“Ukrainian artist and activist Bogdan Ziza, sentenced by the Russian court to 15 years in prison, abandoned Russian citizenship, declaring the principle of this step. His family hopes it will facilitate the faster exchange of political prisoner that is kept in the Russian colony”, – WRITE: www.radiosvoboda.org
According to her, Ziza initiated it during a court hearing in Rostov-on-Don, where he publicly declared the unwillingness to have a “imposed” passport of the Russian Federation.
“He began this process from the moment of court in Rostov, the last court, where he made his speech on the rejection of the Russian language, where he read the lines from the song of Artem Loik. There he asked to deprive him of his citizenship, ”his sister said.
She said that this step was symbolic and principled for her brother.
“Citizenship is imposed, the Russian passport is also imposed, simply because it remained in the occupied Crimea,” Alexander explained.
According to Barkova, the family associates the hope of a faster exchange. “We hope that if it is not identified as a Russian citizen, it will be returned faster. Russia refuses to return the Crimeans precisely because it considers them its citizens, ”she added.
As for the Ukrainian documents, Bohdan Ziza Barkova explained that during a search before imprisonment, Russian security forces seized his Ukrainian passport.
On the night of May 16, 2022, the building of the Russian administration of Evpatoria in the Crimea occupied by Russia was covered with blue and yellow paints. In the event, Russian security forces accused the Crimean artist Bohdan Zizu.
The Russian State TV channel “Crimea 24” has published a video on which Ziza “recognizes in the committed and repel”. It was included in the Russian list of “terrorists and extremists”.
The FSB of Russia opened a criminal case under Part 3 of Art. 30 (“attempted crime”) and Part 1 of Art. 205 (“Terrorist Act”) of the Criminal Code of Russia.
Later, Bohdan Zizi, Russian security forces added two new articles to terrorism. In total, he was charged with four articles of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, three of them for terrorism.
Ziza appealed to the President of Ukraine and asked to include it and other Ukrainian political prisoners in the occupied Crimea and Russia in the lists for exchange.
On June 6, 2023, the Russian Southern District Military Court of Rostov-on-Don sentenced Bohdan Zizu to 15 years in a colony of the general regime. The Russian prosecutor’s office demanded for Bohdan 18 years of strict regime.
On September 27, 2023, the Military Court of Appeal in the Moscow city of Vlahai left Zizi’s sentence unchanged.
In early November 2024 it was reported that Ziza was in Russian correctional colony # 29 in the city of Perm.