Russian Artist Jailed for Placing Tiny Anti‑War Signs in a Market Says She Would Do It Again

Aleksandra “Sasha” Skochilenko, a 33‑year‑old artist, musician and outspoken anti‑war activist from Saint Petersburg, was sentenced in November 2023 to seven years in a penal colony for swapping ordinary supermarket price tags with hand‑written messages that exposed Russian war crimes in Ukraine. The tiny stickers, which she placed on five items in a local grocery store, warned shoppers about the bombing of a Mariupol art school and denounced President Vladimir Putin’s propaganda.Arrested in April 2022 after an elderly customer reported the altered tags, Skochilenko was charged under Article 207.3 of the Russian Criminal Code – a law introduced in March 2022 that criminalises the “public dissemination of knowingly false information” about the Russian armed forces. During her more than 18 months in pre‑trial detention, she suffered from chronic health problems, including celiac disease and a congenital heart defect, and was denied proper medication and nutrition.Despite the harsh sentence and the deteriorating conditions of her confinement, Skochilenko’s resolve never wavered. On 1 August 2024 she was released as part of a large prisoner‑swap between Russia and the United States, one of the biggest exchanges since the Cold War. In a post‑release interview she said:> “The values of freedom of speech, of peace, could be more important than spending even ten years in jail. I would do it again.”Her statement underscores a broader pattern of repression in Russia, where thousands have been detained, fined or imprisoned for any criticism of the war in Ukraine. Human‑rights groups, including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, have condemned her trial as a sham and called for the repeal of the draconian “fake news” laws that enable such prosecutions.Since gaining her freedom, Skochilenko has relocated to the United States, where she continues to create art and speak out against the war. Her case has become a symbol of the courage of ordinary citizens who risk everything to challenge state‑sanctioned violence. International supporters see her story as a reminder that the fight for free expression and peace transcends borders, and that even the smallest act of dissent – a tiny anti‑war sign on a supermarket shelf – can resonate far beyond its modest size.