Muscovites support Titiev at rights defenders' charity action

A charity action in support of Oyub Titiev, the head of the Grozny branch of the Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial", was held in the Sakharov Centre in Moscow. The raised money in the amount of 130,000 roubles will be spent on tickets for rights defenders and journalists who want to go to Chechnya and support Titiev, the organizers of the action have stated.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that Oyub Titiev, accused of marijuana possession, has been in custody since January 11. He pleads not guilty and claims that the drugs were planted on him.

The action took place on November 18 from 2:00 p.m. 8:00 p.m. Moscow time. The Sakharov Centre was the organizer.

There was a table with bijouterie and jewellery in the hall. To its right, there was a transparent box where visitors put money.

Alexandra Pintelina, the coordinator of the volunteer division of the Sakharov Centre, told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent that the presented items had no fixed prices – every customer him/herself evaluated the item he/she liked.

"We don't sell things – we give them for donations. Having picked up something to their liking, people put money into a special box," she explained.

"This format of assistance to Oyub Titiev was chosen because the action has a bright character, which attracts completely different people, including those who are far from human rights and volunteer activities. On the other hand, this is a simple form of participation: you have no need to commit some heroic and energy-intensive actions – you just have to bring some items," Ms Pintelina has added.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on November 20, 2018 at 01:43 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.