Father of Iryna Danylovych Passed Away

On 29 April 2024, the human rights organization "Crimean Process" reported that human rights defender and journalist Iryna Danylovych has refused to participate in the upcoming appeals procedure due to her severely deteriorated health condition and the consistent lack of medical support she has faced throughout her detention in Crimea and Russia. The hearing at the Fourth Court of Cassation of General Jurisdiction, originally scheduled for 2 May 2024, has been moved to 14 May 2024 due to connection issues.

Iryna Danylovych has experienced severe health deterioration since she was placed in pre-trial detention after being abducted and forcibly disappeared by Russian de facto authorities in Simferopol in May 2022. She has suffered from a chronic ear infection since November 2022, which she contracted in the pre-trial detention centre in Simferopol. She reportedly experiences constant ear pain, hearing loss, recurring headaches, and loss of coordination, but both the pre-trial detention centre's administration and the penal colony's administration have repeatedly refused to adequately treat her conditions. Recently, her father reported that despite her urgent need for medication, Iryna Danylovych was unable to access it in Penal Colony #7 in Zelenokumsk, Russia. Front Line Defenders is saddened to acknowledge that the Russian prison authorities' systemic denial of medical support to Iryna Danylovych has adversely affected her right to legal defence.

On 14 August 2023, the father of woman human rights defender Iryna Danylovych reported that her transfer from the Pre-trial Detention Centre to the Penal Colony #7 was finalised. Iryna Danylovych is currently being held at Penal Colony #7 in Zelenokumsk in the Stavropol Region of Russia. Once she was transferred to the Penal Colony, she faced further targetting in relation to her health conditions.

Iryna Danylovych is a woman human rights defender and civic journalist who exposes problems of the health care system in Crimea, including in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. She also works as medical personnel and has been advocating for the rights of health workers through their trade union, as well as through her project Crimean Medicine without A Cover. The woman human rights defender cooperates with many independent media outlets, including "INжир" and "Crimean Process" which reports on court hearings on politically motivated cases in Crimea.

On 24 July 2023, the Federal Penitentiary Service of the Russian Federation initiated the transfer of the woman human rights defender from a pre-trial detention centre in Simferopol, Crimea to Russia. The Russian authorities failed to notify her lawyer and relatives both about the upcoming transfer, and the route of the transfer. Until 8 August 2023, Iryna Danylovych was held at the Pre-trial Detention Center in Armavir, in the Krasnodar Region of Russia, as an intermediary location; on 9 August 2023, she was sent to the Penal Colony #7 in Zelenokumsk, Stavropol Region. Upon arrival, medical officials at the premises mistreated the woman human rights defender and took away her pain-relief medication. According to the reports, the medical officer who confiscated the medication suggested that “when [Iryna] turns deaf the pain will go away.”

The woman human rights defender Iryna Danylovych had previously reported that her health condition deteriorated so severely that it interfered with her right to adequate defence. She fainted multiple times while law enforcement officials transported her from Simferopol to Feodosia City Court in Crimea. The travel was needed for her to be able to finalise the process of getting herself familiar with her case file. Iryna Danylovych reported that she had difficulty listening to the audio and video recordings of her court hearings, as she has been experiencing hearing problems, and her father reported that she had fully lost hearing in her left ear. The Russian de-facto authorities repeatedly failed to provide her with nesessary medical assitance and treatments; expert organisations have stated in similar cases that systemic denial of medical treatment can amount to torture. Front Line Defenders is concerned that her transfer from Crimea will likely negatively impact her health even further.

Iryna Danylovych was abducted and disappeared in Koktebel, Crimea, on 29 April 2022. The same day, the Russian SWAT team (OMON) raided her house and seized laptops and phones. The woman human rights defender’s whereabouts remained unknown for 13 days until her attorney located her in the Pre-Trial Detention Centre in Simferopol. On 28 December 2022, the Feodosia City Court wrongly sentenced woman human rights defender Iryna Danylovych to 7 years in prison and fined her 50,000 rubles (approximately 900 EUR). The Court ruled that she violated Article 222.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and was guilty of “illegal acquisition, transfer, sale, storage, transportation, shipment or carrying of explosives or explosive devices.” After a review, on 29 June 2023, the Supreme Court of Russian-occupied Crimea reduced her 7-year sentence by only 1 month.

