Tena Prelec reports from the hooliganism trial of Russian feminist punk group Pussy Riot
Members of the Russian feminist punk band Pussy Riot have been arrested in Moscow on the eve of the country’s presidential elections on charges of hooliganism. The Moscow court in charge decided to keep them imprisoned until 24 April, when they will be tried facing a sentence of up to 7 years. Two band members, both mothers, have announced a hunger strike until they are reunited with their children.
Pussy Riot is one of the most unusual of all the opposition groups that have arisen in Moscow over the past few months. They perform political songs dressed in colourful mini-skirts and balaclavas. Their faces are covered so anyone can potentially join in. They were arrested after performing an anti-Putin punk prayer in Moscow’s Christ the Saviour cathedral.
The trial was supposed to take place on 5 March, the same day when mass demonstrations were scheduled to happen in Moscow. Journalists gathered at the Taganka court at 3pm, but were kept waiting for many hours in vain. “The strategy seems to be to wait for all of us to go to the protests, and hold the trial without a consistent presence of the press,” one said.
Waiting for the trial to start, the band members’ lawyer Nikolai Polozov told Index: “I do not understand why the trial is being postponed for such a long time. I got notice it was delayed by one, then two and then three hours, but now the inquirer does not even pick up my phone calls. If supporting documents are not brought in within 48 hours of the arrests, which is within a couple of hours, they will be forced to release them. But they could always determine the moment of the arrest to a later hour or find another legal caveat to keep them in”.
The supporting documents were eventually brought in. Two more band members were arrested in the evening hours of the same day.
Many Russians are showing support for the group through social media and real life actions. On 8 March, International Women’s Day, a number of flash mobs in support of the group are planned to take place all over Moscow. Recently re-elected president Vladimir Putin has stated he disapproves of the womens’ actions in the cathedral.
Authorities in the Siberian city of Barnaul have refused to sanction a dolls’ protest rally, claiming toys are not equal to people and so cannot participate.
Rights activists had planned to place 100 Kinder surprise toys, 100 Lego figures, 20 soldiers, 15 soft toys and 10 toy cars on the snow in Barnaul’s central square with tiny placards to protest against corruption, violations of election law and article 31 of the constitution which guarantees the freedom of assembly.
Organisers from the local GOLOS election watchdog department and Voters’ League rights activists called the authorities’ refusal absurd.
The activists have pledged to hold the protest action on 18 February anyway, but instead of a rally they plan to make it a series of single pickets, which, according to Russian law, do not have to be sanctioned.
Similar toy protests were held in Barnaul in January without any authorities’ sanctions and became successful among the public and foreign media [photos available here]. Their purpose was simple: authorities refused to sanction a traditional rally against allegedly fraudulent elections, and activists came up with a creative idea of toys protesting instead. Toys held placards saying “United Russia is united against Russia”, “I’m for clean elections”, “Send bears (the symbol of the Putin-led United Russia party – Index) to the North”. Barnaul Prosecutor’s office considered the toy rally “a public event which requires authorities’ sanction”.
Meanwhile protest activists in Moscow are trying to get human protest actions sanctioned. They planned a follow up to this month’s rallies against unfair elections on 26 February in the celebation Russian traditional holiday — Pancake week — with a slogan “Farewell to political winter”. It implies the burning of the winter effigy which is most likely to feature Putin’s face. Organisers are receiving controversial statements from Moscow city administration. They are going to hold the action anyway; if no sanction is given, it will take the form of a flashmob.
After protesters see off the political winter, they plan to gather in Moscow’s Garden Ring Road and create an unbroken circle around the city centre holding hands. Protesters estimate this will require not less than 34,000 people. The purpose of the “Big White Circle”, as protesters call it, is to remind the authorities none of their demands were fulfilled.
The only people who do not have any problems organising rallies now are Putin’s supporters. Their rally is to be held on 23 February, and it is expected that Putin himself will attend. The last rally in his support was held the same day tens of thousands people protested against his run in presidential campaign, and was marked with scandalous reports of how people were threatened or paid for supporting him.
Forty people have been arrested in Moscow during a gay pride rally. The rally, which took place on 1 October was one of the few gay rights events which had been approved by authorities. Participants in the rally found themselves faced with protesters, some of whom threw tomatoes at them. Authorities are trying to work out how many of those arrested were involved in the rally, and how many were trying to stop it. Attempts to hold gay pride marches in Russian cities in the past have been blocked by police, church activists and football fans. The arrests follow reports that Russia’s Arkhangelsk region has adopted a draft law banning all events promoting homosexuality, including Gay Pride marches.