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Pussy Riot members among group of activists arrested in Sochi Pussy Riot members among group of activists arrested in Sochi
(35 minutes later)
Two members of the Russian punk collective Pussy Riot who were released from prison in December have been arrested by police in Sochi, along with a group of activists and journalists. Members of the punk group Pussy Riot have been detained by Russian police in Sochi, apparently on suspicion of stealing a woman's handbag.
Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alekhina said they had come to the Winter Olympics to hold a Pussy Riot performance, but were detained while walking down a street. Ten people were arrested, including Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina, the Pussy Riot duo who were released from prison in December, as well as local activists and journalists.
"We were just walking around Sochi when they grabbed us," said Tolokonnikova by telephone from a police station not far from the Olympic Park. "They told us we are suspected of theft. Of course there has been no theft." All were released after several hours in a police station minutes from the coastal venues for the Winter Olympics. On their release, they pulled on the group's trademark balaclavas and began singing on the steps of the police station.
She said she and other members of Pussy Riot had been constantly followed since arriving in Sochi on Sunday. She said they spent several hours being questioned by security services on Monday, as the group attempted to plan a performance in the city. The Pussy Riot women said they had come to Sochi to record their new protest song, but were simply walking on the street in central Sochi when arrested. They were taken to a police station in Adler, not far from the Olympic Park.
As of early afternoon on Tuesday, Tolokonnikova had not yet been questioned, and said "nobody is telling us anything" about what will happen next. "We were simply walking around Sochi when they grabbed us," said Tolokonnikova by telephone from the police station during her detention. "They told us we are suspected of theft. Of course there has been no theft."
"We are in Sochi in order to carry out a Pussy Riot action," she tweeted shortly after being detained. "The song is called, Putin will teach you how to love the motherland." Tolokonnikova said she and other members of Pussy Riot had arrived in Sochi on Sunday evening, since when they have been constantly tailed. They had not previously made their presence in Sochi public, but began to live tweet their arrest on Tuesday, bringing a huge crowd of journalists to the police station in Adler.
Semyon Simonov, a local human rights activist who was also detained along with the group, said they had been accosted by police while walking along the street, and roughly bundled into a police van. The women arrived on Sunday night and were arrested immediately – supposedly to determine their identity, said Alexander Popkov, a lawyer for the women: "Then on Monday they were detained again and questioned for several hours. And then today, for supposed theft from the hotel. Which is being investigated by 12 specialist investigators."
"They told us that we were suspected of a theft," said Simonov from the police station where he was waiting to be questioned. He said no official charges had been made, but that the police told them the hotel where the Pussy Riot members were staying had reported them for theft. Eventually, the police decided to drop the charges, and five women including Tolokonnikova and Alyokhina pulled on brightly coloured balaclavas and ran down the steps, singing: 'Putin will teach you to love the motherland'.
Simonov said 10 people had been arrested, including David Khakim, who was on Monday sentenced to 30 hours of community service by a Sochi court for holding a one-man protest in support of Evgeny Vitishko, a jailed environmentalist. "Our authorities have this amazing ability to organise a scandal," said Popkov. "If they hadn't arrested them, there would have been none of this crazy media attention."
Vitishko has been sentenced to three years in prison for vandalising a fence, in a case that activists say is linked to his criticism of environmental violations during Olympic construction. Those arrested included David Khakim, who was yesterday sentenced to 30 hours of community service by a Sochi court for holding a one-man protest in support of Evgeny Vitishko, a jailed environmentalist. Vitishko has been sentenced to three years in prison for vandalising a fence, in a case that activists say is linked to his criticism of environmental violations during Olympic construction.
Tolokonnikova and Alekhina were released from prison at the end of last year, after serving most of a two-year sentence for "hooliganism motivated by religious hatred" for their punk performance in Moscow's main cathedral. They fell under a wide-ranging amnesty approved by Vladimir Putin that was seen as a way to boost Russia's image ahead of the Olympics. Tolokonnikova and Alyokhina were released from prison in December, after serving the majority of a two-year sentence for "hooliganism motivated by religious hatred" for their punk performance in Moscow's main cathedral. They fell under a wide-ranging amnesty approved by President Vladimir Putin that was seen as a way to boost Russia's image ahead of the Olympics.