HRC under President of Russia asks Prosecutor to check arrest of Gritsevich

Mikhail Fedotov, Adviser to Russian President and Chairman of the Human Rights Council (HRC), has personally addressed Leonid Korzhinek, the Public Prosecutor of the Krasnodar Territory, with a request on the legality of the court's judgement in the case of Anna Gritsevich, a "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that ecologist Vladimir Kimaev and Anna Gritsevich were detained on June 29 during the police raid to the village of Chereshnya, where local residents protested against a landfill organized after the flood in Sochi on June 25. They were charged with disobeying policemen. In the evening, the detainees were released on recognizance to appear at the court. On July 6, the court arrested Gritsevich for three days; the same punishment was imposed on Kimaev on July 7.

The address was sent after Elena Masuk, a journalist and a member of the HRC, addressed the HRC accordingly.

"According to Elena Masuk, at the trial, the court disregarded the fact that Anna Gritsevich was present at a mass action not as a participant, but as a journalist; and she was fulfilling the assignment of her editorial board," says the appeal to the above Prosecutor, signed by Mikhail Fedotov.

The "Caucasian Knot" has posted a video of Anna's detention, which clearly shows that the journalist performed at the rally the edition's assignment.

The "Caucasian Knot" has also reported that the Russian Union of Journalists (RUJ) has appealed to the Investigating Committee of the Russian Federation, asking to consider initiation of a criminal case on the fact of obstructing the lawful activities of Anna Gritsevich, a "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.