World News - punk-rock

30
Nov
2012
5:36am, EST
Russian court bans 'extremist' Pussy Riot video from websites
Sergei Karpukhin / Reuters
Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, Maria Alyokhina and Yekaterina Samutsevich of punk band Pussy Riot sit in a glass-walled cage during a court hearing in Moscow on August 17.
By Reuters
MOSCOW -- A Russian court ruled Thursday that video footage of the Pussy Riot punk group protesting against President Vladimir Putin in a church was "extremist" and should be removed from websites.
The demonstration last February offended many Russian Orthodox Christians. But Putin has been criticized by U.S. and European leaders over what they saw as disproportionate jail sentences imposed on three Pussy Riot members.
Their trial was also seen by Putin's critics as part of a clampdown on dissent.
'Mass disorder'
The Moscow court said it had based its ruling on conclusions by a panel of experts who studied the video, showing band members in colorful mini-skirts and ski masks dancing in front of the altar of Moscow's main Russian Orthodox cathedral.
Members of the band Pussy Riot, arrested in February after storming a Moscow cathedral, were sentenced to two years in jail Friday. Critics say the arrest was Putin's personal revenge, raising questions about justice in Russia. NBC's Duncan Golestani reports.
Judge Marina Musimovich said the footage "has elements of extremism; in particular there are words and actions which humiliate various social groups based on their religion." She said it also had calls for mutiny and "mass disorder."
The verdict said that free distribution of the video could ignite racial and religious hatred.
The court's ruling applies to other videos released by the band, including a performance in Moscow's Red Square, where calls for mass disorder could be heard. Such calls were not made inside the church.
The websites are now likely to be included in a state register and could be blocked if the banned content is not removed.
Protesters put head covers on sculptures in Norway to show their continued support of the jailed Russian punk rock group called "Pussy Riot." NBCNews.com's Dara Brown reports.
The Russian communications regulator Roskomnadzor said that once the court decision takes effect it will monitor how it is implemented.
Russian female punk rock protester moved to solo cell after tensions
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Three members of Pussy Riot convicted in August of hooliganism motivated by religious hatred for their "punk prayer," which the Russian Orthodox Church has cast as part of a concerted attack on the church and the faithful.
The women said the protest, in which they burst into Christ the Savior Cathedral and called on the Virgin Mary to rid Russia of Putin, was not motivated by hatred and was meant to mock the church leadership's support for the longtime leader.
Russian whistleblower dies in strange circumstances
Band members Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina are serving two-year jail sentences over the protest last February. A third member, Yekaterina Samutsevich, walked free last month when her sentence was suspended on appeal.
"To me this is a clear attribute of censorship -- censorship of art and censorship of culture, of the protest culture which is very important for any country, let alone for Russia," Samutsevich told reporters outside court.
Three female punk rockers are put on trial in Russia after taking over the pulpit at an Orthodox cathedral and performing a controversial song criticizing President Putin. NBCNews.com's Dara Brown reports.
"Now of course the fact that they will be blocking all Pussy Riot videos as I understand, all photos -- this is horrible. Naturally, I will lodge an appeal and I will try to do it today," she added.
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Putin, a former KGB officer who has cultivated close ties with the Orthodox church over 13 years in power, has rebuffed Western criticism about the prison terms meted out.
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Copyright 2013 Thomson Reuters. Click for restrictions.
38 comments
Sales of their music will rise. There is always an increase in support when a Government bans your music.
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Explore related topics: russia, kremlin, russian-orthodox, vladimir-putin, moscow, featured, punk-rock, pussy-riot
23
Nov
2012
11:13am, EST
Russian female punk rock protester moved to solo cell after tensions
By Reuters
MOSCOW -- Jailed Pussy Riot punk protester Maria Alyokhina has been moved to a single-person cell at her own request because of tensions with follow prisoners, Russia's federal penitentiary service said Friday.
