Post by Admin on Dec 27, 2013 15:07:25 GMT
One of two freed members of punk protest band Pussy Riot, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, said on Friday their release was aimed solely at improving Russia's image before it hosts the Winter Olympic Games and was not a humanitarian gesture.
Tolokonnikova said the Winter Olympics, due to be held in February in Russia's Black Sea resort of Sochi, were Putin's pet project and that anybody attending them would be supporting him. "With the Olympics approaching, Vladimir Vladimirovich (Putin) does not want his favorite project ruined," Tolokonnikova said. Last week, Putin also pardoned former oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky, viewed by Kremlin foes as a political prisoner, after he spent more than 10 years in jail.
Russian punk band Pussy Riot members Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, right, and Maria Alekhina smile during their news conference in Moscow, Russia, on Friday, Dec. 27, 2013.
The thaw has nothing to do with humanism. The authorities only did this under pressure from both Russian and Western society," Tolokonnikova told a news conference with Alyokhina at her side, adding she feared "there could be more repression after the Olympics". "Whether one likes it or not, going to the Olympics in Russia is an acceptance of the internal political situation in Russia, an acceptance of the course taken by a person who is interested in the Olympics above all else - Vladimir Putin," Tolokonnikova said.
Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina, members of the feminist punk group Pussy Riot, who have been released from penal colonies after being amnestied, said they will begin working on a human rights project entitled Law Zone in the nearest future. "It began when we started engaging in human rights activities where we served our terms. Our lives are closely connected to this project," Tolokonnikova told a press conference in Moscow.
Alyokhina, for her part, said the project will defend the rights of many prisoners. Tolokonnikova told reporters the project currently has no funding. "As for money, we don't have anything to finance it with," Tolokonnikova said. Tolokonnikova said anyone who wants can make donations to the organization. "We currently need to make a transparent funding system," she said.
Alyokhina said she was "in solidarity" with the idea of Khodorkovsky becoming president. She also gave her take on Putin. "In my view, Putin is under the influence of the power structures," she said. "He and his policies are an embodiment of the methods of the actions of the siloviki [the security services]. It's all about endless conspiracy [theories], endless suspicion."
Tolokonnikova said the Winter Olympics, due to be held in February in Russia's Black Sea resort of Sochi, were Putin's pet project and that anybody attending them would be supporting him. "With the Olympics approaching, Vladimir Vladimirovich (Putin) does not want his favorite project ruined," Tolokonnikova said. Last week, Putin also pardoned former oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky, viewed by Kremlin foes as a political prisoner, after he spent more than 10 years in jail.
Russian punk band Pussy Riot members Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, right, and Maria Alekhina smile during their news conference in Moscow, Russia, on Friday, Dec. 27, 2013.
The thaw has nothing to do with humanism. The authorities only did this under pressure from both Russian and Western society," Tolokonnikova told a news conference with Alyokhina at her side, adding she feared "there could be more repression after the Olympics". "Whether one likes it or not, going to the Olympics in Russia is an acceptance of the internal political situation in Russia, an acceptance of the course taken by a person who is interested in the Olympics above all else - Vladimir Putin," Tolokonnikova said.
Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina, members of the feminist punk group Pussy Riot, who have been released from penal colonies after being amnestied, said they will begin working on a human rights project entitled Law Zone in the nearest future. "It began when we started engaging in human rights activities where we served our terms. Our lives are closely connected to this project," Tolokonnikova told a press conference in Moscow.
Alyokhina, for her part, said the project will defend the rights of many prisoners. Tolokonnikova told reporters the project currently has no funding. "As for money, we don't have anything to finance it with," Tolokonnikova said. Tolokonnikova said anyone who wants can make donations to the organization. "We currently need to make a transparent funding system," she said.
Alyokhina said she was "in solidarity" with the idea of Khodorkovsky becoming president. She also gave her take on Putin. "In my view, Putin is under the influence of the power structures," she said. "He and his policies are an embodiment of the methods of the actions of the siloviki [the security services]. It's all about endless conspiracy [theories], endless suspicion."