Protests in support of Bashkir activist Fail Alsynov

In January 2024, a court in Baymak (Bashkortostan, a region on the edge of the Urals) sentenced the local activist Fail Alsynov to four years in a penal colony. The reason was a speech he gave during a village gathering in Ishmurzino.

Alsynov spoke to people in Bashkir about the negative consequences that might result from opening a gold mining quarry. In his speech, he used the term “kara khalyk” (common people, poor folk), which law enforcement officers considered to be equivalent to a xenophobic slur against “residents of the North Caucasus or Central Asia,” as well as Armenians.

On the day of sentencing, a spontaneous rally gathered by the Baymak District Court, attended by several thousand people. The protest was violently dispersed, and some media outlets and public pages covering the event faced blocking. According to the “Kushtau Bayram” Telegram channel, at least 40 people were injured during the protest; eight of them were diagnosed with serious injuries. OVD-Info provided detailed coverage of the day’s events in the article “The ‘Black Folk’ Protest.”

That same day, the Investigative Committee announced that a criminal case had been opened against the protesters under articles for organising mass unrest, participating in them, and also for using violence against law enforcement officers. In the following days, several participants in the gathering were placed under administrative arrest.