The charge sheet against Oleg Orlov reveals that the phoney experts used against Yury DMITRIEV in both his trials have once again been ‘consulted’ and offered their unprofessional opinions. Writing for the Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group, Halya Coynash has this …

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Concern that Oleg Orlov, Co-Chair of Memorial, could face imprisonment for his criticism of Russia’s war against Ukraine has escalated since it became known who has provided the supposed ‘expert assessments’ of Orlov’s words. The two individuals involved are already notorious for their role in getting the Memorial Human Rights Centre prohibited [January 2022], as well as other acts of religious or political persecution.

On 21 March 2023, Orlov learned that he was facing criminal charges for supposed “repeat discrediting of Russia’s armed forces” after a day in which the Russian enforcement bodies carried out searches of the Memorial office and of the homes of many Memorial employees. This is under Article 280.3 § 1 of Russia’s Criminal Code, one of the new charges quickly rushed into law within days of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Orlov had already faced two previous prosecutions under the analogous article of the Code of Administrative Offences, with this making it possible to initiate criminal proceedings.

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