Feminist Activists Targeted for Anti-War Protests as Russia Escalates Crackdown on Dissent.
In a stark escalation of Russia’s crackdown on dissent, a Moscow court has sentenced five exiled members of the feminist protest collective Pussy Riot to prison terms of up to 13 years in absentia for their anti-war activism.
The Basmanny District Court convicted Maria Alyokhina, Taso Pletner, Olga Borisova, Diana Burkot, and Alina Petrova under Article 207.3 of the Russian Criminal Code, which criminalises spreading “false information” about the military.
The charges stem from two provocative acts: a 2022 music video titled “Mama, Don’t Watch TV” that accused Russian forces of killing Ukrainian civilians, and a 2024 performance in Munich where Pletner urinated on a portrait of Vladimir Putin while denouncing the invasion of Ukraine.
Alyokhina, the most prominent member who famously escaped Russia in 2022 disguised as a food courier, received the harshest sentence of 13 years.
The verdict underscores Russia’s widening repression, coinciding with recent laws that even penalise searching online for “extremist” content.
