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As reported earlier, the amnesty bill that would free the members of Pussy Riot, as well as 30 Greenpeace activists was passed yesterday. And so, much to the chagrin of President Vladimir Putin (who expressed no regret over their imprisonment), Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina have been freed from prison, three months before their scheduled release.
The punk band was arrested on February 2012 for performing “Punk Prayer: Mother of God Drive Putin Away” inside Moscow’s Christ the Saviour Cathedralon, and were consequently charged with “hooliganism motivated by religious hatred or hostility.” The third member, Yekaterina Samutsevich, was able to appeal her sentence in October 2012, but Tolokonnikova and Alyokhina remained in prison. The Russian amnesty law that freed the remaining members states that prisoners “who haven’t committed violent crimes, first-time offenders, minors and women with small children” are granted amnesty from their imprisonment.
All of the feels for Pussy Riot.
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(Stashed)
