Ildar Dadin, a Russian activist, to be released from prison
Russia and many other countries have seen actions staged in support of Ildar Dadin, sentenced to three years of hard labor under the Russian penal code article ‘’Numerous cases of violation of holding public events’’.
In Moscow, the action supporting Ildar Dadin was sanctioned with the authorities and was attended by several dozens of people. Anastasia Zotova, Dadin’s fiancée, said that the action was held also in support of the Constitution and in support of political prisoners.
Pickets and other public actions supporting Dadin have been held at one of Moscow’s metro stations and in other places. One of the demands has been in upholding the Russian Constitution, especially Article 31, which confirms the right to freedom of speech.
The protest action participants supported political prisoners, demanded their release from prisons and condemned the ongoing practices of Russian courts and prosecutor’s offices.
The Facebook has also informed about similar actions staged in Saint Petersburg, Nizhny Novgorod, Ekaterinburg, Kiev, Washington, Berlin, New York, Paris and other cities.
Ildar Dadin has become the first person in Russia, having been sentenced to a long prison term allegedly for violation of public actions holding rules and has been sentenced to a three year long imprisonment for the so called ‘’lone’’ pickets, which don’t demand any coordination with the authorities. In addition to Dadin, three more activists have also been accused under the same article of the Russian penal code: Mark Galperin, Irina Kalmykova, and Vladimir Ionov. The latter two are outside of Russia now, and Galperin’s case is now under investigation.