Russia Jails Activist Daria Egereva on Terror Charge
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- FSB raided the homes and workplaces of 17 Indigenous rights activists across all 11 Russian time zones at 9 a.m. Moscow time, confiscating laptops and phones and interrogating them about participation in international forums.
- Daria Egereva – a Selkup activist and member of the UN Indigenous Peoples’ Coordinating Body – was arrested and remains in jail on accusations of membership in a terror group, with no trial date set.
- Natalia Leongardt – a civil‑rights activist and co‑defendant – was charged based on alleged involvement with the Aborigen Forum, which Russian authorities label an “extremist organisation”.
- Court denied bail for Egereva and Leongardt at a hearing on 29 April, remanding them in custody until at least mid‑June.
- Russian embassy told the Guardian the investigation is an internal legal matter, rejected allegations of Indigenous‑rights violations, and claimed Russia has no history of forced assimilation.
- Cultural Survival’s global‑advocacy director Alicia Moncada said Indigenous peoples are on the frontline of climate change, facing rapid Arctic warming, permafrost melt and resource‑extraction threats.
- UN reports that 830 organisations and 20,813 individuals have been placed on Russia’s “list of terrorists and extremists”, including the Aborigen Forum designated in July 2024.
Why it matters: Egereva’s detention silences a prominent voice for Indigenous rights and climate advocacy, while the Russian state tightens control over civil society and resource extraction, further marginalising Indigenous communities already grappling with rapid Arctic warming, permafrost melt, and loss of traditional livelihoods.
