A court in Russia's Bashkortostan region has sent four activists to pretrial detention for at least two months over their participation in rallies last week to support the former leader of the banned Bashqort movement, Fail Alsynov, who was sentenced to four years in prison on a charge of inciting hatred, which he and his supporter have called politically motivated.
The Soviet district court in Bashkortostan's capital, Ufa, ruled on January 22 that Azat Mirzin, Dayan Valeyev, Rayat Davletbayev, and Vilyur Karachurin must stay in pretrial detention until at least March 17.
The four activists were charged with taking part in mass disorders. Three of them also were charged with attacking law enforcement officers.
The court also sentenced a fifth activist, Yuldash Timerbayev, to nine days in jail on a charge of organizing an unsanctioned public event for his online call for activists to rally in Ufa to protest Alsynov's imprisonment.
Last week, courts in Bashkortostan sentenced at least 17 activists to up to 15 days in jail for their participation in the rallies.
On January 21, another participant in the rallies, Dim Davletkildin, was charged with taking part in mass disorder.
SEE ALSO: Bashkortostan Protests Peel Back The Layers Of Authoritarian Politics In Putin's RussiaThe situation around Alsynov's trial got tense on January 15, when some 5,000 people gathered in front of a court building in the town of Baimak, where the verdict and sentence were expected to be announced. But the court postponed the announcement by two days to allow security forces to prepare for any reaction to the outcome of the controversial trial.
On January 17, thousands of supporters gathered again, and after Alsynov was sentenced to four years in prison, clashes broke out as police, using batons, tear gas, and stun grenades, forced the protesters to leave.
Local officials said later that 40 people, including 22 police, were injured in the violence.
Dozens of protesters were detained, and the Investigative Committee said those taken into custody in the January 17 unrest would face criminal charges for organizing and participating in mass unrest and using violence against police.
SEE ALSO: Hundreds Gather In Ufa To Support Imprisoned Activist Amid CrackdownThe charge against Alsynov stemmed from a speech he gave at a rally in April 2023 in the village of Ishmurzino in which he criticized the local government's plans to start mining gold near the village, saying the operation would bring in migrant laborers.
Investigators said Alsynov's speech "negatively assessed people in the Caucasus and Central Asia, humiliating their human dignity." Alsynov and his supporters have rejected the charge as politically motivated.
Despite the violent dispersal of the protesters on January 19 and the detention of scores of activists, hundreds of people gathered on January 20 on the central square in Ufa singing songs in the Bashkir language and dancing in circles as they tried to ward off police officers who monitored the event by saying they were just out walking on Ufa’s Salavat Yulayev square. However, that gathering also ended with the detention of about a dozen activists.
On January 22, Fail Alsynov's brother, Idel Alsynov, said a bank account that had been opened to raise money to support Fail Alsynov's family was blocked.
Fail Alsynov has four children, including one infant.