Patient of sanatorium in Kabardino-Balkaria fined for talking about Zelensky

In Moscow, a court fined 70-year-old Olga Slegina under the article about discrediting the Russian Armed Forces because of her conversation about the President of Ukraine during a vacation in Kabardino-Balkaria.

The protocol on discrediting the Russian Armed Forces was drawn up against the pensioner in December 2022 following a denunciation written by employees of the sanatorium where the woman received medical treatment. The employees referred to a conversation in which Olga Slegina spoke in a positive way about Ukrainians and Ukrainian President Zelensky.

Earlier, an advocate requested the court to postpone a hearing and referred to certificates from doctors, according to which Olga Slegina was experiencing severe pain in her legs and continuing receiving the medical treatment. The judge rejected the defence argument, pointing out that the pensioner “was not in a resuscitation ward,” and considered the case in the absence of Olga Slegina, the Human Rights Protection Centre “Memorial” reported on its Telegram channel.

According to Olga Slegina’s explanations, in the sanatorium, she talked to another patient, a native of Odessa, about Ukraine. A waitress approached their table and spoke about the Ukrainian President, calling him a “freak.” Olga Slegina objected that “Zelensky was a handsome young man with a good sense of humour.”

Three days later, a policeman in civilian clothes came to her room and said that three persons had written a denunciation against Olga Slegina, stating that she allegedly “was praising Zelensky.” Olga Slegina said that she was discussing only the external appearance of the President of Ukraine, and the policeman objected that she “had no right to praise the enemy,” reported the website of the Human Rights Protection Centre “Memorial”.