“On What Grounds Are Peaceful Indigenous Women Rights Defenders Persecuted as Terrorists?”
Updated: 22 hours ago
On 26 October, Yana Tannagasheva addressed a meeting of the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women on behalf of the International Committee of Indigenous Peoples of Russia (ICIPR). She spoke about the situation of Indigenous women in Russia and called for the immediate release of Indigenous rights defenders Daria Egereva and Natalia Leongardt.
The statement was delivered during CEDAW’s 93rd session (at the 54-minute mark in the video), at the Committee’s meeting with non-governmental organisations. Tannagasheva drew the UN experts’ attention to systemic discrimination against Indigenous women and girls, the impact of extractive industries on traditional territories, and growing pressure on independent human rights defenders.
“Indigenous women and girls in Russia face systemic discrimination, deprivation of land rights, and increasingly severe repression,” Tannagasheva said.
According to her, the situation has deteriorated since CEDAW’s previous concluding observations on Russia.
“In the North and Siberia, extractive industries threaten our ancestral lands, traditional ways of life, and cultural survival. Women defending these rights face intimidation and criminalisation,” she said.
Tannagasheva also said that Russia’s war against Ukraine had brought further losses to Indigenous communities: women are losing their husbands, sons, and brothers.
The persecution of independent organisations and Indigenous rights defenders was a separate focus of the statement. Tannagasheva recalled the cases of Daria Egereva and Natalia Leongardt, detained in Moscow in December 2025. They remain in custody and are accused of participating in the activities of an organisation designated as terrorist by the Russian authorities. If convicted, they face lengthy prison sentences.
“The most urgent question we want to ask Russia is: on what grounds are charges being brought against peaceful women — Indigenous rights defenders who are being treated as terrorists?” Tannagasheva said.
Concluding her statement, she demanded the “immediate and unconditional release” of Daria Egereva and Natalia Leongardt.
Earlier, four human rights organisations submitted to CEDAW a parallel report on the situation of women belonging to the Indigenous small-numbered Peoples of the North, Siberia, and the Far East of Russia. It addresses discrimination, the protection of traditional lands and resources, the impact of extractive industries, Indigenous women’s participation in decision-making, and the persecution of independent women human rights defenders.
The cases of Egereva and Leongardt have also drawn the attention of UN Special Procedures. In a joint communication to the Russian authorities, UN experts expressed concern about their alleged criminalisation, intimidation, and possible reprisals for their peaceful work defending Indigenous Peoples’ rights and cooperating with the United Nations.
@IR
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Source: Indigenous Russia, 26 October 2026.
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