Freedom of speech - alive and well in Russia

[jimnyc]

I think their actions were disgusting and in poor taste, and I don't think they should be doing any form of protest in a church, and certainly not uninvited. But prison time? A bit much I think! Perhaps a fine to each gal and some probation would have been sufficient. But even if they did want to jail them to make a point... Hell, I would have thought 15-30 days would have been way too much. but 2 years!!??

Russian court imprisons Pussy Riot band members on hooliganism charges

Three members of Russian female punk rock band Pussy Riot were sentenced to two years in prison Friday after they were found guilty of hooliganism for performing a song critical of President Vladimir Putin in a church.

The five months they have spent in detention since their arrests in March count toward the sentence, Judge Marina Sirovaya said.

The judge said the charges against the three young women -- Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, Maria Alyokhina and Yekaterina Samutsevich -- had been proved by witnesses and the facts.

The Pussy Riot members were charged after screaming, "Mother Mary, please drive Putin away," in a protest act in February inside Christ Savior Cathedral, one of Moscow's grandest houses of worship.

Punk bands perform in support of jailed rockers

Sirovaya rejected the women's defense that they were acting from political motives, ruling that they had intended to insult the Russian Orthodox Church and undermine public order.

However, the fact that two of them have young children was a mitigating factor in the sentencing, the judge said.

The defendants were accused of offending the churchgoers present -- through their actions, obscene language and their clothing -- and showing a lack of respect for the rules of the Orthodox Church. They ignored requests to stop their brief unscheduled protest performance, the court heard.

While their actions outraged many of Russia's faithful, their high-profile trial prompted international concern about freedom of speech in Russia.

http://articles.cnn.com/2012-08-17/w...-russian-court

[Said1]

Wow. Two years, that's a little harsh. Talk about Law and Order.

[aboutime]

Maybe Americans who hate America, the Constitution, and only want the 1st amendment to apply to WHAT THEY WANT, should just give up their American citizenship, and move to Moscow.

If what they are doing there...in the so-called name of Freedom (of any kind) is what you want here in the USA.

Go over there and enjoy. I'll stick with the Law, and Freedom of Speech that doesn't put me in jail, anytime.