Since the start of Russia’s occupation of Crimea in 2014, the occupiers have deployed a repressive machinery to persecute Ukrainian citizens on the temporarily occupied peninsula. The Kremlin has unlawfully extended its own “legislation” to the occupied territories of Ukraine, later turning criminal law into a tool of terror against our citizens under occupation. For even the slightest sign of disloyalty or resistance to the occupation regime, individuals are prosecuted under both unlawful administrative and criminal cases. Since 2014 — and especially after the full-scale invasion in 2022 — the occupiers have waged a systematic campaign of persecution involving torture, fabricated charges, and long-term, and in some cases, life imprisonment.
An integral element of this repressive system is the application of articles from the so-called Chapter 29 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation — “Crimes Against the Foundations of the Constitutional Order and the Security of the State.” These include: Article 275 — Treason; Article 275.1 — Confidential Cooperation with a Foreign State; Article 276 — Espionage; Article 280 — Public Calls for Extremist Activity; Article 280.1 — Public Calls for the Violation of the Territorial Integrity of the Russian Federation; Article 280.3 — Discrediting the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation; and Article 281 — Sabotage. The application of these provisions is aimed at suppressing any activity that may be interpreted as a threat to Russia’s constitutional order or to the security of its occupation administration. The very wording of these articles is used to prosecute citizens who express a pro-Ukrainian position, engage in journalistic, civic, or human rights work, or simply refuse to accept the Russian occupation.
The most frequently applied provisions from this chapter in occupied Crimea are Article 280 — Public Calls for Extremist Activity — and Article 275 — Treason. As of mid-2025, at least 58 cases have been opened under Article 275 (treason), with 48 resulting in guilty verdicts; under Article 280 (calls for extremism), 86 cases have been initiated, 75 of which have ended in convictions. More than 75% of cases under these articles have been opened since 2022, that is, during the active phase of the full-scale war. This clearly indicates both the tightening control of the occupiers and the growing resistance among the residents of Crimea. Russia is seeking to break anyone who refuses to remain silent.
From the known instances of crimes committed by the occupiers under these articles, several cases can be singled out:
Halyna Dovhopola, a 70-year-old pensioner from Sevastopol, is one of the oldest political prisoners from Crimea. The occupiers detained her in 2019, charging her with “treason.” All hearings in the occupation “courts” were held under the “classified” designation, and pro-Russian propaganda media referred to her as a “secret spy.” The entire case against Halyna is fabricated — in reality, she is being persecuted for political reasons. Since the start of Russia’s occupation of the peninsula, she has maintained a clear pro-Ukrainian stance and openly criticised the occupiers. In 2021, an occupation “court” found her guilty and sentenced her to 12 years in a penal colony and one year of restriction of liberty. She has since been unlawfully transferred to Penal Colony No. 1 in the Vladimir region, Russian Federation.
Serhii Tsyhipa, a Ukrainian journalist and civic activist, remained in the city of Nova Kakhovka in the Kherson region during the Russian occupation, assisting residents, reporting on the situation, and publicly opposing the occupation. On 12 March 2022, he was abducted by Russian forces and subsequently transferred to the occupied Crimea, where he was held in the Simferopol pre-trial detention centre. In October 2023, an occupation “court” in Crimea unlawfully sentenced Serhii to 13 years in a high-security penal colony on fabricated charges of “espionage.” He has since been unlawfully transferred to Skopin, Ryazan region, Russian Federation.
Oksana Senedzhuk, a 58-year-old philologist from Sevastopol and participant in the Euromaidan events in Sevastopol, has faced active persecution by the occupation administration since 2022 for her openly pro-Ukrainian stance and anti-war statements. In mid-2024, she was detained by security forces, and in December of the same year, an occupation “court” unlawfully sentenced her to 15 years in a penal colony on charges of “treason.” She is currently being held in Pre-Trial Detention Centre No. 1 in Simferopol.
All these actions of the occupation regime in Crimea constitute a direct violation of international law. The Geneva Conventions explicitly prohibit an occupying state from altering the legal regime in temporarily occupied territory and from persecuting the civilian population for political reasons. Additionally, on 25 June 2024, the European Court of Human Rights, in the case of Ukraine v. Russia (regarding Crimea), found Russia responsible for systematic human rights violations on the peninsula since February 2014. This was the first final judgment by an international court on Crimea, establishing evidence of unlawful detentions, torture, forced passportization, bans on peaceful assemblies, discrimination against Crimean Tatars, and the forcible transfer of convicted persons to places of detention within the Russian Federation. Under the pretext of combating “crimes against the foundations of the constitutional order and state security,” Russia has built an entire punitive system aimed at suppressing Ukrainian and Crimean Tatar identity, freedom of speech, and the right to peaceful resistance in temporarily occupied Crimea.
Notes:
Article 280. Public calls for extremist activity: Provides for punishment for publicly calling for extremist actions that threaten state security. Penalty – up to 5 years’ imprisonment.
Article 275. High treason: Establishes criminal liability for acts committed by a citizen of the Russian Federation aimed at harming state security, such as transferring state secrets or assisting foreign states in conducting hostile activities. Punishment includes imprisonment for up to 20 years.