You just tense up really hard and start resisting all of it” Performance artist Pavel Krisevich on his wife’s new arrest

“You just tense up really hard and start resisting all of it” Performance artist Pavel Krisevich on his wife’s new arrest

Elena Morgunova was given another 14 days of arrest — exactly at the moment when she was supposed to be released after the previous 10 days. This is how Morgunova’s husband, performance artist Pavel Krisevich, comments on her “carousel” arrest:

Of course, the pressure and tension have increased. But with this way of life, unfortunately, you get used to the fact that from time to time some fucked-up shit happens, to put it mildly. And in that moment you just tense up really hard and start resisting all of it.

From what I can tell, Lena is [holding up] normally. It’s clear that she is simply tired: spending more than ten days in solitary confinement is an extremely hard experience. And now she will most likely have to spend almost a month there, and that will be a serious ordeal. But I am sure Lena will get through it. For our part, we are trying to help her however we can: with care packages and with legal assistance when it is needed.

Why was Elena Morgunova detained?

Elena Morgunova came to Russia from France to see her family. She was detained on August 28 in Ryazan Region, after a bus was stopped under the pretext of checking documents. According to Morgunova, one of the security officers shouted at her, called her a “bitch” and threatened to kill her dog if she refused to give them the password to her phone. For alleged “disobeying police,” she was given 10 days of arrest.

When she was supposed to be released, an operative thought Morgunova’s pupils were dilated and decided to send her for a medical examination. Elena asked to wait for her lawyer. The police officer interpreted this as a refusal, after which she was given another 14 days of arrest. Pavel Krisevich calls the case “lawless abuse”:

Even the judge at some point understood that this was an utterly fabricated and senseless report, and decided to look into the details — to summon attesting witnesses so they could testify to everything. But since they ultimately did not show up, she still pushed through this report retroactively.

Perhaps this could even become grounds for overturning it. But knowing how our courts work, especially courts in the regions, it is very hard to imagine that anything will really change. So all that is left is to wait.

Given that Lena was detained before the elections, it seems to me there is a chance that after the elections are over, she will be released — and she will get out sooner. But the situation is quite unpredictable.

I hope there will not be a third round of administrative arrests, because of course you wouldn’t wish that on anyone.

❗️ Publicly sharing this post may be unsafe, because the Russian authorities have declared OVD-Info an extremist organization. But you can still read us and like our posts!

Elena Morgunova and Pavel Krisevich / Photo: “Slovo zashchite”