Russia: Pussy Riot members 'deprived of sleep and food' during trial

[cali]

Three members of the feminist punk band Pussy Riot have been deprived of sleep and food by the Russian authorities, according to their lawyers, during a trial that critics say is part of a campaign to discredit the vociferous critics of the president, Vladimir Putin.

One of the women needed medical attention in court on the third day of a trial over the "punk prayer" the Pussy Riot band performed against Putin on the altar of Moscow's main cathedral in February.

Opponents say the trial is politically motivated and part of an attempt by Putin to silence the opposition, which has in the past eight months organised the biggest protests since he first rose to power in 2000.

A day after the opposition leader, Alexei Navalny, was charged with theft, federal investigators also suggested a fellow protest organiser, Gennady Gudkov, who is a member of the State Duma, Russia's lower house of parliament, had been involved in illegal business activity.

<snip>

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/aug/01/pussy-riot-sleep-food-trial

[redgreenandblue]

1. I can't help but think "Bradley Manning". It's happening in the states as well.

Not that this an excuse. Putin can rot in hell as far as I'm concerned.

[cali]

2. I don't think that's an accurate comparison

The members of Pussy Riot staged a protest. Manning leaked classified material while a member of the U.S. military. Although I have great concern for his treatment, his actions were entirely different from those of Pussy Riot.

[redgreenandblue]

3. Arguably, both are first ammendment issues.

The actions of Manning could be seen as covered by "freedom of press", since the revealed documents did in fact contain evidence of criminal activities.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

6. Also arguably, neither is a first amendment issue

The Russian government probably does not limit its powers based on amendments to the U.S. constitution. I don't know what the first amendment to the Russian contitution says, but it probably does not protect freedom of speech/press/religion.

Manning gave up certain rights when he swore the oath at enlistment in the Army. He was also certainly instructed in the Uniform Code of Military Justice as it pertains to security clearances and the handling of secure documents. Also, if some documents contained evidence of criminal activities, Manning could not have known that. He was simply dumping mass quantities of documents. No one person could have read all that prior to forwarding the files to Assange. If "first amendment" is his defense, he's screwed. "Insanity" or something related may be his only out.

[JVS]

4. When it comes to improper treatment of suspects, the alleged actions of the suspect are immaterial.

"We only violated his human rights because we thought he'd done something really bad" is not a valid defense for the jailers.

[HopeHoops]

5. What about sex? If you're going to name your band "Pussy Riot", I assume sex factor in somewhere.