Front Line Defenders reiterates its call upon the authorities of the Russian Federation to take all necessary measures to ensure the immediate and unconditional release of Iryna Danylovych and guarantee her physical and psychological security and integrity. Front Line Defenders condemns the continued ill-treatment and lack of medical care provided to the woman human rights defender Iryna Danylovych and reminds the Russian Federation that the authorities must provide her timely and quality medical care while she is in governmental custody. Front Line Defenders believe that the continued human rights violations against the woman human rights defender is a reprisal against her peaceful and legitimate human rights work.

The Supreme Court of Russian-occupied Crimea only reduced the 7-year sentence of Ukrainian woman human rights defender Iryna Danylovych by 1 month. She was originally sentenced by the Feodosia City Court to 7 years in prison for allegedly violating Article 222.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation for the “illegal acquisition, transfer, sale, storage, transportation, shipment or carrying of explosives or explosive devices.” After this latest ruling, Iryna Danylovych may be transferred to a penitentiary facility outside of Crimea. Given the grave deterioration of her health and prolonged denial of medical aid, the transportation could cause her significant harm.

Iryna Danylovych is a woman human rights defender and civic journalist who exposes problems of the health care system in Crimea, including in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. She also works as medical personnel and has been advocating for the rights of health workers through their trade union and her project, Crimean Medicine without A Cover. The woman human rights defender cooperates with many independent media outlets, including "INжир" and "Crimean Process" which report on court hearings on politically motivated cases in Crimea.

The human rights organisation Crimean Process reported that the final court hearing on Iryna Danylovych’s appeal took place on 29 June 2023 and the court’s decision was made, despite the fact that Iryna Danylovych hadn’t managed to familiarize herself with the materials of the case due to her deteriorating health condition.

The court attached a copy of Iryna Danylovych’s medical records from the pre-trial detention centre and a copy of the decision of the Investigative Committee cancelling their earlier decision to dismiss initiating a criminal case against the FSB officers who abducted her on 29 April 2022. Iryna Danylovych’s lawyers reported her abduction to the military investigation department of the Investigative Committee, who at first decided that there were no grounds for initiating a case. Now the investigator has cancelled this decision and, at the request of the lawyers, they will have to conduct a second check. The Crimean garrison military court also replied to the lawyers that the court proceedings on the refusal to initiate a case were terminated and the investigator would review the statement about the abduction. The results of the re-inspection are still unknown to the defence, and the Court of Appeal did not wait for them either before effectively upholding the verdict against Iryna Danylovych.

After this decision, the woman human rights defender may be transported to a penal colony outside the of Crimean peninsula to serve the sentence. Meanwhile, she is suffering from an acute ear infection that has already led to her losing hearing in her left ear. Transportation over a long distance could worsen her condition.

On 15 June 2023, the day of the first hearing in the appeal case, the bailiffs did not transfer Iryna Danylovych to the court to participate in the hearing in person and she thus attended online. The hearing had to be postponed due to the fact that the woman human rights defender could not properly hear anything happening in the courtroom. Following this, the court ordered that the woman human rights defender be present in the courtroom. Her father had reported earlier that Iryna Danylovych fully lost hearing in her left ear. Iryna Danylovych’s attorneys filed a motion to transfer her from pre-trial detention to house arrest, citing her dire health conditions. However, the court stated that Iryna Danylovych’s loss of hearing and other medical concerns are not included on the list of medical issues that are incompatable with detention, and rejected the motion.

