The political prisoners’ support fund You Are Not Alone has announced a New Year charity campaign to help people imprisoned in Russia because of their beliefs.
According to combined estimates by human rights organizations, more than 5,000 people in Russia are currently facing politically motivated persecution. At least 1,500 of them have been deprived of their freedom: some are already serving sentences in penal colonies, others are awaiting trial in pre-trial detention centers or under house arrest, and some have been sent for compulsory psychiatric treatment.
A dedicated website, june12.gifts, publishes requests from political prisoners and their families — ranging from medicines and warm clothing to assistance with prison accounts and help organizing family visits. Donations are directed to specific requests and are intended to meet real and urgent needs of prisoners of conscience.
The You Are Not Alone fund was established by Dozhd, the Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK), Meduza, Mediazona, and the Support Service. The organizers call on the public to support the campaign and give political prisoners a symbolic New Year’s gift — reminding them that they are not alone and have not been forgotten.
What can be given? Political prisoners ask for simple but vital things: warm clothes, clean drinking water, hygiene products. These modest requests can be fulfilled by anyone. The organizers urge people not to remain indifferent.