Zarema Musaeva, mother of human rights activist Abubakar Yangulbaev and wife of retired Chechen Supreme Court judge Saydi Yangulbaev, wrote the first letter to her son from the Grozny pre-trial detention centre. He posted it on his Telegram channel.
Musayeva reports that she receives many letters from all over the world with expressions of support and admiration for the whole family. She also wrote that she is being held in a cell with three other women who treat her well and look after her because of her illness. She also notes the attentiveness and good attitude of the staff of the pre-trial detention centre.
Yangulbaev told that this was the first letter he personally received from his mother. At the same time, the human rights activist, who left Russia together with other family members, talks about the problem that arose due to sanctions - while abroad, you cannot pay for sending letters through the official FSIN-letter system, since foreign cards do not work in Russia.
“From the words of a lawyer, I know that her physical condition remains unsatisfactory due to diabetes and stress. A war is being imposed in Ukraine; she is also worried about what is happening. In addition, if since 2014 Russia has become a completely police state, now it is a military state where there is no place for law. Russia refuses to accept any recommendations from international bodies, in connection with this situation it is difficult to say how the falsified case against my mother will develop," Yangulbaev shared.
Earlier, Chechen authorities said on February 2 that 400,000 people attended a demonstration in Grozny against the family of famed anti-torture campaigner Abubakar Yangulbayev. The protest occurred a day after Russian legislator Adam Delimkhanov threatened to decapitate Yangulbayev’s family members. Saidi Yangulbayev, the activist's father, escaped Russia with his daughter on January 23, just three days after his wife, Zarema Musayeva, was forcibly deported to Chechnya.
The threats against the Yangulbayev family follow Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov's threats against Novaya Gazeta journalist Elena Milashina and human rights activist Igor Kalyapin who works for the Committee for the Prevention of Torture.
Ismail Denilkhanov, the leader of Chechnya's Public Chamber, spoke at the protest and asked for the closure of the Committee for the Prevention of Torture, Novaya Gazeta, and Dozhd, an independent television channel. Denilkhanov accused Elena Milashina of Novaya Gazeta, well-known for her coverage of Chechnya, and Igor Kalyapin of the Committee for the Prevention of Torture of anti-state extremist activity. He accused them of supporting Yangulbayev family members who, he alleged, "justify atrocities against Chechen residents and advocate for the annihilation of essentially the whole Chechen people." After that, Denilkhanov demanded that Milashina and Kalyapin be arrested and given a fair trial.