Before the hearing, on 13 June 2023, Iryna Danylovych also made public three motions from the pre-trial detention centre, documenting and reporting multiple violations committed against her. In the motions submitted to the Prosecutor’s Office in Crimea, the woman human rights defender testified that the pre-trial detention authorities prevented her from contacting her relatives to inform them about the medications she requires for two weeks. In another motion, Iryna Danylovych also reported that she sent six letters describing her health situation to her lawyer, Oksana Zheleznyak, but only one of them reached her lawyer, which Iryna Danylovych marks as a case of interference. In a third motion, she reported that a book of poetry that she submitted to the censor’s review at the pre-trial detention centre in December 2022 was never returned to her. For each of the motions, Iryna Danylovych requested the Prosecutor’s Office in Crimea to carry out an investigation.

On 21 March 2023, the woman human rights defender commenced a hunger strike to protest the systemic deprivation of medical assistance. On 6 April 2023, she finished her dry hunger strike as the Russian authorities promised to provide her access to independent medical assistance. The authorities transported Iryna Danylovych to a medical facility for a consultation with a medical specialist who confirmed that the woman human rights defender requires immediate medical assistance for her hearing problems and vertigo. The medical specialist scheduled further examinations by other doctors, but the law enforcement officers did not allow Iryna Danylovych to be comprehensively examined for these issues.

Iryna Danylovych was abducted and disappeared in Koktebel, Crimea, on 29 April 2022. The same day, the Russian SWAT team (OMON) raided her house and seized laptops and phones. The woman human rights defender’s whereabouts remained unknown for 13 days until her attorney located her in the Pre-Trial Detention Centre in Simferopol on 11 May 2022. On 28 December 2022, the Feodosia City Court sentenced woman human rights defender Iryna Danlovych to 7 years in prison and fined her 50,000 rubles (approximately 900 EUR). The Court ruled that she violated Article 222.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and is guilty of “illegal acquisition, transfer, sale, storage, transportation, shipment or carrying of explosives or explosive devices.”

Front Line Defenders reiterates its call upon the authorities of the Russian Federation to take all necessary measures to ensure the immediate and unconditional release of Iryna Danylovych and guarantee her physical and psychological security and integrity. Front Line Defenders condemns the continued ill-treatment and lack of medical care provided to the woman human rights defender Iryna Danylovych and reminds the Russian Federation that the authorities must provide her timely and quality medical care while she is in governmental custody. Front Line Defenders urges to Russian authorities not to transport Iryna Danylovych to prison outside of Crimea to avoid causing more harm to her health. It considers that the persecution of the woman human rights defender is a reprisal against her peaceful and legitimate human rights work.

On 2 May 2023, the Higher Court of Crimea reviewed woman human rights defender Iryna Danylovych’s appeal to the ruling of the Feodocia City Court. A collegium of Judges ruled to return the casefile to the Feodocia City Court, as Iryna Danylovych was unable to finish familiarising herself with the materials of the casefile. The court hearing was alledgedly open to the public.

Iryna Danylovych is a woman human rights defender and civic journalist who exposes problems of the health care system in Crimea, including in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. She also works as medical personnel and has been advocating for the rights of health workers through their trade union and her project, Crimean Medicine without A Cover. The woman human rights defender cooperates with many independent media outlets, including "INжир" and "Crimean Process" which report on court hearings on politically motivated cases in Crimea.

During the trial of 2 May 2023, the legal team representing woman human rights defender Iryna Danylovych pointed to many violations of Iryna Danylovych’s rights, however, the Court focused only on the fact that she didn’t get a chance to get herself fully familiar with the results of the previous trial. The lawyers once again raised the issue of her systemic deprivation of comprehensive medical assistance. It was not considered by the court, but the collegium of Judges ruled to return the casefile to a lower court, the Feodocia City Court, in light of the fact that Iryna Danylovych did not have a fair opportunity to analyse her casefiles.

