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Russia: Punks in Church

July 20, 2012

Feminist punk-rockers called on the Virgin Mary to chase Putin out. Now they are in jail.

https://p.dw.com/p/15buj
ITAR-TASS: MOSCOW, RUSSIA. FEBRUARY 21, 2012. Masked members of Pussy Riot feminist punk group perform during their 'flashmob'-style protest inside Moscow's Cathedral of Christ the Savior. The girls were marched by guards out of the cathedral. (Photo ITAR-TASS/ Mitya Aleshkovsky)
Image: picture-alliance/dpa

Members of the Pussy Rock collective held a surprise performance in the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in February. Three women alleged to have taken part were arrested and have been refused bail. They are to be tried on hooliganism charges because of their critical intervention, pointing out the close ties between the Kremlin and the Russian Orthodox Church. The affair is causing quite a stir as it addresses many issues troubling Russia. Human rights activists are furious at what they consider a political trial.

From left, Yekaterina Samutsevich, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, Maria Alekhina, members of feminist punk group Pussy Riot sit behind bars at a court room in Moscow, Russia, Friday, July 20, 2012. The trial of feminist punk rockers who chanted a "punk prayer" against President Vladimir Putin from a pulpit inside Russia's largest cathedral started in Moscow on Friday amid controversy over the prank that divided devout believers, Kremlin critics and ordinary Russians. (AP Photo/Misha Japaridze)
Image: AP