Russian Court Sentences Opposition Politician Lev Shlosberg to 11 Years in Penal Colony

Lev Shlosberg, 63, was found guilty by a court in the city of Pskov, north-western Russia, which delivered its verdict on Monday. The prosecution had demanded a 12-year-and-one-month sentence. The charges stemmed from comments Shlosberg published on social media.

Shlosberg condemned the verdict, saying its only task was to "punish a person for his political, public and civil position. In his closing speech, he rejected all charges, describing the trial as "an imitation of an investigation" aimed at achieving "an obviously illegal goal, according to a transcript published by the Novaya Gazeta newspaper. He also repeated his call for a ceasefire in the Russia-Ukraine war and the start of a "political dialogue, and was repeatedly interrupted by the presiding judge.

His liberal party Yabloko, of which he is deputy head, said it would appeal. The ruling came just minutes before Russia's Supreme Court rejected Yabloko's appeal against a ban on it taking part in September's parliamentary elections. Yabloko was the only registered party to oppose Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine launched in 2022. The party was struck off the ballots earlier this month over accusations that it publicly supports the "international LGBT movement, which Russia's Supreme Court designates as extremist.

A lawsuit by pro-Kremlin nationalist party Rodina also argued Yabloko was guilty of copyright infringement. All 10 other parties taking part in the 18-20 September election support the war in Ukraine. Since the invasion began, remaining opposition to President Vladimir Putin has been crushed.

Public dissent is suppressed by wartime censorship laws and can trigger hefty fines or long prison sentences. Ratings for ruling party United Russia slipped to 32.1% earlier this month — its lowest since May, according to state-owned pollster VCIOM — though the Kremlin is widely believed to have resources to deliver its desired election outcome.