Civic journalist Osman Arifmemetov imprisoned in Russia for reporting repression in occupied Crimea

Osman Arifmemetov was one of the first civic journalists in occupied Crimea and there is every reason to believe that his arrest and imprisonment are the direct result of his tireless work in reporting on the ever-increasing number of armed searches, arrests and politically-motivated ‘trials’ since 2014. 

Through its arrests, on 27-28 March 2019, of  Arifmemetov and 22 other Crimean Tatar activists, most of them involved in the Crimean Solidarity civic initiative, Russia was hardly concealing the political motivation behind the persecution.  Nor had it earlier, in February 2017, when Arifmemetov and other Crimean Solidarity activists were jailed for five days merely for standing and streaming information about the latest armed search of a Crimean Tatar home.

There are numerous reasons why Arifmemetov himself, and Crimean Solidarity as a whole, have annoyed the occupation regime and the FSB.  It was Arifmemetov who, on March 29, 2017, ran after the blue Volkswagen minivan into which masked men in camouflage gear had forced another activist, Belyal Adilov after seizing him while he stood outside the High Court, reading a prayer for the political prisoners on trial.  There have been many abductions and enforced disappearances since Russia’s annexation of Crimea, and there was every reason for Arifmemetov to want to video the minivan and  to ensure that the apparent abductors’ movements were widely publicized.

That publicity certainly protected Adilov from any threat to his life, however it was only several hours later that he was able to phone his family and tell them that he was being held at the Investigative Committee. Adilov was subsequently prosecuted and fined for words that the de facto police decided to treat as ‘threatening’ them.  

Arifmemetov was not at home on 27 March 2019 when armed and masked enforcement officers burst into his home and those of 23 other Crimean Tatars, most of whom are Crimean Solidarity activists and devout Muslims.  He, fellow Crimean Solidarity civic journalist Remzi Bekirov and activist Vladlen Abdulkadyrov were seized in a café late in the evening on 27 March and beaten so savagely that Arifmemetov briefly lost consciousness.  They were then taken to a forest where they were again beaten, before being transported for six hours, handcuffed and with their arms behind their back. 

The charges brought against Arifmemetov and the others are under Russia’s ‘terrorism’ legislation and can sound alarming.  They are, in fact, based solely on unproven allegations of involvement in Hizb ut-Tahrir, a peaceful, pan-Islamist party which is legal in Ukraine and which has never committed any act of terrorism anywhere.  This is the reason why all those convicted on such charges are recognized as political prisoners by the authoritative Memorial Human Rights Centre.  There are additional reasons for condemning such application in Crimea of a flawed Russian Supreme Court ruling since Russia is in breach of international law by applying its legislation on occupied territory.

All of such arrests of law-abiding Ukrainian Muslims, who have not committed any crime, are invariably widely reported by the Russian and Russian-controlled media as seizures of ‘dangerous terrorists’.   

Arifmemetov is charged with ‘involvement in a Hizb ut-Tahrir cell’ under Article 205.5 § 2 of Russia’s criminal code, for which he faces a sentence of between 10 and 20 years.  All previous Hizb ut-Tahrir ‘trials’ of Crimean Muslims have been based on flawed ‘expert assessments’, highly dubious ‘secret witnesses’ and falsified evidence.  With respect to rigged evidence, lawyers were prevented from being present at all armed searches carried out on 27 March and there were reports that the FSB officers had claimed to ‘find’ prohibited literature’ that they had, in fact, brought with them.

Osman Arifmemetov is 34 (b. 28.08.1985) and a maths and information science teacher by profession.  He earned a living giving lessons and writing computer programs.  He is one of the main civic journalists reporting for Crimean Solidarity on searches, arrests and court hearings. 

He and his wife have two small children, Fatima, who was born in 2015, and Mustafa (2017).

See also:  Russia uses ‘terrorism’ charges to silence civic journalists in occupied Crimea

Please write to Osman and to all the other Crimean Tatar activists arrested on 27 March, who have just had their detention extended in closed court hearings in Russia

This is important so that they know they are not forgotten and so that Moscow knows that their persecution and their treatment of the men are being watched. 

The list below is broken up according to the SIZO [remand prison] where the men are held.  There is a full alphabetical list with slightly more detail here 

Letters need to be in Russian. If that is not a problem, please do remember that the letters will be seen by a censor and avoid anything obviously ‘political’ or linked with this case, or other cases of persecution. If it is a problem, there is a sample letter which could be simply written out, maybe with photos or pictures.

Russia has never arrested so many activists at one time before and the sheer amount of words below, can be overwhelming.  There is an example at the bottom, near the sample letter, of how to use the list (the first name is given as an example).   

