JOIN USRussia faces global condemnation over Pussy Riot
Russia on Saturday faced a storm of international criticism for sentencing three members of the Pussy Riot punk band to two years in prison for a political protest in an Orthodox cathedral.
Speculation mounted that the women, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, Maria Alyokhina and Yekaterina Samutsevich, could have their sentences reduced on appeal after the damaging global reaction, with the Russian public also questioning the sentence.
Judge Marina Syrova said the three young protesters had shown a “clear disrespect toward society” by staging a “Punk Prayer” calling on the Virgin Mary to drive out Vladimir Putin just weeks ahead of his election in March to a third presidential term.
The US called the sentences “disproportionate”, while Britain, France and the European Union said the punishment was excessive and questioned Russia’s rights record.“Putin cronies can jail Pussy Riot but they can’t jail their hearts & minds. More proof of Russia tyranny,” wrote British rights activist Peter Tatchell on Twitter.
Russian media and politicians raised the possibility of the women’s sentence being reduced. “There is a feeling that the Moscow city court, after the lawyers’ appeal, will cut (the sentence) down to only one year, and after that they will release these foolish women back to their children and loved ones,” Komsomolskaya Pravda daily said Saturday.
Leading ruling party member Andrei Isayev called the sentence “harsh” and noted that Putin had yet to speak his full mind on the matter.
“He has no right to impose his views on the court,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told the PublicPost.ru website.
The Russian foreign ministry made no direct comment on Pussy Riot, issuing only a curt statement on Saturday about penalties for offending religious believers in other European countries.
Senior Church members have indicated they would prefer a lighter punishment. “The whole verdict is based on a very shaky foundation: on the assertion that the punk group members feel hatred towards all Orthodox Christians and Orthodoxy as a whole,” reformist priest Andrei Kurayev said Saturday on his blog.
A senior Orthodox Church council issued a formal statement calling on the state “to show mercy for the convicted within the framework of the law.”
The Moscow police said on Saturday that more than 50 protesters detained outside the court on Friday had all been released and some charged with public order offences.
Among those detained was chess champion turned opposition leader Garry Kasparov, who now awaits further questioning, said Alexander Ryklin of the Solidarity political movement led by Kasparov.