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Nadya Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina were sent to remote Soviet-era prison camps to serve their two-year sentence for performing a "punk-prayer" against Russian president Vladimir Putin inside the country's main Orthodox cathedral in Moscow.
Two members of Russian feminist punk band Pussy Riot were shipped to remote Soviet-era prison camps on Monday, reports Agence France-Presse. Nadya Tolokonnikova, Maria Alyokhina, and Yekaterina Samutsevich were sentenced in August to two years in prison for "hooliganism" after performing a "punk-prayer" protest inside Russia's main Orthodox cathedral in Moscow. While all three were convicted, a Russian appeals court earlier this month upheld the sentencing against Tolokonnikova and Alyokhina, but unexpectedly released Samutsevich — a move many supporters believe was an attempt to separate the tightly knit band members.
Tolokonnikova was sent to a prison camp in Mordovia, and Alyokhina was send to another Soviet-era camp in Perm, the band's defense attorney told AFP.
A Twitter account belonging to the band yesterday tweeted confirmation that the women were on a weekend flight to their respective labor camps. "This is the most brutal camps of all possible options," reads a translation of the latest tweet.
According to The Hollywood Reporter,the camps now hosting the women are among the harshest Soviet-era prison camps in the country, "generally reserved for dangerous and political criminals."
<p>Sunnivie is an award-winning journalist and the managing editor at <em>The Advocate</em>. A proud spouse and puppy-parent, Sunnivie strives to queer up the world of reporting while covering the politics of equality daily.</p>
<p>Sunnivie is an award-winning journalist and the managing editor at <em>The Advocate</em>. A proud spouse and puppy-parent, Sunnivie strives to queer up the world of reporting while covering the politics of equality daily.</p>
