Remembering Markelov and Baburova: 17th Anniversary Memorials Across Russia

Yabloko has appealed to the Moscow mayor to install a memorial plaque at the site of the murders of lawyer Stanislav Markelov and journalist Anastasia Baburova. On the 17th anniversary of their murders, protests were held in cities across Russia, including Rostov-on-Don and Baksan. Three participants in a memorial event have been detained in Samara. As reported by the "Caucasian Knot," on January 19, 2025, memorial events were held in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Yekaterinburg, Omsk, Riga, and other cities in Russia and Europe for lawyer Stanislav Markelov and journalist Anastasia Baburova, who were killed in 2009. Yabloko called for a memorial plaque to be erected at the site of Markelov and Baburova's murders In Moscow today, flowers were laid at the site of the murder of lawyer Markelov and journalist Baburova on Prechistenka Street. Members of the Yabloko party held the event this morning, reports "Ostorozhno Novosti." Kirill Goncharov, Chairman of the Moscow Yabloko party, noted that such memorial events are especially important in 2026, "when hatred and intolerance are once again raising their heads." "A memorial plaque was destroyed at the site of journalist Anna Politkovskaya's murder [yesterday]. And, it seems to me, these are all links in the same chain. This shows that hatred and intolerance are once again raising their heads in our country. And this shows that our actions, like today's, are of great importance," the Telegram channel "Aktivatika"* quotes him as saying. "I am grateful to everyone who comes, who remembers, who does not want to allow a restoration of the times when people were killed for dissent in the country. The tragedy, whose victims we remember today, is an example of how destructive nationalism is for society, for individual brave people," the Moscow branch of the Yabloko party quoted Goncharov on its Telegram channel. The memorial plaque at the site of Markelov and Baburova's murder will not just be a sign of grief; This will be an important city symbol: a reminder of the value of human life, the inadmissibility of violence, and the need to counter extremism and hatred. Yabloko Chairman Nikolay Rybakov On January 19, he sent a new appeal to Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin with a request to install a memorial plaque in the capital at the site of the death of Markelov and Baburova. A memorial plaque on Prechistenka will be an important step for the capital towards preserving memory, respecting human dignity, and ending xenophobia and violence, Rybakov is confident. "Moscow is a city in which respect for human life and human rights must be expressed not only declaratively, but also actively, through specific, socially significant decisions. A memorial plaque at the site of the murder of Markelov and Baburova will not just be a sign of grief; "This will be an important city symbol: a reminder of the value of human life, the inadmissibility of violence, and the need to counter extremism and hatred," his words are quoted on the party's website. The memory of Markelov and Baburova was honored in cities across Russia Memorials to the murdered anti-fascists Anastasia Baburova and Stanislav Markelov have appeared in St. Petersburg. Activists erected photographs of the anti-fascists and laid flowers and candles nearby, the RusNews Telegram channel reports. Three participants in a memorial event for Markelov and Baburova were detained in Samara. "Activists Denis Belousov, Nikita Teryaev, and Grigory Oganezov, who came to honor the memory of Baburova and Markelov, were detained," a member of the Nikolai Kavkazsky* of the Yabloko party. Memorials to Stanislav Markelov and Anastasia Baburova have been erected in Yekaterinburg, Perm, Blagoveshchensk, Baksan, Krasnoyarsk, Zheleznogorsk, Vladivostok, Novosibirsk, Rostov-on-Don, and other cities, according to the Telegram channel "Antifa.ru." For example, in Rostov-on-Don, a small memorial was erected near the Heroes' Stele in Nikolai Ostrovsky Park, the publication says. Photographs in memory of Anastasia Baburova and Stanislav Markelov were also installed in the city park of Baksan in Kabardino-Balkaria, the project reports in another publication. At the end of November 2025, Evgenia Khasis, convicted in the case of the murder of lawyer Stanislav Markelov and journalist Anastasia Baburova, was released from prison after serving her full sentence. Evgenia Khasis in an interview with Ksenia Sobchak admitted being an accomplice in the lawyer's murder, although she completely denied the charge in court. She added that she regretted Anastasia Baburova's death. "I sincerely feel deeply sorry for her and her family." "She shouldn't have fallen victim that day," Khasis said. * added to the register of foreign agents.