Women Against War – PACE

April 20, 2026 – April 24, 2026

Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, Strasbourg, France

From April 20th to 24th, the Women Against War exhibition of portraits of female political prisoners will open in Strasbourg, France, right in the building of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE). This is a politically unique venue where parliamentarians from all 46 member states of the Council of Europe can see it! We aim to draw the attention of European parliamentarians to the urgent need to increase pressure on the Russian regime, including the release of all political prisoners and civilian hostages in PACE resolutions, reports, and recommendations.

This edition of the exhibition is supported by Nadya Tolokonnikova (Pussy Riot) and participants from the PACE Platform for Dialogue with Russian Democratic Forces.

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Statement from Feminist AntiWar Resistance –

Why is it important for us to present the exhibition at PACE?

For us, it is extremely important that the exhibition opens at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe — a politically unique venue where parliamentarians from all 46 member states of the Council of Europe can see it. We present the stories of Russian women who have faced political repression for their anti-war stance, but in this version of the exhibition, we have added a separate section dedicated to Ukrainian civilian hostages — women who are being unlawfully held in Russia under horrific conditions. At least 257 Ukrainian women have been detained or gone missing. We aim to draw the attention of European parliamentarians to the urgent need to increase pressure on the Russian regime, including the release of all political prisoners and civilian hostages in PACE resolutions, reports, and recommendations.

We also call on PACE delegates and leaders of countries involved in negotiations, or who have the power to influence their outcomes, to focus on supporting women affected by the Putin regime.

Notes

This is the fourth edition of the Women Against War street exhibition, curated by the Feminist Anti-War Resistance. The first edition took place in Paris in March 2023 with the support of the City Hall of the 11th arrondissement of Paris. The second opened in Vienna in December 2025 at MuseumsQuartier, with the support of the Austrian Ministry of Housing, Arts, Culture, Media and Sport. The third opened in Budapest in April 2026.

Curators
Vika Privalova, Lölja Nordic and other activists of Feminist Anti-war Resistance.

Designers
HVOII (Anastasiia Shilova), Gala_Gala

Exhibition protagonists
Parvinakhan Abuzarova, Oksana Baulina (01.11.1979 – 23.03.2022), Maria Bontsler, Evgenia Berkovich, Ramilya Galim (Saitova), Nadin Geisler, Alexandra Kaluzhskikh, Tatiana Laletina, Lyubov Lizunova, Maria Moskalyova, Olga Nazarenko (10.05.1975 – 20.10.2023), Elena Osipova, Maria Ponomarenko, Svetlana Petriychuk, Lyudmila Razumova, Polina Yevtushenko.

Artists
Kristina Akhmadieva, Daria Apakhonchich, artemis, p. b., Dasha Burleshina, Mira Gafar, Alisa Gorshenina, Baba Pasha, Alina Panasenko, Vika Privalova, Maria Rakhmaninova, Alexandra Skochilenko and artists that prefer to participate anonymously.