On 27 April 2023, Iryna Danylovych’s father, Bronyslav Danylovych reported that the Russian authorities continue to deprive his daughter of medical assistance. On 21 March 2023, the woman human rights defender commenced a hunger strike to protest the systemic deprivation of medical assistance. On 6 April 2023, she finished her dry hunger strike as the Russian authorities promised to provide her access to independent medical assistance. The authorities transported Iryna Danylovych to a medical facility for a consultation with a medical specialist who confirmed that the woman human rights defender requires immediate medical assistance regarding her hearing problems and vertigo, and scheduled further examinations by other doctors, but the law enforcement officers would not allowed Iryna Danylovych to be comprehensively examined for these issues.

Moreover, as of 27 April 2023, Iryna Danylovych has still been unable to access any treatment. The Judge of the Feodosia City Court, Natalia Kulinskaya, who tried the woman human rights defender’s case, scheduled various court-mandated activities for Iryna Danylovych, that required her presence and transportation from the pre-trial detention facility and seemingly interfered with the doctor’s appointments. Bronyslav Danylovych expressed concerns that for more than six months his daughter has suffered from severe headaches as a result of progressing otitis and related diseases. He stated that systemic lack of medical assistance heightens the risk of inflammation of the cerebral cortex, representing a risk to the women human rights defender's life.

Iryna Danylovych was abducted and disappeared in Koktebel, Crimea, on 29 April 2022. The same day, the Russian SWAT team (OMON) raided her house and seized laptops and phones. The woman human rights defender’s whereabouts remained unknown for 13 days until her attorney located her in the pre-detention center in Simferopol on 11 May 2022. On 28 December 2022, the Feodosia City Court sentenced woman human rights defender Iryna Danlovych to 7 years in prison and fined her 50,000 rubles (approximately 900 EUR). The Court ruled that she violated Article 222.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation and is guilty of “illegal acquisition, transfer, sale, storage, transportation, shipment or carrying of explosives or explosive devices.”

Front Line Defenders condemns the continued ill-treatment and lack of medical care provided to the woman human rights defender Iryna Danylovych and reminds the Russian Federation that the authorities must provide quality medical care to those in governmental custody. Front Line Defenders reiterates its call upon the authorities of the Russian Federation to take all necessary measures to ensure the immediate and unconditional release of Iryna Danylovych and guarantee her physical and psychological security and integrity.

On 21 March 2023, woman human rights defender Iryna Danylovych commenced a dry hunger strike to protest the Russian authorities' failure to provide proper medical assistance. On the same day, she fainted while law enforcement officials transported her from Simferopol to Feodocia City Court in Crimea to finalise the process of getting her familiar with the case file. This procedure precedes the appeal and the transfer to a prison facility. According to Iryna Danylovych's father, who was able to visit her in detention, her health condition continues to deteriorate rapidly. The woman human rights defender repeatedly requested postponing the familiarisation process due to her health condition. However, the authorities claimed that Iryna Danylovych has no medical obstacles to being transferred from the pre-trial detention facility to the Feodocia City Court to participate in the familiarisation events.

Iryna Danylovych is a woman human rights defender and civic journalist who exposes problems of the health care system in Crimea, including in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. She also works as medical personnel and has been advocating for the rights of health workers through their trade union and her project, Crimean Medicine without A Cover. The woman human rights defender cooperates with many independent media outlets, including "INжир" and "Crimean Process" which reports on court hearings on politically motivated cases in Crimea.

On 21 March 2023, the woman human rights defender Iryna Danylovych commenced a dry hunger strike to protest the authorities' failure to provide proper medical assistance. Iryna Danylovych has stated that for 4 months she has been having severe hearing issues, and she also suspects that she suffered a microstroke in detention. The woman human rights defender states that since 11 November 2022 she repeatedly reported her deteriorating medical conditions to the Feodosia City Court Judge Natalia Kuminskaya, and to the pre-trial detention center authorities. Despite Iryna Danylovych's health condition, the authorities repeatedly transported her from Simferopol to Feodosia for her to familiarise herself with the trial documentation. On 21 March 2023, after the woman human rights defender fainted while officials transported her from Simferopol to Feodocia City Court in Crimea, she officially refused to participate in the prossess of familiarising herself with the trial documentation, and commenced a dry hunger strike.

