Kara-Murza, who suffers from polyneuropathy, a serious condition caused by two poisonings orchestrated by the Kremlin, was last seen by his lawyers on July 2. On July 4, Kara-Murza’s legal team was informed that Vladimir had been transferred from his penal colony to the Omsk Federal Penitentiary Service Regional Hospital 11. Given the Russian authorities’ track record of obfuscation and false statements, his actual location cannot be ascertained. Since the alleged transfer, lawyers have been denied access to him, leaving his true whereabouts and current condition a matter of grave concern.
Vladimir Kara-Murza is a prominent Russian opposition politician, journalist, and a former Vice President of Free Russia Foundation. He is a vocal critic of Putin’s government and a key figure in the Russian pro-democracy movement. In April 2023, Kara-Murza was sentenced to 25 years in prison on politically motivated charges, including treason and dissemination of «false information» about the Russian military. In May 2024, Kara-Murza was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for his Washington Post articles, which he penned from his prison cell.
In the wake of the murder of Alexei Navalny in detention, there are now growing fears that Kara-Murza’s life is in danger. His sudden transfer to a prison hospital, combined with the complete absence of information, has only amplified these concerns. This denial of access to his lawyers is not only a gross violation of Russian legislation but also of the international legal norms, particularly the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (the Nelson Mandela Rules, Rule 61).
Free Russia Foundation demands immediate and unrestricted access for Kara-Murza’s lawyers to evaluate his condition and ensure that he is receiving necessary medical care.
We urgently call upon the international community to join us in applying intense pressure on the Russian government to respect Kara-Murza’s fundamental rights and to provide full transparency regarding his situation. Every moment that passes without access to Kara-Murza increases the risk to his life. We must not allow his voice to be extinguished or his fate to remain unknown.