Russian doctors call for release of imprisoned artist who protested Ukraine war

“The Russian army bombed an arts school in Mariupol. Some 400 people were hiding in it from the shelling,” one replaced price tag read. Another said, “Russian conscripts are being sent to Ukraine. Lives of our children are the price of this war.”

Skochilenko’s arrest came about a month after authorities adopted a law effectively criminalizing any public expression about the war that deviates from the official Kremlin line. The legislation has been used in a widespread crackdown on opposition politicians, human rights activists and ordinary citizens critical of the Kremlin, with many receiving lengthy prison terms.

Because Skochilenko was in custody for nearly 19 months before her trial, her seven-year sentence will be reduced by more than two years since every day served in a pre-trial detention center counts as 1.5 days of time served in a regular penal colony.