EXPLAINING THE STRUGGLE FOR HUMAN RIGHTS IN RUSSIA

Hello and welcome to the Digest.

Today’s issue marks four years since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Four years that have not only devastated Ukraine, but also fundamentally reshaped Russia’s political system.

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The OVD-Info Team

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Trigger warning:
This is a newsletter about Russian repressions. Sometimes it will be hard to read. 

Four Years of War — Four Years of Escalating Repression

On February 24, 2022, Russia began its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Protests erupted across Russia within hours. So did mass detentions. Four years later, the war has not only redrawn borders — it has redrawn the boundaries of freedom inside Russia itself.
To mark the anniversary, OVD-Info prepared a report on how the invasion reshaped the machinery of repression. Here are the key takeaways.

1. War Supercharged Political Persecution

In 2022 alone, OVD-Info documented more than 20,000 detentions related to anti-war protests — the highest number in 15 years.

Eight days after the invasion, Russia introduced criminal and administrative liability for “discrediting the army.” The wording was deliberately vague. People have been prosecuted for:

• Anti-war social media posts
• Solo pickets
• Displaying a Ukrainian flag (or even the colors of the Ukrainian flag on clothes, like a jacket or a pair of sneakers)
• Comments in public groups — and even private chats, comments made at work meetings
• Simply calling the war a “war”

Since March 2022:

506

people have faced criminal charges for spreading so-called “fake news” about the army

277

people have faced criminal charges for “discrediting” the armed forces

12,291

administrative cases have been filed in courts for “discreditation”

By the end of 2022, 70% of all political persecution cases were directly linked to the war.
The message became clear: opposition to the war equals criminal liability.

2. The Repressive Infrastructure Was Built Earlier — The War Scaled It

The Kremlin did not invent repression in 2022. The legal framework had been carefully constructed over the previous decade:

• The “foreign agents” law (2012)
• The “undesirable organizations” law (2015)
• The Yarovaya anti-terror package (2016)

But after February 24, 2022, these tools were deployed at full speed.

The number of “undesirable organizations” jumped dramatically: 42 organizations were banned in the six pre-war years; 280 were added during the war years.

The “foreign agents” registry now expands by over a hundred names annually — journalists, academics, artists, lawyers, activists.

Anti-terrorism and extremism statutes have become the most common charges in political cases.

The war did not create the repressive regime, but it removed even the formal restraints to keep it going. 

3. Information Became a Battlefielde

On the first day of the invasion, Russia’s media regulator ordered journalists to report on the war using only official sources. Independent outlets were swiftly blocked.

In 2022 alone, over 9,000 websites were blocked under wartime censorship.

Over four years:

179

journalists have faced criminal charges

100

bloggers have been politically persecuted

440

organizations connected to media and information spreading have been labeled “foreign agents” or “undesirable”

Meta (Facebook and Instagram) was declared an “extremist organization.” Major platforms were blocked or throttled. Authorities continue testing a “sovereign internet” — infrastructure designed to isolate Russia digitally if necessary.

By year four of the war, Russia operates under what is effectively military censorship.

4. Treason, Terrorism, and Espionage Cases Surge

Following the invasion, legislation on “crimes against state security” expanded dramatically.

A broadened definition of treason allows nearly any interaction with a foreign organization to be construed as aiding an “enemy.”

The numbers are striking:

• The majority of all treason cases since 1997 were initiated during the war years
• In the first half of 2025 alone, courts handed down 115 treason convictions — nearly double the previous year
• Since 2024, 7,494 people have been added to Russia’s terrorism and extremism registry, including hundreds of minors

Triggers for prosecution include:

• Small money transfers
• Social media comments
• Academic publications (or their citations, even from open sources)
• Contact with foreign colleagues

Not every case is political. But analysis of indictments shows that a substantial portion appear absurd or wildly disproportionate.

5. The War Entered Private Life

Repression no longer targets only public speech. It increasingly regulates identity and personal choices.

Authorities have:

• Banned a so-called “international LGBT movement,” which does not formally exist, and opened criminal cases for “participation”
• Issued massive fines for alleged “LGBT+ propaganda”
• Restricted access to gender-affirming healthcare
• Tightened reproductive rights in several regions

Cases for “rehabilitating Nazism” or “insulting religious feelings” are also rising. Cultural and academic activities can now trigger prosecution.

The state seeks control not just over politics — but over memory, identity, and private life.

A Country Transformed

Four years ago, repression was already present in Russia. But spaces of relative freedom still existed. Today, public dissent is almost entirely driven out of the country or forced underground. Self-censorship has become routine. Independent media operate from exile or in the shadows. Russia has moved significantly closer to a totalitarian model — and further from even the façade of democracy.

Why Documentation Matters

Repression succeeds when it becomes background noise, when everyone gets so used to looking away that it becomes the new norm. OVD-Info continues to document every known case of political persecution — to ensure that behind every statistic is a human being whose story is recorded.

This work is not possible without support.

If you believe independent documentation of repression matters — especially in wartime — please consider supporting OVD-Info. Every contribution helps sustain legal aid, data collection, and international advocacy.

Thank you for reading.

And thank you for staying with us.

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