On March 4, a new law was introduced with the aim of silencing voices critical of the war.
It has been forbidden to spread "false" news about the Russian Armed Forces, such as that Russia has brutally invaded its neighbor and that it is a full-scale war with many civilian and military victims.
Anyone who disseminates such information risks up to 15 years in prison.
Since the law was introduced, at least 15,000 people have been arrested, according to Civil Rights Defenders.
"There is both fear and courage"
The organization is in contact with Russian human rights defenders who still dare to talk about the war, among the OVD-Info who support many who suffer from political persecution in Russia.
- There is definitely a fear, but also a determination and a courage to continue protesting, says Anders L Pettersson, executive director of Civil Rights Defenders.
Teacher was arrested for not lying
Two events affect Anders L Pettersson in particular:
- One is a geography teacher who refused to follow the guidelines on how to talk about the war.
He was fired from his job and the principal threatened that she would do everything she could to get him imprisoned.
The teacher has been forced to leave the country.
And it is a teacher, not a political actor.
- The other was a father who put up a flag in the window, a blue-yellow hand-drawn flag that he made together with his child.
Some passers-by saw it and later the police came and arrested the father, says Anders L Pettersson.
Optimistic after all
Most of those arrested are released within a couple of hours or 24 hours.
The arrests have taken place in 55 different places in Russia, but the politically controlled judicial system is slowly grinding.
It is not certain that everyone will be prosecuted or convicted, but history shows that Russian courts have a long memory.
Another Russian law was approved by Vladimir Putin on Friday, March 25 - which could carry up to 15 years in prison for spreading "false information" about Russian authorities' work abroad, reports AFP.