After a performance in Thailand, a dissident Russian rock band must fear deportation to Russia: the seven musicians of Bi-2 were arrested after a concert on the holiday island of Phuket and taken into immigration detention.
Several band members also have Israeli passports. On Tuesday evening, one of the band’s founders, Yegor “Ljowa” Bortnik, flew to Israel, the artists said. Bortnik also has an Australian passport. “The rest of the group is still in a migration prison in a cramped cell with 80 people,” Bi-2 wrote on Facebook.
Band fears persecution in Russia
The band is accused of not having the valid documents for the performance in Phuket. “The reason for the arrest was incorrectly worded documents from the organizers,” Bi-2 said on several social networks. Human rights activists warned that the exiled group would face prosecution if deported to Moscow because of their public criticism of the Russian government.
“Thai authorities should immediately release the captured members of Bi-2 and allow them to continue their journey,” said Elaine Pearson, Asia director of Human Rights Watch (HRW). “Under no circumstances should they be deported to Russia, where they could be arrested or worse for their criticism of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Russia’s war in Ukraine.”
The Kremlin accuses the band of ‘sponsoring terrorism’.
The Russian government considers the group a threat to national security. “After their detention in Thailand, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the group allegedly sponsored terrorism by condemning Russia and publicly supporting Ukraine,” HRW said.
The Thai government must not deport any of the band members to Russia, the organization demanded. If they were forcibly returned, they would “most likely face arbitrary arrest and detention, possible ill-treatment in custody, politically motivated criminal charges and unfair trials.”
Source: Krone
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