Pavel Butorin and his two daughters, Miriam and Bibi, aged 12 and 15 respectively, were deeply unsettled by the court footage they witnessed on Monday, 1st April, featuring their mother and wife, Alsu Kurmasheva, a journalist of Russian-American heritage. This was their first encounter with Kurmasheva’s voice since 18th October when she was forcibly apprehended at her mother’s abode in Russian Tatarstan by unidentified men. That day, Kurmasheva sent an anxious voice message to Butorin stating “They are taking me away.”
Butorin mentions the infrequent moments they see Alsu in glass cages, referring to the prisoner enclosures in Russian courtrooms. He describes the experience as deeply distressing. Yet, despite bearing the emotional and physical burden of this unjust imprisonment, Butorin assures that Kurmasheva remains steadfast in her belief of innocence.
In the footage, which was shared by Butorin on the platform ‘X’, Kurmasheva depicts the grim conditions of her cell, which barely affords space for two steps. Basic facilities remain severely lacking, with only a hole in the ground for sanitation and no access to hot water. The ordeal has visibly taken a toll on her, leaving her gaunt and lean.
Kurmasheva’s struggle began when her American and Russian passports were confiscated at Kazan airport on 2nd June. This incident occurred while she was preparing to return home to Prague after meeting her unwell mother. She faced charges for neglecting to register her American citizenship, which she promptly addressed. Butorin recounts their initial optimism and downplaying of the situation, believing it to be an insignificant incident. They were literally waiting for her departure from Russia on a daily basis.
Kurmasheva, at the age of 47, has been subjected to a series of bureaucratic obstacles reminiscent of Kafka’s writings. The authorities stalled in returning her travel papers and accused her of not registering as a ‘foreign agent’ on 18th October, an allegation that could potentially put her behind bars for half a decade. Further, on 11th December officials indicted her for disseminating misleading information about Russia’s army, which can add a decade to her prison term. Currently, her pre-trial confinement has been extended up until 5th June.
Since 1998, Kurmasheva has been affiliated with Radio Free Europe-Radio Liberty, an entity backed by the American government but maintains its editorial independence. Her employer, RFE/RL, has been labelled as an ‘unwelcome entity’ by Russia’s authorities. Their online page posts a warning for their Russian audience explaining they could face monetary penalties or jail time for liking, sharing, or commenting on their content, saving it, or even reaching out to them.
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The president of RFE/RL, Stephen Capus, views Kurmasheva as being manipulated like a political instrument. He believes they are doing this because she is an American national and possibly due to her affiliation with their organisation. He sees these actions as an unjust and savage retribution for a woman who returned home to look after her mother. Meanwhile, her spouse and two beautiful children anxiously await her return. He condemns their actions as absurd, unjust, and spiteful.
Alongside others, Kurmasheva has co-authored ‘Saying No to War’, a book where forty Russians voice their defiance of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Kurmasheva belongs to the Tatar minority, primarily of Muslim faith, that has been historically oppressed by Russia. “Her professional life has been devoted to promoting Tatar culture, covering events in Tatarstan and serving its people,” says Butorin.
Kurmasheva has been jointly proposed by 23 countries, including Ireland, for the Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize under Unesco, which is due to be awarded on 3rd May, the World Press Freedom Day. Her contributions are believed to exemplify a quote from Unesco’s charter: “Wars originate from mens’ minds, hence peace must be built within them.”
Kurmasheva ranks among five American citizens unjustly incarcerated in Russia. Paul Whelan, an ex-US marine, is currently serving a 16-year term for alleged spying activities. Likewise, Evan Gershkovich, a correspondent for the Wall Street Journal, was taken into custody in March 2023, facing similar charges. In January 2024, two US-Russian dual citizens, Ksenia Karelina, a hobbyist dancer hailing from Los Angeles, and English educator, Robert Woodland Romanov, also found themselves under arrest.
Accusations of high treason have been levelled against Karelina, potentially resulting in life imprisonment, over a $50 donation she made to a charity sympathetic to Ukraine. These individuals are all thought to be casualties of Russia’s escalating commitment to ‘hostage diplomacy’. This phrase is often applied to Iran’s incarceration of Westerners to secure political or financial advantages — a practice even more prevalent since Russia’s full-scale attack on Ukraine. Putin’s administration appears to be callously amassing human ‘chess pieces’ in the belief they could serve as valuable bargaining tools. Each seems to have been apprehended in what Capus refers to as a “chance snatch”.
The US is confronted with a serious ethical quandary, to either set a dangerous precedent by escalating the cost of liberty to negotiate these citizens’ release or to abandon them to sustained imprisonment. Until 2022, the dealings for their release were typically kept shrouded in secrecy. However, this protocol shifted when the US publicly disclosed its exchange of Russian arms trafficker, Viktor Bout for basketball professional, Brittney Griner.
“My wife’s return is what I seek. In my opinion, the western world, certainly including the US, ought to demonstrate the moral courage to facilitate this, given our belief in the sanctity of human life,” implores Pavel Butorin.
Those close to Alexei Navalny, the late Russian dissent known to have succumbed in prison in February, claim that an exchange involving him, Whelan, and Gershkovich was imminent, for Vadim Krasikov, a Russian spy currently serving a life sentence in Germany for assassinating a Chechen dissident at a Berlin playground. This proposed swap is believed to have been thwarted by Putin, who could not stomach the possibility of Navalny outliving him, even outside of Russia. Still, there may be hope for an exchange involving Whelan and Gershkovich for Krasikov.
Kurmasheva’s loved ones and employers are lobbying for the US government to officially recognise her as “unjustly detained”, which would pave the way for diplomatic representatives to visit her and allow the US to negotiate on her behalf.
Butorin has no knowledge of any potential swap involving Kurmasheva. However, he wouldn’t hesitate to exchange her for a Russian convict. “I want my spouse returned. I believe the US, or the West in general, should have the moral courage to facilitate this since human life is invaluable to us.”
According to Capus, hostage-taking has evidently become a strategy for the Russian government. “Ideally, I prefer saying, ‘Never incentivise poor conduct.’ However, the truth is that under an oppressive regime, people can sometimes find themselves in dire circumstances, like now. Regardless, we must resort to any means necessary to retrieve our people,” he says.