Sheykhaliyev Rustem

Born on June 22, 1979, Rustem Sheykhaliev is a Crimean Tatar, civic journalist and activist of the Crimean Solidarity. He has a wife and 3 children. He was an entrepreneur who supplied fruits and vegetables. Rustem engaged in civic activities: he helped to organize children’s festivities, purchase goods, and cook. He also attended court hearings, packed parcels for political prisoners and provided aid to their families.

He was arrested without justification after another wave of mass searches. Sheykhaliev suffers from chronic pyelonephritis, prolapse of the right kidney, leg varicose, and tooth diseases. He is imprisoned under article 30, chapter 1 ("Prepared and attempted crime"), article 205.5, chapter 2 ("Providing the activity of an organization recognized as terroristic in the accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation"), and article 278 ("Violent seizure of power or violent retaining power")  of the Russian Federation’s Criminal Code and has been sentenced to 14 years behind the bars. He is now held in the prison №2 of the city of Yeniseysk, Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russian Federation.

"Many are astonished at the support of our people, saying ‘I had not seen this before.’ I replied: if one is taken, a dozen will come; if a dozen is taken, a hundred will come; if a hundred is taken, a thousand will come. This is our people, as one organism, such traditions of support we have," Rustem Sheykhaliyev, 24 May 2019.