Sven Nordin is a political prisoner
An activist from Kaliningrad Oblast has been sentenced to two years in a low-security penal colony for comparing Hero of the Soviet Union Nikita Karatsupa with serial killer Andrei Chikatilo
The ‘Political Prisoners. Memorial’ human rights project, in accordance with international standards, considers Sven Nordin a political prisoner. Nordin was convicted on a charge of ‘rehabilitating Nazism’ for insulting the memory of ‘defenders of the Fatherland’ on the Internet, after he compared Soviet border guard Nikita Karatsupa to serial killer Andrei Chikatilo in a VK post. His prosecution and conviction violated his rights to freedom of expression and a fair trial. We demand the immediate release of Sven Nordin and that all criminal charges against him be dropped.
Who is Sven Nordin and what were the charges against him?
Sven Nordin is a right-wing activist from Kaliningrad. On 15 August 2022, law enforcement officers searched his home. According to Nordin, they forced him face down on the floor and stood on his leg while reading the court order, then twisted his fingers to unlock his phone using fingerprint recognition.
The next day, he was charged with ‘rehabilitating Nazism in the form of insulting the memory of defenders of the Fatherland or denigrating the honour and dignity of a Great Patriotic War veteran, committed via the Internet’ (Article 354.1, Part 4, of the Russian Criminal Code). According to the prosecution, in 2021 as a ‘supporter of German Nazi ideology’ Nordin published on the VK social media site a post comparing Soviet border guard Nikita Karatsupa to serial killer Andrei Chikatilo.
During the investigation, Nordin was not held in custody but banned from engaging in certain activities. In December 2022, he was sent to a psychiatric hospital for an assessment. He maintained his innocence during both the investigation and trial, stating he was being prosecuted for his beliefs.
At Nordin’s trial, the court accepted as evidence an FSB report which claimed that Colonel Karatsupa, whose memory Nordin had allegedly insulted, had taken part in ‘suppressing nationalist underground activity in the Belorussian SSR between 1944-1949’ and could therefore be considered a veteran of the Great Patriotic War.
On 7 June 2024, Sven Nordin was sentenced to two years in a low-security penal colony.
Why do we consider Nordin a political prisoner?
The article on ‘rehabilitating Nazism’ was added to the Criminal Code in 2014 following the annexation of Crimea and the start of the war in eastern Ukraine. In 2021, the article was expanded to include ‘insulting the memory of defenders of the Fatherland or denigrating the honour and dignity of war veterans.’
The provisions of this article unjustifiably restrict freedom of speech: they criminalise expressions of opinion about past events, prohibit criticism of official symbols, and outlaw any criticism of individuals recognised by the authorities as veterans.
This law has become another tool of the Russian government’s efforts to monopolise the memory of the Second World War and incorporate it into a state ideology marked by Great Power chauvinism, militant revanchism, and claims of Russian superiority over the rest of the world.
Sven Nordin is known for making radical statements, including antisemitic ones. We condemn such statements. However, the post for which he was sentenced to a term of imprisonment posed no real danger to the public, and his criminal prosecution is unlawful.
A detailed description of Sven Nordin’s case and of our position is available on our website.
Recognition of an individual as a political prisoner does not imply the ‘Political Prisoners. Memorial’ human rights project agrees with, or approves of, their views, statements, or actions.
How can you help?
You can write to Sven Nordin at the following address:
RU: 236010, г. Калининград, пр-т Победы, д. 205, ФКУ ИК-8 УФСИН России по Калининградской области, Нордину Свену Карловичу, 1983 г. р.
EN: Sven Karlovich Nordin (born 1983), Penal Colony No. 8, Federal Penitentiary Service of Russia for Kaliningrad Oblast, 205 Prospekt Pobedy, Kaliningrad, 236010, Russia.
You can also send emails via the F-Pismo and ZT services (for payment with Russian bank cards), PrisonMail (for payment with other bank cards), OVD-Info and Memorial-France (free of charge).
Please note that letters in languages other than Russian are highly unlikely to reach the recipient.
You can donate to help all political prisoners in Russia.
