Event Description:

This panel, led by public figure, reformer and entrepreneur Mikhail Khodorkovsky, will address the institutional causes of Russian authoritarianism and offer prospects and opportunities for Russia's transition to democracy.

This event will be in Russian with consecutive translation to English.

Panelists:

• Mikhail Khodorkovsky
• Anastasia Burakova
• Anastasia Shevchenko
• Dmitry Gudkov

Speaker bios:

Mikhail Khodorkovsky. A successful businessman, Khodorkovsky was head of YUKOS, one of the world’s largest oil producers, where he established international management codes of practice, and substantially increased production. As a pioneering philanthropist, he established the Open Russia Foundation in 2001 with the aim of building and strengthening civil society in Russia. Having been one of the earliest supporters of democratic change, Khodorkovsky criticised endemic corruption at a televised meeting with President Putin in early 2003. Later that same year he was arrested, and jailed on charges of tax evasion and fraud, charges, which he denied and vigorously defended. Khodorkovsky was sentenced to fourteen years in prison. He was declared a prisoner of conscience by Amnesty International; and finally released in December 2013. In 2014, the Hague Permanent Court of Arbitration ruled that the Russian Government had violated international law by taking YUKOS from its shareholders, for political purposes, described as a “full assault on Yukos and its beneficial owners in order to bankrupt Yukos and appropriate its assets while, at the same time, removing Mr. Khodorkovsky from the political arena.”As the leader of the Russian opposition and the founder of the Open Russia movement, Khodorkovsky advocates for an alternative vision for his country: a strong and just state, based on a parliamentary republic model and committed to observing human rights, free and fair elections, and the rule of law while campaigning for building a strong civil society in Russia. Oscar-winning documentarian Alex Gibney covered Mikhail Khodorkovsky’s life story in his latest film Citizen K which is currently featured on Amazon Prime. 

Anastasia Burakova. Founder of "The Ark" (Kovcheg) project. Since 2017 Anastasia has been working as a human rights lawyer at the Open Russia Human Rights Team. Anastasia successfully worked with cases related to freedom of speech, freedom of associations, freedom of assembly and labor rights. Anastasia is one of the founders of the United Democrats project, which provides logistic and legal support to independent candidates on local elections in five Russian regions. More than 300 candidates from the United Democrats team were elected. In April, 2019 Anastasia was elected as the chairperson of Open Russia civic organization, which was closed in May, 2021 due to government's pressure and high risks for activists. Anastasia left Russia in November, 2021 because of uprising politically motivated persecution, and moved to Kyiv, Ukraine. After the beginning of the war Anastasia launched "The Ark" (Kovcheg) project. The project's team helps Russian emigrants who face persecution because of their anti-war position. The Ark project also supports activists who keep on implementing their anti-war activities and media projects in exile.

Anastasia Shevchenko. Russian political activist and public figure. A mother of three, she was sentenced to 4.5 years of suspended jail term as ‘a threat to the foundation of the constitutional order of the Russian Federation and the security of the state’. She endured house arrest for two years, and became the first person found guilty of “organizing activity of an undesirable organization” by a Russian court, for her work with the Open Russia movement. Amnesty International declared her a “prisoner of conscience.” While Anastasia was under arrest, her teenage daughter Alina was hospitalized and died alone, becoming an early example of the Russian regime’s willingness to use the separation of parents and children as a way to silence dissent. Her story is featured in the Oscar short-listed documentary “Anastasia”. In summer 2022 Anastasia Shevchenko left Russia. She’s been placed on the wanted list and as soon as she arrives to Russia, she’d face immediate imprisonment. Anastasia founded Russians against war community in Lithuania. She is a member of Russian action committee. Nowadays she’s taking part in organization of anti-war protests of Russian diasporas all over the world and campaigns for political prisoners.

Dmitry Gudkov. Russian politician, public opposition figure and former MP - independent deputy of the State Duma (2011-2016), worked in two parliamentary commissions on relations with EU and US.  2012. Member of the Coordinating Council of Russian opposition: Gudkov was one the leaders who led the protest movement that swept the country following the contested Duma elections of 2011. D.Gudkov was on the front lines of the Bolotnaya Square protest in 2011-2013 and participated in the peace march for Ukraine in Moscow. From 2011-2016. Dmitry Gudkov opposed many legislative initiatives of symbolic importance to the Kremlin such as annexation of Crimea and the Anti-Magnitsky act, which prohibited the adoption of Russian children by U.S. citizens. In 2017, the coalition of liberal opposition candidates “United Democrats”, led by Dmitry Gudkov, has won a series of triumph victories in local council elections in Moscow. Opposition candidates have gained a majority in more than 25 Moscow districts. Out of around 1,000 candidates put forward by the “United Democrats”, 267 have won seats. In 2019 during Moscow city parliament elections was one of the independent candidates who had real chance to win but was arrested and put into jail for 36 days.  In June 2021 was arrested and held in a custody 48 hours on fabricated criminal case staged against his family to prevent him from running for parliament September 2021 and squeezed him out of Russia. He is a member of the Anti-War Committee of Russia fighting against the aggressive dictatorship of Vladimir Putin.

The event is at capacity, people on the waitlist will be contacted if space opens up. 

Please bring registration ticket for admission.