Rostov-on-Don, SIZO No. 1

РФ, 344022 Ростовская область, Ростов-на-Дону, ул. Горького д. 219 ФКУ СИЗО-1

[English] Russian Federation, 344022 Rostov oblast, Rostov-on-Don, SIZO No. 1

Абдулкадыров Владлен Васильевич 28.12.1979    

[Abdulkadyrov, Vladlen Vasilyevich, b. 28.12.1979 ]

Адилов Билял Абдурахманович 27.05.1970   

[Adilov, Bilyal Abdurakhmanovich, b. 27.05.1970]  

Арифмеметов Осман Фератович 28.08.1985 

[Arifmemetov, Osman Feratovich, b. 28.08.1985 ]  

Базаров Фарход Эгамбердиевич 22.08.1986  

[Bazarov, Farkhod Egamberdievich, b. 22.08.1986 ]

Бекиров Аким Экремович 18.10.1988            

[Bekirov, Akim Ekremovich, b. 18.10.1988 ]

Газиев Сервет Абдураимович 15.04.1960     

[Gaziev, Servet Abduraimovich, 15.04.1960 ]

Сейтабдиев Сейтвели Эскендерович 16.03.1994  

[Seitabdiev, Seitveli Eskenderovich, b. 16.03.1994 ]

Шейхалиев Рустем Динарович 22.06.1979    

[Sheikhaliev, Rustem Dinarovich, b.22.06.1979 ]

Rostov-on-Don, SIZO No. 4

РФ, 344082 Ростовская область, Ростов-на-Дону, ул. Большая Садовая, 31, ФКУ СИЗО №4

[English] Russian Federation, 344082 Rostov oblast, Rostov-on-Don, 31 Bolshaya Sadovaya St. SIZO No. 4

Бекиров, Ремзи Рустемович 20.02.1985        

[Bekirov, Remzi Rustemovich, b. 20.02.1985 ]

Изетов, Риза Мустафаевич 24.01.1979         

[Izetov, Riza Mustafaevich, b. 24.01.1979 ]

Сулейманов, Руслан Серверович 21.04.1983 

[Suleymanov, Ruslan Serverovich, b. 21.04.1983 ] 

Умеров, Шабан Изетович 22.10.1969            

[Umerov, Shaban Izetovich, b. 22.10.1969 ]

Rostov-on-Don, SIZO No. 5

РФ, 344064 Ростовская область, Ростов-на-Дону,  ул. Тоннельная 4, ФКУ СИЗО-5

[English] Russian Federation, 344064 Rostov oblast, Rostov-on-Don, 4 Tonnelnaya St., SIZO No. 5

Гафаров Джемиль Абдуллаевич 31.05.1962   

[Gafarov, Dzhemil Abdullaevich, b. 31.05.1962 ]  

Османов Эрфан Серверович 03.09.1982      

[Osmanov, Erfan Serverovich, b. 03.09.1982 ]  

Яников Асан Алиевич 11.09.1986                  

[Yanikov, Asan Alievich, 11.09.1986 ]

Shakty, SIZO no. 4

РФ,  346519  Ростовская область,  г. Шахты, п. Кирпичный, ФКУ СИЗО №4  

[English] Russian Federation 346519, Rostov oblast, Shakhty, Kirpichny, SIZO No. 4

Абдулгазиев Тофик Султанович 19.06.1981  

[Abdulgaziev, Tofik Sultanovich, b. 19.06.1981 ]

Абдуллаев Иззет Мустафаевич 02.10.1986   

[Abdullaev, Yashar Seisetdinovich, b. 02.10.1986 ]

Каримов Алим Эгамбердиевич 08.04.1994   

[Karimov, Alim Egamberdievich, b. 08.04.19 ]

Муединов Яшар Сейсетдинович 14.04.1968 

[Muyedinov, Yashar Seisetdinovich, b. 14.04.1968 ]  

Taganrog, SIZO No. 2

РФ, 347910 Ростовская область, г. Таганрог, ул. Ленина 175 ФКУ СИЗО-2

[English] Russian Federation, 347910 Rostov oblast, Taganrog, ul. Lenina 175, SIZO No. 2

Абдурахманов Меджит Анафиевич 02.02.1975   

[Abdurakhmanov, Medzhit Anafievich, b. 02.02.1975 ]  

Аметов Энвер Эсфиндиярович 02.08.1975   

[Ametov, Enver Esfindiyarovich, 02.08.1975 ]  

Муртаза Сейран Кемалович 27.11.1983      

[Murtaza, Seiran Kemalovich, 27.11.1983 ]

Сейтхалилов Рустем Нариманович 18.01.1984 

[Seitkhalilov, Rustem Narimanovich, b. 18.01.1984 ]

Sample letter

Добрый день,

Желаю Вам здоровья, мужества и терпения, надеюсь на скорое освобождение.

Мы о Вас помним.   

[Hello, I wish you good health, courage and patience and hope that you will soon be released.  You are not forgotten.  

Just cut and paste the addresses with the men’s name and year of birth 

For example, to Vladlen Abdulkadyrov at SIZO No. 1 in Rostov-on-Don

In Russian:

РФ, 344022 Ростовская область, Ростов-на-Дону, ул. Горького д. 219 ФКУ СИЗО-1

Абдулкадыров,  Владлен Васильевич 28.12.1979

In English:

Russian Federation, 344022 Rostov oblast, Rostov-on-Don, SIZO No. 1

Abdulkadyrov, Vladlen Vasilyevich, b. 28.12.1979