A 21-year-old Zambian student identified as Rebecca Ziba faces up to three years in prison in Russia after she was arrested for twerking at a war memorial.
In a video clip which Ziba allegedly posted on social media, a fully clothed girl alleged to be Ziba can be seen dancing next to a World War II memorial in Khanty-Mansiysk.
In the video there is a caption saying: “Shaking ass for the dead, I’m sure they are sleeping well tonight”.
A second video, which according to Euro News, was released by Russian Investigative Committee, shows Ziba sitting in what appears to be an interrogation room. The Zambian national confesses and apologizes for her actions.
“I didn’t want the video I posted to be offensive and disrespectful to the dead. I didn’t know what the memorial signifies. I apologise very much to everyone,” the student says in English.
Russian investigators have described her actions as “obscene” and “insulting”. They have also labelled the caption in the video as “offensive”.
Ziba has been charged under Part 4 of Art. 354.1 of the Criminal Code, which accuses a person of “rehabilitating Nazism”.
The charge attracts three years in prison and a fine of up to 3 million roubles (about K29 million).
