16 May 2025
Bohdan Ziza: Politically Motivated Persecution for Ukrainian Stance in Crimea
On the night of 16 May 2022, Crimean artist and civic activist Bohdan Ziza carried out an act of resistance against Russian aggression by pouring blue and yellow paint on the building of the occupation administration in Yevpatoriia. He threw a Molotov cocktail at the building’s doors — not to ignite a fire, but as a symbolic protest against Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Bohdan Ziza recorded his protest on video, which he did not have time to publish before his detention. The idea for the video emerged as a response to the FSB’s detention of his friends and as a reaction to the horrific atrocities committed by Russian forces in Bucha. The following day, Russian security forces detained him, accusing him of “terrorism.” For the past three years, the occupying administration has held the Ukrainian activist in a Russian prison.
After his unlawful detention, Russian security services broadcasted a video of Bohdan Ziza’s so-called “public apology” on Crimean TV channels. According to Bohdan himself, at least five such videos were recorded. Some of them were filmed directly by FSB officers, who forced him to read a prepared script. Any refusal was met with violence from the occupiers.
“They desperately need videos of apologies. It’s not just about intimidating the population or projecting an illusion of unanimous support for the authorities, although that’s how it appears at first glance. Unfortunately, these ‘apologies’ are often used as statements of self-incrimination, where security officers coerce detainees to say what fits the charges they want to fabricate. And in doing so, they spare no methods. Beatings and torture are experienced by nearly every political prisoner,” the activist shared in an interview with Crimea.Realities.
Bohdan Ziza was unlawfully charged under four articles of the Russian Criminal Code, including “committing a terrorist act” (Article 205 Part 1), “public calls for terrorism” (Article 205.2 Part 2), “threat to commit a terrorist act,” and “vandalism motivated by political hatred.” These charges, imposed by the occupation authorities, and the labelling of his protest as “terrorism,” serve as a deliberate warning to anyone who supports Ukraine or opposes the occupation of Crimea.
Following the unlawful verdict delivered in June 2023, in which a court in Rostov-on-Don sentenced Bohdan to 15 years in a high-security penal colony, the repression did not end. Despite the absurdity of the charges, the appeal “court” upheld the sentence, clearly confirming the politically motivated nature of the persecution.
In June 2023, shortly after being transferred, Bohdan declared a hunger strike. His demands included an end to the forced imposition of Russian citizenship and the release of all Ukrainian political prisoners held in the territory of the Russian Federation and temporarily occupied Crimea.
“Today, holding pro-Ukrainian stance in Russian captivity is comparable to suicide. But better that than becoming a hostage to fear,” Bohdan stated.
His case is part of a broader repressive policy aimed at erasing Ukrainian identity in Crimea, suppressing civic activity, and undermining the morale of resistance.
Today marks exactly three years since Crimean artist and activist Bohdan Ziza stood in front of the building of the occupation administration in Yevpatoriia, holding yellow and blue paint in his hands — a protest against the war crimes committed by Russia. At the same time, it has been three months since the release of the track Holos by hatespeech — a musical manifesto dedicated to 11 years of resistance to the occupation of Crimea and the story of Bohdan Ziza’s act of defiance. The track about this political prisoner was first performed at the QIRIM concert, initiated by the Crimea Platform, the Crimea Daily media initiative, with support from the Crimean House state enterprise and TRO Media.