A Russian court on Thursday convicted a pro-war activist and critic of President Vladimir Putin of justifying terrorism and sentenced him to six years in prison.
Sergey Udartsov, leader of the Communist-affiliated Left Front movement that opposes Putin, was arrested last year.
According to the independent Russian news website Mediazona, the charges against him stem from an article Udartsov posted online in support of another group of Russian activists accused of forming a terrorist organization. The activists were convicted earlier this month and sentenced to 16 to 22 years in prison.
Udartsov denies the charges against him are fabricated. On Thursday, he denounced the sentence as “shameful” and said he would go on a hunger strike, Mediazona reported.
Under the court’s ruling, the activist will serve his sentence in a maximum-security penal colony.
Udartsov was a prominent opposition figure during Russia’s massive protests in 2011-12, which were triggered by reports that parliamentary elections were widely rigged. In February 2012, he participated in a meeting between then President Medvedev and many opposition figures.
After the Kremlin sent troops into Ukraine, Russian authorities stepped up their crackdown on dissent and freedom of expression, ruthlessly targeting human rights organizations, independent media, members of civil society organizations, LGBTQ+ activists and some religious groups. Hundreds were imprisoned and thousands fled the country.
According to the Russian state news agency TASS, in December 2023, Udartsov tried to unfurl a flag bearing the image of Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin in Red Square and was sentenced to 40 hours of forced labor by a Moscow court for violating procedures related to organizing a rally.
Udartsov was previously imprisoned in 2014 and sentenced to 4.5 years for his role in organizing 2012 demonstrations against Putin that turned into unrest. He was released in 2017.