During the week of 13 March 2023, a state-approved medical professional examined Iryna Danylovych's health situation. However, it was a formal examination and did not lead to the provision of any medical support. The medical professional also verbally abused the woman human rights defender, stating that she "needs a psychiatrist, not an otolaryngologist," and failed to evaluate Iryna Danylovych's medical condition and necessary treatments. Iryna Danylovych's lawyer plans to file a complaint against the said medical professional for "failure to assist the patient without a valid reason," a criminal offence envisioned by the Article 124 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. Moreover, lawyers and relatives of the woman human rights defender demand that the authorities allow her to see an independent medical professional, accompanied by Iryna Danylovych's lawyer, to ensure she can access quality medical care. Iryna Danylovych's legal team also plans to file a similar complaint against the ambulance staff who failed to provide proper medical support during the court hearing. The case file states that Iryna Danylovych voluntarily refused hospitalisation, however, no documentation supports this claim.

Front Line Defenders condemns the continued ill-treatment and lack of medical support to the woman human rights defender Iryna Danylovych and reminds the Russian Federation that the authorities must provide quality medical care to those in governmental custody. The organisation urges the authorities to ensure Iryna Danylovych's immediate access to independent medical assistance. Front Line Defenders considers that the systemic failure of the Russian authorities to provide medical assistance to the woman human rights defender can amount to torture. Front Line Defenders reiterates its call upon the authorities of the Russian Federation to take all necessary measures to ensure the immediate and unconditional release of Iryna Danylovych and guarantee her physical and psychological security and integrity.

On 30 November 2022, the Feodosia City Court finished reviewing the evidence in the trial against woman human rights defender Iryna Danylovych. During this Court hearing, the footage of Iryna Danylovych’s abduction was reviewed. The woman human rights defender testified that she has been exposed to physical and psychological torture, and commented on the dire conditions of the pre-trial detention center. The next court hearing is scheduled for 27 December 2022.

Iryna Danylovych is a woman human rights defender and civic journalist who exposes problems of the health care system in Crimea, including in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. She also works as medical personnel and has been advocating for the rights of health workers through their trade union and her project, Crimean Medicine without A Cover. The woman human rights defender cooperates with many independent media outlets, including "INжир" and "Crimean Process" which reports on court hearings on politically motivated cases in Crimea.

On 30 November 2022, the Feodosia City Court finished reviewing the evidence in the trial against woman human rights defender Iryna Danylovych. The Court collected a testimony from Iryna Danylovych herself. The woman human rights defender stated that she was abducted in the morning of 29 April 2022 from the bus station in Koktebel, and was held hostage in the basement of the Main Department of the Federal Security Service in the Republic of Crimea in horrible conditions for one week. The officers of the Russian Federal Security Service subjected Iryna Danylovych to questioning about her connections with the Ukrainian Security Services and exposed her to psychological and physical torture – they beat and choked her. The woman human rights defender was falsely promised to be released, if she stated that she has no complaints about her abduction on record, and sign documents. Iryna Danylovych tried to read the documents that she was forced to sign when one of the officers, who also participated in her abduction, threatened to drive her to the forest and to kill her. She then had to sign the documents, including the blank pages. The officers then stated that she is being arrested for possession of an explosive device.

During this court hearing, the Court also reviewed the footage of Iryna Danylovych’s abduction. The footage of the CCTV camera depicted how on 30 April 2022, a number of men push a woman, who looks like Iryna Danylovych into a car. The footage also shows that one of the men who participated in the abduction, intimidated one of the witnesses – a taxi driver – by showing him an official badge. After seeing the badge, the driver rapidly fled the scene of abduction. The Court also revealed that the same witness, Konstantin Vysokoglyad, is a local police officer, even though earlier he claimed to be a representative of “civil society.”

