Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development

Comité permanent des affaires étrangères et du développement international

For immediate release

Ottawa, October 27, 2022 -

On 19 October 2022, the House of Commons Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development (the committee) met with Evgenia Kara-Murza, Advocacy Coordinator of the Free Russia Foundation, and the Honourable Irwin Cotler, P.C., Founder and International Chair of the Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights.

In her testimony, Ms. Kara-Murza drew a clear connection between Russia’s external aggression against Ukraine and the massive repression that is taking place within Russia. She cited independent reporting which indicates that 19,335 people have been arbitrarily detained across Russia since 24 February 2022. One of them is Vladimir Kara-Murza, Ms. Kara-Murza’s husband. He refused to be intimidated despite two previous poisoning attacks against him in retaliation for advocating the imposition of Magnitsky-style sanctions against human rights violators in the Putin regime. For speaking the truth, Vladimir Kara-Murza is now facing up to 24 years in prison.

Given his contributions to the struggle for democracy and human rights, Mr. Cotler emphasized that the persecution and prosecution of Vladimir Kara-Murza can be understood as a “looking glass” into Russia.

Ms. Kara-Murza’s objective, in speaking to the committee, was to ensure that the voices of the Russian people who have rejected the Putin regime and everything it stands for are heard. She underlined the importance of acknowledging their bravery and recognizing their fight by stating: “these people give us hope that Russia has a future.”

The committee recognizes all those who have taken great personal risks to express their opposition to Russia’s war against Ukraine and the intensifying repression within Russia. The committee condemns all such arbitrary arrests, including that of Vladimir Kara-Murza; calls for the immediate release of Vladimir Kara-Murza, and fully intends to continue to amplify these voices, where and when it can, through its work and by expressing its belief that Canada should remain actively engaged on these issues.