On 10 September 2026, Moscow’s Basmanny District Court extended the pre-trial detention of Indigenous rights defenders Daria Egereva and Natalia Leongardt until 9 December 2026. By that date, the two women will have spent almost a year in detention without a verdict. Their case remains at the investigation stage.

Amnesty International has included the case of Indigenous human rights defender Daria Egereva in a new report to the United Nations on the growing persecution of environmental human rights defenders worldwide. The report, “Environmental human rights defenders: Vital voices face attacks and lack protection,” was published in August 2026 as Amnesty International’s submission to the UN Special Rapporteur on the human right to a healthy environment. For Daria Egereva, the report

The German publication Berliner Gazette has published an analytical article by Regzena Erdyneeva on repression against Indigenous Peoples and their human rights defenders in Russia. The editors of daria-egereva.org present a review of the article.

On December 17, 2025, Russia launched a large-scale operation against independent representatives of Indigenous Peoples. Searches and interrogations were carried out against at least 17 activists in ten regions. Daria Egereva and Natalia Leongardt were detained. Seven months later, their case had become one of the most prominent international cases involving the persecution of Indigenous human rights defenders — and a symbol of what can happen to those who speak about Indigen

Today, Daria Egereva and Natalia Leongardt remain behind bars — people who spent years defending the interests of Indigenous communities and working for their future. Instead of recognition for this work, they are being held in pre-trial detention, accused of “participating in the activities of a terrorist organization.” They face between 10 and 20 years in prison.

A day for all indigenous peoples: their languages, their lands, their knowledge, their right to decide their own destiny. Daria Egereva and Natalia Leonhardt should be celebrating it with their communities. Instead, they are in custody for their work, which has always been peaceful.

For more than seven months, Indigenous leaders, human rights defenders, environmental activists, and allies around the world have been speaking out in support of Daria Egereva and Natalia Leongardt.

According to the human rights organization OWD-Info, more than 2,100 people are currently detained in Russia for political reasons. Among them are many members of minority groups and Indigenous Peoples. Daria Egereva belongs to the Selkup people, one of Russia’s smallest Indigenous Peoples with a population of around 3,500.

Daria Egereva will remain in pre-trial detention until March 15. This decision was made today by the Basmanny District Court of Moscow.