Russian authorities have intensified a crackdown on Indigenous rights activists, with one of the country's foremost campaigners, Daria Egereva, remaining in jail on terrorism charges. The 17 activists targeted in coordinated raids across all 11 Russian time zones in a single day faced searches, confiscations, and interrogations over their participation in international forums. Most were released, but Egereva, a member of the Selkup Indigenous group, has been held since her arrest in October 2024.
Egereva, who served as co-chair of the Indigenous People's Forum on Climate Change at COP30 in Brazil, is accused of membership in a terrorist group. Her supporters say the charges are fabricated and stem from her advocacy for Indigenous peoples threatened by climate change, extractivism, and authoritarianism. The polar north is heating three to four times faster than the global average, causing permafrost to melt and villages to face destruction.
One exiled Indigenous leader, speaking on condition of anonymity, said: 'The elders are saying that nature has stopped trusting us. The traditional ways of predicting nature are not working any more.' He added that melting ice has opened access to critical mineral resources, which he described as 'a curse' that forces Indigenous communities off their land and destroys their ability to hunt and fish.
Russian authorities have linked Egereva and co-defendant Natalia Leongardt to the Aborigen Forum, a network of Indigenous defenders designated an 'extremist organisation' in July 2024. The state claims the group is part of an anti-state 'post-Russia free nations forum.' At a bail hearing on 29 April, both women denied involvement, with Egereva telling the court: 'What we are being accused of is completely untrue … I ask to be allowed to return home and embrace my children.' The court refused bail.
According to the UN, 830 organisations and 20,813 individuals have been placed on Russia's 'list of terrorists and extremists.' The crackdown has escalated since the war in Ukraine, with Indigenous activists among those targeted. Many have fled the country, while others remain silent. Egereva's jailing has drawn international attention to the plight of Russia's Indigenous peoples, who face existential threats from climate change and resource extraction.
