ANOTHER RUSSIAN ACTIVIST CONVICTED:

Sarah,

I’ve written a lot about Putin, his crackdown on dissent, and recent arrests in Russia.  The trend continued today with the sentencing of Taisiya Osipova:

-Osipova and her husband are senior members of a political party that opposes Putin.

-Her charge is possession of four grams of heroin which the opposition claim was planted by Russian police.

-Even if the small amount of heroin was hers, the sentence would be harsh.  The judge gave her 8 years; double the time sought by prosecutors.

-Human rights observers claim that this case shows a willingness by Putin to retaliate against women who oppose him.  (last week, three female members of the band Pussy Riot were sentenced for singing an offensive song in a church)

“PUSSY RIOT” SENTENCED TO TWO YEARS IN JAIL FOR HOOLIGANISM:

Sarah,

Last week I posted about Putin (the President of Russia) and his increasingly authoritarian laws.  This week, a Russian court sentenced a female punk band named “Pussy Riot” to two years in prison for an incident in which the band performed an anti-Putin “punk prayer” in Russia’s main cathedral.  They only sang for about a minute before being escorted out.  That one minute will cost them two years.

Analysts say that Putin played a big role in ensuring the harsh sentence.  Now that he is back in power as President he is working to silence dissent.

The Russian Orthodox Church generally supports Putin.  The Church also alleged that Pussy Riot had engaged in criminal conduct.

The band apologized to Christians they offended and stated that their motives were purely political. (one line of the “punk prayer” reads- “shit, shit, the Lord’s shit.”)

Bottom line: Repression in Russia is picking up steam.