Nadezhda Buyanova in court. Photo: Novaya Gazeta
The Russian authorities are requesting a six-year prison sentence for a paediatrician accused of criticising the war in Ukraine during a private appointment with a patient and his mother, Russian independent news outlet Mediazona reported on Friday.
Nadezhda Buyanova, was reported to the police by Anastasia Akinshina, the ex-wife of a soldier who was killed in Ukraine, for allegedly blaming Russia for the war and labelling her ex-husband a “legitimate target” for Ukrainian forces.
Buyanova, who denies the accusations, was arrested in February and while she was initially released under restrictions, she was placed in pretrial detention two months later by the authorities after she allegedly violated the conditions of her bail.
The 68-year-old, who was born in the western Ukrainian city of Lviv, is charged with spreading “false information” about the Russian army under military censorship laws that have been used to silence dissent.
Last year at least 21,000 people were targeted by Russia’s repressive laws against anti-war activists, according to Amnesty International.
Buyanova’s lawyers argued that the prosecution had failed to provide any evidence that the conversation took place, while also pointing to the absence of any audio or video recording of the appointment.
During an initial court hearing in April, Akinshina said her son was not present in the room for the conversation, yet in another hearing over the summer the seven-year-old boy testified against the doctor, alleging that she had said that “Russia is an aggressor country, and Russia kills peaceful people in Ukraine.”
Buyanova’s defence team argued in court that the child’s testimony could not be considered admissible evidence. The paediatrician’s lawyer Oskar Cherdiyev said that the child could not pronounce or understand such phrases as “aggressor country”, “legitimate target” or “Special Military Operation”, according to Mediazona.
The final verdict is due to be announced by the court on Tuesday..