Iryna Danylovych was abducted and disappeared in Koktebel, Crimea, on 29 April 2022. The same day, the Russian SWAT team (OMON) raided the premises of her house and seized laptops and phones. Iryna Danylovych’s whereabouts remained unknown for 13 days, until her attorney located her in the pre-detention centre in Simferopol on 11 May 2022. The Russian State accused the woman human rights defender of "illegal acquisition, transfer, sale, storage, transportation, or carrying of explosives or explosive devices" as per Part 1, Article 222.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. On 3 June 2022, the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation listed her as a "media outlet foreign agent." On 28 July 2022, the human rights organization “Crimea: SOS” reported that Russian Federal Security Service representatives continue to subject the woman human rights defender to inhumane treatment and are threatening her in detention. Crimea: SOS retrieved this information from a letter authored by the woman human rights defender herself, which they received from an anonymous source.

Front Line Defenders continues to express its concerns about the abduction, the detention and the trumped-up charges of Iryna Danylovych. The organisation expresses its condemnation of the ill-treatment of the woman human rights defender while she is in detention. Front Line Defenders urges the authorities of the Russian Federation to take all necessary measures to ensure the immediate and unconditional release of Iryna Danylovych, and guarantee her physical and psychological security and integrity. Front Line Defenders also reiterates its demand to Russian authorities to carry out an immediate, thorough and impartial investigation into the abduction of Iryna Danylovych, with a view to ensuring her protection, publishing the results and bringing those responsible to justice in accordance with international standards.

On 7 September 2022, the Crimean Supreme Court rejected the appeal against the pre-trial detention of woman human rights defender and journalist Iryna Danylovych. She will remain in pre-trial detention throughout the whole duration of her trial. The hearing lasted 45 minutes and had limited attendance from the public. During the previous court hearing of 29 August 2022, the Court revealed the conclusion of the pre-trial investigation. It stated that the Russian Federal Security Service established that Iryna Danylovych made an explosive device from an explosive substance and medical needles. However, the woman human rights defender refutes these accusations.

Iryna Danylovych was abducted and disappeared in Koktebel, Crimea, on 29 April 2022. The same day, the Russian SWAT team (OMON) raided the premises of her house and seized laptops and phones. Iryna Danylovych’s whereabouts remained unknown for 13 days until her attorney located her in the pre-detention centre in Simferopol on 11 May 2022. The Russian State accused the woman human rights defender of "illegal acquisition, transfer, sale, storage, transportation, or carrying of explosives or explosive devices" as per Part 1, Article 222.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. On 3 June 2022, the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation listed Iryna Danylovych as a "media outlet foreign agent" according to the Article 25.1. of the Federal Law 2124-1 “On  Mass Media” On 28 July 2022, the human rights organisation “Crimea: SOS” reported that Russian Federal Security Service representatives continue to subject woman human rights defender Iryna Danylovych to inhumane treatment and threaten her in prison. Crimea: SOS retrieved this information from a letter written by the woman human rights defender herself, which they received from an anonymous source.

On 28 July 2022, human rights organization “Crimea: SOS” reported that Russian Federal Security Service representatives continue to subject woman human rights defender Iryna Danylovych to inhumane treatment and to threaten her in detention. Crimea: SOS retrieved this information from a letter authored by the woman human rights defender herself, which they received from an anonymous source.

Iryna Danylovych is a human rights defender and civic journalist who exposes problems of the health care system in Crimea, including in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. She also works as medical personnel and has been advocating for the rights of health workers through their professional trade union and her project, Crimean Medicine without A Cover. The woman human rights defender cooperates with many independent media outlets, including "INжир" and "Crimean Process" which reports on court hearings on politically motivated cases in Crimea.

