Another young Russian activist seeks political asylum in Ukraine

Anna Ploskonosova, who has taken part in opposition protests and whose boyfriend Yury Chervochkin was killed last year is seeking political asylum in Ukraine, according to the newspaper Kommersant.

They report her as saying that while in a Ukrainian city on 20 March, she submitted the necessary application to the migration service.  The newspaper reports that Anna is a student of the Tula State University and is involved in two criminal cases in Russia.  In Tula she is accused of assaulting the Deputy Head of the Public Safety Police Igor Zakharov during a demonstration on 7 November 2007 (Article 318 of the Criminal Code “using force against a representative of the authorities”).  And in Kaluga she faces criminal charges under Article 214 “vandalism” for writing opposition slogans on buildings.

“The first of these cases was heading close to a sentence and I understand that the court wanted to pass a real term of imprisonment. That’s why I decided to leave”, she explains.

Two other Russian nationals have recently received political asylum in Ukraine: Kemerov journalist Alexander Kosvintsev and another member of the National Bolshevik Party Olga Kudrinf who was accused of hooliganism and deliberate damage to property.  At present organizer of the March of those in dissent in Samara Mikhail Gangan and Anastasia Kurt-Adzhieva are also seeking asylum.

The leader of the Moscow region National Bolsheviks was beaten up by attackers on the eve of a Moscow March of those in dissent, and died on 10 December 2007. Colleagues of the “Other Russia” activist blame the Moscow region Department for Fighting Organized Crime. Yury Chervochkin had said on a number of occasions that he had been threatened with physical reprisals.