In December 2025, Russian authorities launched the largest wave of repression against Indigenous leaders in the country's recent history. Peaceful Indigenous activists from across Russia were subjected to coordinated searches, interrogations, arrests, and criminal prosecutions under fabricated charges of "extremism" and "terrorism." 

Among those arrested were Daria Egereva, a Selkup Indigenous human rights defender, Co-Chair of the International Indigenous Peoples' Forum on Climate Change (IIPFCC) and member of the UN Indigenous Peoples' Coordinating Body, and Natalia Leongardt, another prominent Indigenous rights defender. Both women have remained in pre-trial detention in Moscow since December 2025 and face up to 20 years in prison for their peaceful human rights work and cooperation with Indigenous organizations. 

This side event will provide an overview of the current Human Rights situation facing Indigenous Peoples in Russia. Since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, contacts with the Sámi of the Kola Peninsula have largely been suspended, while cooperation with many Indigenous communities inside Russia has become increasingly difficult due to state repression, fear of persecution, and growing international isolation.  

Participants:  

Valentina Sovkina, a Sámi leader from the Kola Peninsula and a Member of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII). Ms. Sovkina was personally targeted during the coordinated raids carried out by the Russian authorities in December 2025. Shortly after these events, she was forced to leave Russia. 

Yana Tannagasheva, a Shor Indigenous activist from Western Siberia, founder and member of the International Committee of Indigenous Peoples of Russia (ICIPR). She was forced to flee Russia in 2018 following years of persecution and threats linked to her advocacy against destructive coal mining on Shor Indigenous lands and territories. After receiving political asylum in Sweden, she now lives in Kiruna and continues her international advocacy for the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in Russia. 

Tatiana Shauro, a long standing Russian environmental activist and communications expert. She is a media coordinator for the Solidarity Campaign for immediate and unconditional release of Daria Egereva and Natalia Leongardt.