Alyokhina, 24, is serving a two-year sentence for a raucous protest against President Vladimir Putin in Moscow's main Russian Orthodox cathedral. Activists said her trial, and that of two band mates, was part of a crackdown on dissent.
"Some tensions arose in relationships and, apparently to prevent this situation from escalating, she decided to submit a request to the prison leadership and they moved her to a one-person cell," a prison service spokeswoman told Reuters.
The spokeswoman dismissed Russian media reports Alyokhina argued with inmates over religion at the Ural Mountains prison about 715 miles northeast of Moscow. Pussy Riot's protest offended many members of Russia's Orthodox Church.
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The spokeswoman also said she had no information regarding a report on the tabloid-style Life News website that Alyokhina had received violent threats from cell mates, according to Reuters.
Alyokhina's main meal is taken to her cell and she is accompanied by a guard when she leaves it, the spokeswoman said.
Pussy Riot members sent to far-flung prisons, lawyer says
'Punk prayer'
Alyokhina and two band mates were convicted in August of hooliganism motivated by religious hatred for their "punk prayer," which the dominant Russian Orthodox Church has cast as part of a concerted attack on the church and the faithful.
The women said the protest, in which they burst into Christ the Saviour Cathedral and called on the Virgin Mary to rid Russia of Putin, was not motivated by hatred and was meant to mock the church leadership's support for the longtime leader.
Russia's Pussy Riot: Unmasked and on trial
Putin, a former KGB officer who has cultivated close ties with the church over 13 years in power, has rejected criticism from the United States and European leaders who called the two-year sentences disproportionate.
Complete World coverage on NBCNews.com
Alyokhina, who has a young son, argued with the judge and cross-examined witnesses during her trial.
Her band mate Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, 23, is serving her sentence in a different prison. Yekaterina Samutsevich, 30, was freed last month when a court suspended her sentence on appeal.
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7 comments
It would seem Putin lacks a sense of humor and feels threatened by a 24 year old punk rocker. That says a lot about his insecurities.
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Explore related topics: russia, putin, moscow, featured, punk-rock, pussy-riot
15
Aug
2012
6:29am, EDT
Pussy Riot supporters protest at Russian cathedral as global campaign heats up
Yevgeny Feldman / AFP - Getty Images
Supporters of Pussy Riot hold individual letters that spell the phrase "Blessed are the merciful" outside the Church of Christ the Savior in central Moscow on Wednesday.
By NBC News wire services
MOSCOW -- Security guards scuffled with masked protesters who demonstrated outside Moscow's main cathedral on Wednesday in support of three members of Pussy Riot, as a wave of global support for the Russian punk rockers gained speed.
Witnesses said 18 demonstrators in colorful balaclavas -- similar to those worn by the band members when they staged an irreverent protest at the same church -- mounted the steps of Moscow's Christ the Savior Cathedral and held up black cards with white letters spelling out the phrase, "Blessed are the merciful."

Guards moved swiftly to disperse the demonstrators and treated some of them roughly, Internet TV channel Dozhd reported. Pussy Riot supporters said on social media that at least two people had been detained.
A Moscow court is to issue a verdict on Friday following the trial of the three women who sang a "punk prayer" on the altar of Christ the Savior -- Moscow's main cathedral -- in February, calling on the Virgin Mary to rid Russia of Vladimir Putin, then prime minister and now president.
Prosecutors want the judge to convict Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, 22, Maria Alyokhina, 24, and Yekaterina Samutsevich, 30, of hooliganism motivated by religious hatred and sentence each to three years in prison.
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Putin has said the women should not be judged too harshly, but he risks appearing weak if they walk free.
Winning over hearts abroad
Since their arrests, the women have been vilified by the Russian state media -- while winning over hearts abroad.
Supporters of the band will mobilize this week in at least a two dozen cities worldwide to hold simultaneous demonstrations an hour before the court issues its verdict.
Russia's Pussy Riot: Unmasked and on trial
Calls for the women to be freed have come from a long list of celebrities such as Madonna and Bjork. Protests have been held in a number of Western capitals, including Berlin, where last week about 400 people joined Canadian electro-pop performance artist Peaches to support the band.
