 “The first sentence passed under a draconian anti-protest law in Russia has proved even more repressive than demanded by the prosecutor,” reported Halya Coynash of the Kharkiv Human Rights Protection Group on 8 December 2015. “Judge Natalya Dudar from Moscow’s notorious Basmanny Court has sentenced civic activist Ildar Dadin to three years imprisonment against the two years demanded.” This view from across the border in Ukraine continued: “Dadin is well-known to Ukrainians for his active support for Euromaidan, which is likely to have contributed to this appalling sentence. It is also probably part of a mounting crackdown on peaceful opposition to the current regime.” Halya Coynash’s report about the Kremlin’s first use of Article 212.1 is well worth reading, together with recent items, of course, on this website (see “Person of the Week” Weekly Update, 14 December 2015, 46 (188) ) A campaign for repeal How are activists in Russia, especially in Moscow with its post-Soviet tradition of large demonstrations, to fight against this new law now it has been applied for the first time? After all, any long-term campaign could mean their own arrest and prosecution. [Read more] |
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