Amnesty International said it believed that the trial of the Pussy Riot defendants – Maria Alekhina, Ekaterina Samutsevich and Nadezhda Tolokonnikova – was politically motivated, and that they were wrongfully prosecuted for what was a legitimate – if potentially offensive – protest action.
The organization considers all three activists to be prisoners of conscience, detained solely for the peaceful expression of their beliefs.
“The Russian authorities should release the members of Pussy Riot immediately and unconditionally,” said John Dalhuisen, Director of Amnesty International's Europe and Central Asia Programme.
“A number of measures restricting the freedom of expression and association have been introduced in response to the wave of protest that accompanied the recent parliamentary and presidential elections. This trial is another example of the Kremlin’s attempts to discourage and delegitimize dissent. It is likely to backfire.”
Pussy Riot performed the protest song “Virgin Mary, redeem us from Putin” in Christ the Saviour Cathedral in Moscow on 21 February, with the group members covering their faces in balaclavas.
The song called on the Virgin Mary to become a feminist and banish Vladimir Putin. It also criticized the dedication and support shown to Putin by some Russian Orthodox Church representatives. It was one of a number of performances intended as a protest against Vladimir Putin in the run-up to Russia’s presidential elections in March.
The Russian authorities subsequently arrested Maria Alekhina and Nadezhda Tolokonnikova on 4 March, and Ekaterina Samutsevich on 15 March, claiming they were the masked singers.
The Pussy Riot trial started on 30 July in Moscow's Khamovnicheskii District Court and was over in eight days. The judge dismissed most of the defence team’s requests to call up witnesses. There were concerns that fair trial standards might have been violated.
