Call to Use Prisoner Exchange Mechanism to Secure the Release of Daria Egereva and Natalia Leongardt

On the anniversary of the historic prisoner exchange between Russia, Belarus, and Western countries on August 1, 2024, the Society for Threatened Peoples (GfbV) called for intensified international efforts to secure the release of Indigenous rights defenders Daria Egereva and Natalia Leongardt.

“Indigenous rights defenders Daria Egereva and Natalia Leongardt have been detained in Russia since December 17, 2025, and are accused of alleged terrorism. The women are innocent, the proceedings are politically motivated, and the potential prison sentences are draconian,” said Sarah Reinke, Head of Human Rights Work at GfbV.

According to Reinke, securing the release of the two activists should become a priority for international diplomacy.

“The German government and other Western countries must work toward their release. The prisoner exchange two years ago demonstrated that determined negotiations can succeed. But this requires public pressure and political will. The next court hearing is scheduled for August 5 in Moscow and concerns the extension of their pre-trial detention. The days leading up to the hearing should be used to intensify diplomatic initiatives,” Reinke urged.

Daria Egereva serves as Co-Chair of the International Indigenous Peoples Forum on Climate Change (IIPFCC). Natalia Leongardt has spent more than twenty years defending the rights of Indigenous peoples in Russia. Both women have played a key role in strengthening dialogue between Indigenous communities and UN human rights mechanisms.

“It appears that these two women are now being punished for this work. They face up to 20 years in prisonunder appalling conditions. The international community must act urgently to prevent this,” Reinke stated.

According to OVD-Info, more than 2,100 people are currently imprisoned in Russia on politically motivated charges. Among them are representatives of national minorities and Indigenous peoples. Daria Egereva belongs to the Selkuppeople, one of Russia’s smallest Indigenous peoples, numbering only about 3,500 individuals. Indigenous peoples of Siberia, the Arctic, and the Russian Far East remain among the country’s most socially vulnerable and politically marginalized communities, while effective mechanisms for protecting their rights are largely absent.

GfbV also notes that recent statements by Russian authorities accusing Western governments of using Indigenous issues as a political tool indicate that international attention is having an impact.

“Russia’s recent complaints that Western governments are using Indigenous issues as an instrument of political pressure demonstrate that political and public pressure from the West is influencing Moscow. Therefore, the release of Daria and Natalia should become a priority for the German government, and all available prisoner exchange options should be explored.”

The August 1, 2024 prisoner exchange was the largest swap between Russia and Western countries since the Cold War. It resulted in the release of 16 political prisoners and foreign nationals held in Russian and Belarusian prisons, including Vladimir Kara-Murza, Ilya Yashin, Oleg Orlov, Sasha Skochilenko, and Wall Street Journal journalist Evan Gershkovich, among others.

According to GfbV, the exchange demonstrated that even under the most difficult political circumstances, prisoner exchange mechanisms can successfully secure the release of political prisoners. The organization argues that this experience should now be applied to obtain the freedom of Daria Egereva and Natalia Leongardt, whom it describes as innocent Indigenous rights defenders imprisoned for their peaceful work.

Media inquiries (Signal): @Solidarity.88

IR