Features
The Pussy Riot Legacy
Facing continued pressure, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev on Sept. 12 called for the release of jailed punk protestors Pussy Riot, which could signal an imminent release for the feminists as their case comes up for appeal Oct. 1.
Medvedev said the “hysteria” accompanying the women’s imprisonment has made him sick, but that keeping them locked up any longer would be unproductive.
“In my view, a suspended sentence would be sufficient, taking into account the time they have already spent in custody,” Medvedev said during a televised meeting with memers of his United Russia party.
Medvedev is subordinate to President Vladimir Putin, but it’s possible that by Medvedev making the call for the women’s release, Putin could leave the controversy behind without appearing to give in to pressure.
Previousy:
There were further signs of the legacy left by the jailed members Pussy Riot when a festival to support them went ahead in Russia’s second-largest city and a video message showed them burning an effigy of President Vladimir Putin.
On Sept. 9 the “Free Pussy Riot Fest” in St. Petersburg, Putin’s hometown, went ahead, even though Russian authorities tried to get it canceled.
The local fire brigade threatened to close down the venue, a concert hall called the Glavklub, although eventually 1,000 people showed to see rock protest acts including DDT and Televizor, who’ve both managed to rile the Kremlin with some of their output.
On the day after the festival, event organiser Olga Kurnosova said city officials tried to force her to stop the show. She said the proceeds from her festival will go to Pussy Riot and other political activists that have been jailed under Putin.
DDT frontman Yuri Shevchuk compared the Kremlin’s crackdown on political protests to the Soviet-era repression of dissidents.
“In 1992, we participated in a festival against political repression,” he said. “Twenty years have passed, but it seems almost nothing has changed.”
Dozens of riot police surrounded the festival venue and four people were detained. The Russian media said they’d been jaywalking.
Several younger rock bands and rappers voiced their support for Pussy Riot from the stage, and some spectators were seen wearing balaclavas – the feminist band’s trademark headwear.
Pussy Riot wore balaclavas when shooting a new anti-Putin video posted on the internet and picked up by NME.
“Our country is dominated by evil men,” they say, before burning an image of Putin.
Three members of Pussy Riot were sentenced to two years in jail in August for a “punk prayer” against Putin in Russia’s largest cathedral. The trial provoked an international outcry, and a string of Western pop stars, including Paul McCartney, Madonna and Peter Gabriel, have urged Russian authorities to free the young women.
However, a handful of Russian celebrities, including pop stars frequently seen on Kremlin-controlled national television networks, condemned the band’’ performance as “blasphemous.”
Pussy Riot grew from the St. Petersburg-based Voina (War) art-protest group. Among the group’s most noted acts was the drawing of an enormous phallus on a drawbridge in St. Petersburg opposite the headquarters of the Federal Security Service, the main KGB-successor agency.