Every day, our compatriots in temporarily occupied Crimea continue to tirelessly resist the Russian occupiers, demonstrating support for Ukraine and trust in the inevitable de-occupation of the peninsula.

In our regular column # resistance_movement, we continue to inform you, together with the National Resistance Center, about public sentiment among Crimean residents and about the people who destroy Russian propaganda narratives.

The occupation administration persecutes Crimean residents because of their pro-Ukrainian stance and manifestations of Ukrainian and Crimean Tatar identity. In 2022, Russia adopted amendments to the criminal and administrative codes, which provide for liability for the so-called “discrediting of the armed forces of the Russian Federation” to suppress the resistance and unwillingness of people to accept the occupation. The following recent cases are illustrative:

• Akhmet Mahomet Khan Akhmetov, a resident of Yalta, publicly criticized the occupiers on the city’s waterfront. He was detained, forced to apologize on video, and a protocol was filed, with the case referred to the occupation “court.”
• Ablialimov Rustem, a resident of Dobre village in Simferopol district, criticized the Russian occupation army on social media and expressed support for the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The occupiers detained him, forced him to apologize on video, and referred the case to the occupation “court.”
• Lesia Lytvynova, a resident of Yakymivka village in Bilohirsk district, criticized the actions of the Russian occupation army on social media and voiced support for the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The occupiers detained the 1964-born woman, forced her to apologize on video, and referred her case to the occupation “court.”
• A resident of Yalta transferred funds to purchase strike drones for the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The occupiers detained her and accused her of alleged “treason,” for which she now faces a potential life sentence.
• Serhii Sauliak, a resident of Sevastopol, was accused of allegedly passing information about the location of occupation forces to Ukrainian intelligence and allegedly involving an acquaintance in preparing to set fire to an occupation administration building. He was unlawfully sentenced to 18 years in a penal colony.
• A resident of Feodosiia posted criticism of the Russian occupation army on social media. An occupation “court” unlawfully sentenced him to 2.5 years in a settlement colony.
• A resident of the Kerch district was accused of allegedly passing information about the location of Russian occupiers to Ukrainian intelligence. He was detained, and his case has been referred to the occupation “court.”

Every day, organized resistance movements, which gained strength after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, demonstrate their resistance to the occupiers:

• Activists of the ATESH resistance movement continue their reconnaissance of the occupiers’ military facilities. They have gathered intelligence on the Zdravnytsia sanatorium in Yevpatoriia, which has been repurposed as a deployment site for Russian forces, and on the fortifications the occupiers are constructing along the city’s coastline. Agents have also reported a new location near Feodosiia where Russian military equipment is stationed and are tracking the movement of fuel and petroleum products across Crimea.
• The Yellow Ribbon movement continues its resistance against the occupiers in Crimea by destroying propaganda materials and spreading patriotic symbols, particularly in Simferopol, Sevastopol, and the village of Aykavan. Additionally, the movement has reported Russian plans to construct a new city on the Arabat Spit, intended exclusively for Russian citizens.
• The Zla Mavka resistance movement persists in its struggle, documenting the crimes of Russian occupiers and exposing them to the international community while simultaneously decorating Crimean cities with patriotic symbols.
• Activists of the Crimean Combat Seagulls movement continue their systematic efforts to collect and publish data on collaborators and Russian war criminals in temporarily occupied Crimea.

As of January 30, the Russian occupation administration is illegally detaining 218 individuals, including 132 representatives of the Crimean Tatar people, on fabricated charges such as terrorism, extremism, and treason. These actions are part of Russia’s broader campaign of repression targeting Crimean Tatars and anyone who resists occupation or seeks to preserve their cultural and national identity. Recent cases highlight the severity of these repressions:

• Visually impaired prisoner Oleksandr Sizikov, unlawfully sentenced by the occupiers to 17 years in prison, reports poor conditions during his forced transfer from Crimea to Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia.
• Seiran Khairedynov, unlawfully sentenced to 12 years in prison, has been transferred to Prison No. 2 in Vladimir, Russia. The stress of the transfer exacerbated his allergy symptoms, and he also contracted an acute respiratory infection.
• Seiran Saliiev, unlawfully sentenced by a Russian court in 2020 to 16 years in prison, remains confined in a punitive isolation cell at Correctional Colony No. 4 in Tula region, Russia.

The growing resistance to the occupation in Crimea is also evidenced by the increasing number of illegal administrative proceedings in the occupation “courts” under the article on the so-called “discrediting the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.” As of January 30, 2024, 1139 cases of materials drawn up under Article 20.3.3 of the Administrative Code of the Russian Federation were recorded in the so-called “courts” in temporarily occupied Crimea and other competent authorities. 

In 1022 of these cases, a decision was made to impose an administrative penalty in the form of a fine or to join the case to another case under another article and make a cumulative decision. In 20 cases, the materials are still being considered. Disaggregated by gender, 466 (46%) decisions were issued against women and 555 (54%) against men. In total, the aggregate amount of fines imposed has already amounted to at least 33 million Russian rubles.

We thank everyone for their courage and clear civic stance. Crimea is Ukraine, and we are struggling together to liberate Crimea as soon as possible and to return a sense of security to our citizens who are forced to live under occupation.

Glory to Ukraine!