Photo: Christian Charisius/Corbis.No sooner did the Olympic torch extinguish did Russia revert back to the police state that dominated headlines pre-Sochi. Putinist media glossed over the breaking situation reporting that a group of "aggressively minded people" outside of Manezh Square stood in solidarity with the Bolotnaya defendants. Among these "aggressively minded people" were the former Pussy Riot members Maria Alyokhina and Nadya Tolokonnikova.
These two women were among a slew of protesters arrested in Moscow. This is the second arrest for the former punk band members, and another major news headline under their belts. Just last week, a video surfaced showing Alyokhina and Tolokonnikova being whipped by Russian police for performing their anti-Putin music. The Daily Beast reported that Tolokonnikova tweeted a picture from inside the detainee van explaining that a "[s]eminar on the rights of detainees" was being held inside.
A friend of TDB's Michael Weiss e-mailed him from the scene saying no charges have officially been filed, but predicted that "everybody arrested with me may be charged for disobedience and face 15 days in jail." What happens next is anybody's guess. The big Games might be over, but a new game of Olympic proportions between the public and Putin has only just begun. (The Daily Beast)
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