On 28 July 2022, human rights organization “Crimea: SOS” reported that Federal Security Service representatives continue to subject woman human rights defender Iryna Danylovych to inhumane treatment and to threaten her in detention. Crimea: SOS retrieved this information from a letter authored by the woman human rights defender herself, which they received from an anonymous source. Particularly, in her letter the woman human rights defender states that on 5 July 2022, the representatives of the Russian Federal Security Service, while escorting her to the hearing at the Kyiv District Court of the City of Simferopol, inflicted bodily harm on her. Iryna Danylovych also stated that on 21 July 2022 when she was being transferred alongside five other inmates to the pre-trial detention centre of the city of Simferopol, one of the Russian Federal Security Service representatives, aggressively threatened the woman human rights defender. Specifically, he expressed regret that the amount of planted explosives, was “too little” and stated that if he was in charge, he would plant “another kilogram of drugs.”

On 29 April 2022, the woman human rights defender Iryna Danylovych was abducted and disappeared in Koktebel, Crimea. The same day the Russian SWAT team (OMON) raided the premises of her house and seized laptops and phones. Iryna Danylovych’s whereabouts remained unknown for 13 days until her attorney located her in the pre-detention centre in Simferopol on 11 May 2022. The Russian State accused the woman human rights defender of "illegal acquisition, transfer, sale, storage, transportation, or carrying of explosives or explosive devices" as per Part 1, Article 222.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. The Russian-controlled Kyiv District Court of Simferopol extented the arrest of the woman human rights defender until 6 September 2022. On Friday 3 June 2022, the Ministry of Justice of the Russian Federation listed woman human rights defender, Iryna Danylovych, as a "media outlet foreign agent."

Front Line Defenders continues to express concerns about the abduction, detention on the trumped-up charges, and condemns ill-treatment while in detention of woman human rights defender Iryna Danylovych. Front Line Defenders urges the authorities of the Russian Federation to t ake all necessary measures to ensure the immediate and unconditional release of Iryna Danylovych, and guarantee her physical and psychological security and integrity. Front Line Defenders reiterates its demand to Russian authorities to carry out an immediate, thorough and impartial investigation into the abduction of Iryna Danylovych, with a view to ensuring her protection, publishing the results and bringing those responsible to justice in accordance with international standards.

On 27 May 2022, an appeal against the arrest of Iryna Danylovych was rejected by the Crimean Supreme Court. On 7 May 2022, Iryna Danylovych was ordered to be arrested facing charges of “illegal acquisition, transfer, sale, storage, transportation, or carrying of explosives or explosive devices” as per Part 1, Article 222.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. The woman human rights defender was abducted on 29 April 2022 in Koktebel, when returning home from work. Her whereabouts remained unknown for 13 days after her abduction, until she was located in the pre-detention centre in Simferopol on 11 May 2022. Currently, Iryna Danylovych is being held in a general cell in the pre-trial detention center in Simferopol with 13 other people in the room and can be held for one month and 29 days according to the court order.

On 27 May 2022, the Crimean Supreme Court rejected the appeal against the arrest of Iryna Danylovych and ordered her to be held in custody for two months. According to the case file, Iryna Danylovych was detained on 7 May 2022. A criminal case was opened against her on the same day for the illegal acquisition and possession of explosives, allegedly found in her glasses case. The case file contains a conclusion by a specialist that the items confiscated from Iryna Danylovych are improvised explosive devices. The Kyiv District Court arrested her for two months, believing that having a Ukrainian passport, she could escape. The woman human rights defender was handed an indictment in the presence of her lawyer on 13 May 2022.

The woman human rights defender’s defence stressed at court that Iryna Danylovych was in fact detained on 29 April 2022, and not on 7 May 2022, as is stated in the case file. Furthermore, her defence stressed that the explosives were discovered in her glasses case after she was detained. Iryna Danylovych said at the hearing: “When I was brought to the FSB (Federal Security Service) building, I went through a full body search recorded on a video camera. There were no explosives in my bag, and my glasses were in my case. Three days later, my bag was taken again. After that the explosives were found.”