Three female punk rockers are put on trial in Russia after taking over the pulpit at an Orthodox cathedral and performing a controversial song criticizing President Putin. NBCNews.com's Dara Brown reports.
In one of the most extravagant displays, Reykjavik Mayor Jon Gnarr rode through the streets of the Icelandic capital in a Gay Pride parade this weekend dressed like a band member -- wearing a bright pink dress and matching balaclava -- while lip-synching to one of Pussy Riot's songs.
PhotoBlog: Pussy Riot fans wear balaclavas to rally behind band
Amnesty International has called the women prisoners of conscience and begun collecting signatures by text message for a petition to be sent to the Russian government, while the U.S. State Department has repeatedly expressed its concern.
Madonna donned a balaclava during a concert in Moscow last week and had "Pussy Riot" written on her bare back. Yoko Ono sent a personal message to Samutsevich, saying that "the power of your every word is now growing in us."
Pop star Madonna has joined the chorus of criticism over the trial of a Russian women's punk band accused of religious hatred. The three women face years in jail after mounting a protest against Vladimir Putin on the altar of the country's main cathedral. It's part of a widening government crackdown on dissent. ITV's Paul Davies reports.
A group of leading British musicians, including Pete Townshend of the Who and members of the Pet Shop Boys, published a letter in The Times of London ahead of Putin's visit during the Olympics to urge him to give the Pussy Riot members a fair hearing.
On Friday, activists in more than a dozen cities, from Moscow to Toronto, are expected to take to the streets at 2 p.m. Moscow time (4 a.m. ET), an hour before the judge is to issue the verdict. The protests are being coordinated by the defense lawyers.
Venues vary from the square outside the ornate Sagrada Familia Cathedral in Barcelona to the yard outside the Russian Embassy in London.
More Russia coverage from NBCNews.com
In Paris, the protest will be held on Stravinsky Square and led by 29-year-old Alexey Prokopyev from Russie-Libertés, a Paris-based organization formed in December to bring together Russians studying or working in France.
"Most people go to these rallies in Paris because we cannot be in Russia at the moment for various reasons -- because of jobs, classes," said Prokopyev, who was born in the Soviet Union and has spent most of the past 17 years in France. "We all wish we were in Moscow now, but since we can't we do it in Paris."
Russie-Libertés also is helping to organize rallies in Marseille, Nice, Lyons and Montpellier.
From March 2012: Anti-Putin activists pay high price, but refuse to back down
Prokopyev said that he and his peers "want Russia to be a normal country" and be able to elect a president "who doesn't make the country where we were born a laughingstock."
In New York, Friday's protest will take place outside the Russian Consulate and later on Times Square.
"It's absurd that this case is being treated as criminal, while in any other civilized country that would be merely an administrative offense," said Xenia Grubstein, a 31-year-old journalist helping to organize the New York protest.
'Serious problems' with vote that kept Putin in power, monitors say
A protest is also planned in Washington, where last month punk rockers and arts activists rallied outside the Russian Embassy.
'Putin's Russia'
In France, Culture Minister Aurelie Filippetti last week issued a statement expressing concern that artistic freedom was on trial.
Complete international news coverage on NBCNews.com
A German cross-party group of lawmakers sent a letter to the Russian ambassador calling the five months the band members have spent in custody and the possible prison terms "draconian and disproportionate" punishment.
The international press has been full of critical reports from the trial. One of Germany's most influential magazines, Der Spiegel, featured the band on its cover: a picture of Tolokonnikova behind bars and the headline "Putin's Russia."
The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
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15 comments
Just remember that Putin is Ex-KGB but not that "EX". He has continued to be a thug and always will be. Want a reason not to travel to Russia...its things like this that remind us that the country is still a strongly communist state and your innocent acts could put you in the gulag.
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Explore related topics: russia, putin, russian-orthodox, moscow, featured, punk-rock, medvedev, pussy-riot