‘Defense is not complicity’
An open letter from Russian human rights group Pervy Otdel after the arrest of three of Navalny’s lawyers in October 2023. (Full transcript in English by Meduza)
A close-knit group of lawyers in Russia is defending their clients against the arbitrary judiciary under Putin. For several years they have represented their colleague Mikhail Benjasch, who was charged with alleged use of violence against police officers following peaceful protests. Director Masha Novikova accompanied the work of this network of like-minded lawyers.
Dissidents in Russia can hardly expect a fair trial. A few lawyers are still fighting for justice. Hearing after hearing, lawyer Mikhail Benjasch stands up to the Russian justice system. Putin’s regime has been persecuting him with absurd accusations for several years.
However, giving up is not an option for him; after the attack on Ukraine, he represents Russian soldiers who do not want to go to the war front. However, he has fewer hopes for the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg than Karinna Moskalenko – the star lawyer from Moscow once represented the world chess champion Garry Kasparov and the ex-oligarch Mikhail Khodorkovsky. Today she works on new cases from her Strasbourg law firm. She is convinced that her former classmate Vladimir Putin, who is being investigated for alleged war crimes in Ukraine, belongs in court.
Lawyer Vladimir Vasin took over the defense of Nikita Uvarov, who was 14 years old when he was arrested. He wants to save the boy, who is accused of preparing terrorist activities, from the prison camp. But the chances of success are slim. How does it feel to be an experienced lawyer and still lose most of the time in court? And what will happen to Mikhail Benjasch, who is threatened with a professional ban after a critical speech at a lawyers’ conference?
Documentary by Masha Novikova (D 2023, 52 min)