Police in Russia's second-largest city, St. Petersburg, on March 8 detained a friend of Seda Suleimanova, whose whereabouts have been unknown since she was detained in August and sent her to her native Chechnya, where rights defenders believe she may have become the victim of an honor killing.
Lena Patyayeva was detained after she walked across the city telling people she passed about Suleimanova's ordeal while she distributed leaflets outlining her friend's situation.
She also staged a single-person picket in front the building of the St. Petersburg Prosecutor's Office with a picture of Suleimanova and the words "Where is Seda?" painted on her coat.
It is not the first time Patyayeva has been detained over her public efforts to find Suleimanova. On February 1, after she staged a similar picket at the same site, she was detained and charged with violating regulations for public gatherings.
Suleimanova's story attracted the attention of international human rights organizations after police in St. Petersburg detained her along with her partner, Stanislav Kudryavtsev, at their apartment and took them to a police station. There she was informed that she was suspected of stealing jewelry in Chechnya, a charge she rejected.
Suleimanova was then transferred to Chechnya, and attempts by Kudryavtsev, who converted to Islam to be able to visit Chechnya and marry Suleimanova, to locate her failed.
In September, Chechen authorities issued a video showing Suleimanova in Chechnya. She did not speak in the video. No information about her whereabouts was made public.
Suleimanova had turned to the SK SOS human rights group in October 2022 for help in leaving Chechnya, saying that her relatives may kill her for being "insufficiently religious."
Human right defenders say relatives in the North Caucasus often file complaints accusing fugitive women of crimes, usually theft, to legalize their detention and return. Once back, the women face violent abuse.
Domestic violence has been a problem in Russia's North Caucasus region for decades. Victims who manage to flee often say that they may face punishment, including honor killings, if they are forced to return.
Usually, local authorities take the side of those accused of being the abusers.