Human rights defenders assess prospects for lawsuit of illegally mobilized resident of Znamensk

Due to the judicial victory of a mobilized resident of Znamensk, who has succeeded in seeking to be recognized as unfit for the military service, he may count on compensation for moral damage, but its amount will be much lower than the requested 10 million roubles, lawyers and human rights defenders believe.

The “Caucasian Knot” has reported that on September 28, 2022, during the partial mobilization, Sergei S. was drafted into the army. He repeatedly evaded being sent to the special military operation (SMO) zone, declaring the illegality of his conscription without passing the military medical commission. According to Sergei, he suffers from a number of diseases, including mental disorders, associated with alcoholism.

The judicial victory of the resident of Znamensk is not unique for Russia, believes lawyer Sergei Semushin, a member of the Volgograd regional human rights organization “Mother’s Right”.

“There are cases of resistance to illegal conscription. However, of course, there are few of them in percentage terms (to 300,000 mobilized people). To achieve success, a person needs to act with perseverance and with the help of human rights defenders and lawyers,” states Sergei Krivenko, the director of the human rights group “Citizen. Army. Law”* and a former member of the Council for Human Rights under the President of the Russian Federation.

*Included by the Russian Ministry of Justice (MoJ) into the register of foreign agents.