Rights treat sentence of pregnant servicewoman KBR as unique

The verdict to Madina Kabaloeva for evading service is the first of its kind in Russia, but this is not a systematic approach, but a performers' excessive action, Valentina Melnikova, the head of the Union of Committees of Soldiers' Mothers, believes. The nine-year-long enforcement deferment gives hope that the sentence will be changed, Artyom Mugunyants, a lawyer for the "Anti-Prizyv" (Anti-Draft) community, has stated.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that the Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don upheld the verdict of the first-instance court, which found Corporal Madina Kabaloeva from the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic (KBR) guilty of failure to appear for her military service. The woman received a recommendation from her military unit for temporary release from service due to pregnancy and the presence of another small child, but she failed to inform the command about this. The court sentenced her to six years in prison by deferring the enforcement until 2032.

According to Roman Rabadanov, a lawyer, Kabaloeva has not been fired and continues her military service.

Kabaloeva's sentence is the first against a pregnant servicewoman, Artyom Mugunyants, a lawyer, has emphasized. In his opinion, the court decision may not be enforced.

"I think she will most likely be dismissed from military service in the near future due to the fact that she has a criminal record. Then, she will live an ordinary civilian life until the end of the postponement," he has noted, adding, however, that by that time the sentence may be changed.

Valentina Melnikova, a human rights defender and the head of the Union of Committees of Soldiers' Mothers, has not heard about criminal cases against pregnant military servicewomen.

"They should have approached this problem differently and not to bring the case to court," Ms Melnikova has emphasized.