Iryna Danylovych confirmed to her lawyer that between 29 April 2022 and 7 May 2022, she was held in the basement of the FSB headquarters in Simferopol under constant psychological pressure. There was no toilet in her cell, she was taken out twice a day and fed only once a day. All this time, FSB investigators insisted that the woman human rights defender sign a confession. They put a bag over her head and offered her a choice – a forest or a prison. They threatened to take her to Mariupol, where she would be “lost”. For three days she was interrogated using a polygraph, asking questions about her connections with foreign intelligence services, the media and organisations, as well as her involvement with Crimean Solidarity, an organisation of activists, lawyers and relatives of Crimean political prisoners. Iryna Danylovych answered negatively to all questions and the polygraph confirmed this.

Later, FSB officers forced the woman human rights defender to sign a protocols document, which she was not allowed to read, and so the content of which remains unknown. She was also forced to sign two blank sheets of paper, promising to release her after that. Investigators also demanded that Iryna Danylovych state on camera that no methods of pressure were used against her during her detention. When she agreed, on 7 May 2022, she was formally detained on suspicion of possession of explosives and taken to the Kyiv District Court of Simferopol, where she was arrested for two months.

Front Line Defenders expresses grave concern about the abduction and condemns the judicial prosecution of woman human rights defender Iryna Danylovych. It believes that the harassment, judicial prosecution and the arrest being ordered against Iryna Danylovych is in reprisal for her peaceful and legitimate human rights work. Front Line Defenders urges the authorities of the Russian Federation to take all necessary measures to ensure the immediate and unconditional release of Iryna Danylovych, and guarantee her physical and psychological security and integrity. Front Line Defenders reiterates its demand to Russian authorities to carry out an immediate, thorough and impartial investigation into the abduction of Iryna Danylovych, with a view to ensuring her protection, publishing the results and bringing those responsible to justice in accordance with international standards.

On 29 April 2022, woman human rights defender Iryna Danylovych was reportedly abducted in Koktebel, Crimea. Iryna Danylovych went missing when returning home from work. On the same day the woman human rights defenders house was searched by special police units OMON who informed her relatives that there is an administrative arrest order issued against the defender. Her whereabouts are currently unknown.

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Iryna Danylovych is a human rights defender and civic journalist who exposes problems of the health care system in Crimea, including in response to the coronavirus pandemic. She also works as a medical personnel and has been advocating for the rights of health workers through their professional trade union and her own project “Crimean medicine without a cover”. The woman human rights defender cooperates with many independent media outlets, including “INжир” and “Crimean Process” that reports on court hearings on politically motivated cases in Crimea.

On 29 April 2022, Iryna Danylovych disappeared while travelling home from work in Koktebel. On the same day the woman human rights defender’s house in the village of Vladislavovka was searched by the officers of the Special Purpose Mobile Unit OMON who wore balaclavas. Iryna Danylovych’s laptop, her phone, relatives’ phones, several books and documents were seized. While the court order for the search was read out to Iryna Danylovych’s father, a copy of the search warrant was not left behind. The defenders father was informed by OMON officers that his daughter was sentenced to 10 days of administrative arrest because of "the transfer of unclassified information to a foreign state."

Since 29 April, the woman human rights defenders lawyer and family have been searching for her in temporary detention centres in different cities in Crimea but are unable to located her. On 2 May 2022, Iryna Danylovych’s lawyer wrote an appeal on the circumstances of her disappearance to the Russian Prosecutor’s Office of Crimea and her parents filed a statement to the police. Iryna Danylovych’s lawyer perceives this as an abduction as it have been 5 days since authorities have not informed the lawyer and family of her whereabouts.

Iryna Danylovych has been facing increasing pressure for her human rights work. In December 2021 a series of publications labelling the defender as a “foreign agent” were posted in the telegram channel “Lis i voron”. She was one of few Crimean healthcare workers who spoke out against the issues in the healthcare system in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. In early October 2020, after Iryna Danylovych and other medical personnel demanded the promised coronavirus payment, she and her colleagues were fired from the hospital in Feodosia.

Front Line Defenders is deeply concerned about the reported abduction of woman human rights defender Iryna Danylovych. It believes that Danylovych is facing reprisals for her peaceful and legitimate work revealing problems of health care system and protecting, promoting healthcare workers rights in Crimea.