii Yaroshenko, the longer the full-scale war lasts, the greater will be the discontent in the russian federation and in the occupied Crimea, and as a result — the number of cases about “discrediting the russian army” will increase. 

We would like to remind you that CrimeaSOS experts have investigated legal proceedings in occupied Crimea regarding the “discrediting of the russian army” for the period from March to August 2022. The text of the study can be found on the organization’s website.