On November 22, 2024, Russia’s Supreme Court designated 172 indigenous groups as “terrorist” organizations, alleging their involvement in promoting secession and supporting Ukraine’s military efforts, as announced by the Prosecutor General’s Office. Authorities assert that these groups function as “structural subdivisions” of the Free…

United Russia was holding a meeting in Khabarovsk. Boris Nemtsov and Alexei Navalny first called it the “party of crooks and thieves.” Putin was in attendance. It was yet another staged gathering of subordinates meeting their “tsar.” This event featured not only crooks and…

I would like to express my gratitude to those who proposed the idea of producing this series and who discussed and brought this idea to life. And many thanks for the invitation to share my thoughts on the ongoing processes that impinge upon scientists,…

“For Indigenous Peoples, a just transition means exercising our own forms of territorial governance according to our traditions and ways of life.” –Indigenous Peoples Principles and Protocols for Just Transition October 23, 2024 – Nearly 100 Indigenous leaders from the seven socio-cultural regions of the…

Mariana Katzarova, the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Russia, delivered a report on the state of human rights in the country during the 57th session of the United Nations. Katzarova highlighted the harsh suppression of protests by ethnic minorities and Indigenous peoples…

Representatives of the “Public Radar” project asked the State Duma of the Russian Federation to protect the lands of the indigenous peoples of KhMAO from oil developers. On January 24, 2024, Surgutneftegaz offered the indigenous residents of the Surgut region of KhMAO compensation for…

“Action Anthropology, Indigenous Rights and Changing Agendas in Siberia” Marjorie Mandelstam Balzer, Georgetown University [email protected] Introduction In the 1990s, Siberian leaders and First Nations activists learned from each other through MacArthur Foundation cultural exchanges in Russia, the US, and Canada that I helped organize….

At the Bled Strategic Forum in Slovenia, Yulia Navalnaya, widow of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, delivered a speech emphasizing the need for a unified European strategy towards Russia. While much of her address echoed previous calls to support Russian civil society and democracy,…

In the summer of 2024, human rights advocates from the “Public Radar” project appealed to Russian authorities with a proposal to amend legislation allowing industrial companies to exploit lands traditionally used by Indigenous peoples. This initiative stemmed from complaints by residents of the Khanty-Mansi…