Crimean artist renounces Russian citizenship in colony

A Crimean artist convicted in Russia for protesting against the war has succeeded in revoking his imposed Russian citizenship. Despite four years in the colony, he refuses to work for the system and does not renounce his beliefs.

This was reported to Crimea.Realii by his family.

Bohdan Ziza, who was sentenced to 15 years in Russia for protesting against the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, managed to renounce his Russian citizenship.

In May 2022, Crimean artist Bohdan Ziza poured yellow and blue paint on the facade of the Russian administration in Yevpatoria and tried to set it on fire, protesting against Russia's war in Ukraine. The next day, he was detained and charged with terrorism, and in June 2023, a Russian court sentenced him to 15 years in prison. Ukrainian human rights activists call the case politically motivated, and the Representative Office of the President of Ukraine in the ARC demanded his release.

Ziza is currently being held in the Vladimir Central Prison. According to his sister, he was transferred to a double cell, but the prison is cold, damp and there are practically no walks, which is already affecting his health. The prisoner himself previously said that after his detention, he was beaten by FSB officers to extract a confession.

In 2023, Ziza went on a hunger strike demanding that he be stripped of his Russian citizenship and all Ukrainian political prisoners be released. He lasted 17 days and lost 10 kilograms, but he achieved his goal - he is no longer officially a citizen of Russia. His family hopes that this step will increase Bohdan's chances of being released as part of a possible exchange.

In August, the abducted young woman was charged with treason in Crimea and her arrest was extended until October 2025. On May 6, Hatidze traveled by bus from Staryi Krym to Akmesdzhit (Simferopol), after which communication with her was cut off. Her phone was turned off, and her family did not know her whereabouts, worried about her safety. The next day it became known that she had been detained by the occupation forces, but the details of the arrest and the place of detention remain unknown.

Анна Бальчінос