Russia
amnesty could free Pussy Riot, benefit Greenpeace activists
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[December 10, 2013]
MOSCOW (Reuters) — Two members of
punk protest band Pussy Riot could be freed from prison and 30 people
arrested in a Greenpeace protest could avoid jail under an amnesty
proposed by Russian President Vladimir Putin, lawyers said on Tuesday.
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Putin plans the amnesty this month to mark the anniversary of the
adoption of Russia's post-Communist constitution in 1993.
According to a draft text on the lower house of parliament's
website, people convicted of hooliganism will be released under the
amnesty. This is the charge on which Pussy Riot's Nadezhda
Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina are serving two-year jail terms
for a protest against Putin in a cathedral.
"I very much hope so," Irina Khrunova, a lawyer for Tolokonnikova,
said when asked whether she believed her client — due for release in
March — would be free by January 1. "If the prison authorities drag
this out, we will take measures."
Tolokonnikova, 24, and Alyokhina, 25, also appear to be eligible for
release as mothers of young children. Khrunova said both women would
qualify if parliament, which is dominated by a party loyal to Putin,
approves the draft amnesty.
Thirty people arrested after a Greenpeace protest at an offshore oil
platform in the Arctic in September are also charged with
hooliganism, punishable by up to seven years in prison. All 30 have
been released on bail but still face trial. Mikhail Fedotov, head
of a Kremlin advisory council on human rights, said he thought those
arrested in the Greenpeace protest would be eligible for amnesty. A
lower house official who declined to be named also said he believed
they would qualify.
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Russia's record on human rights is in the spotlight as the country
prepares to host the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi in February.
Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has indicated that former oil tycoon
Mikhail Khodorkovsky will not be freed under the amnesty.
Khodorkovsky was arrested in 2003 and later convicted of financial
crimes.
(Reporting by Maria Tsvetkova; writing by Steve Gutterman;
editing
by Timothy Heritage)
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