1 July 2014

Source: HRO.org (info)

• Voronezh region Ministry of Internal Affairs Prosecutor’s Office Human rights defenders Right of association Harassment of activists

Civil society activist Ivan Kondratenko reports that two masked extremists attacked Andrei Yurov, the prominent human rights defender from Voronezh and member of the Presidential Human Rights Council.

The attack took place on July 1, 2014, at around 18:30 near the Voronezh Human Rights House. Two men in black masks attacked Andrei Yurov from behind, hitting him several times and throwing ‘zelenka’ – an acidic and green-staining antiseptic liquid – on his head.

The victim underwent a medical examination. The doctors diagnosed him with “first degree chemical burns of the conjunctiva". There is no information regarding the reaction of the Voronezh anti-extremism police unit (‘Center E’).

Civil society activist Dmitry Makarov has reported about a whole series of attacks on the Voronezh Human Rights House that took place in the past week. Local activists believe that the attack on Andrei Yurov is the work of the same group of extremists.

Voronezh activists from the Youth Human Rights Movement (MPD) posted on the Internet a statement naming the extremists suspected of being responsible for the harassment of human rights defenders in Voronezh. There are grounds to fears that if the Voronezh law-enforcement agencies do not take decisive measures against the extremisms available to them under current law the situation may take a very dramatic turn.

Around midnight on July 1, Anna Dobrovolskaya reported that criminal proceedings had been initiated with respect to the attack.

Translated by Ana-Maria Sirbu