<
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/05/04/russia-just-took-big-step-back-toward-soviet-union/>
"Last week, for the first time since the Soviet era, the Kremlin officially
classified opposition to its rule as a criminal offense. In a decision harking
back to the infamous Article 70 of Soviet Russia’s criminal code that penalized
“anti-Soviet agitation and propaganda” — and that landed prominent dissidents,
from Vladimir Bukovsky to Yuri Orlov, in prisons and labor camps — Moscow
prosecutors suspended the activities of the nationwide organization of Alexei
Navalny, Vladimir Putin’s most prominent opponent. Navalny is currently
incarcerated in a prison camp after surviving a state-sponsored assassination
attempt last year.
“Under the guise of liberal slogans these organizations are creating conditions
for destabilizing the social and political situation,” read a statement from
the Moscow prosecutor’s office. “Their actual goal is to change the
constitutional order, including through a ‘color revolution’ scenario.” (“Color
revolutions” refer to popular uprisings that toppled authoritarian regimes in
many post-Soviet states, including Ukraine and Georgia.) Prosecutors requested
that the Moscow City Court designate three organizations linked to the
opposition leader — the Navalny Headquarters, the Anti-Corruption Foundation
and the Foundation for the Protection of Citizens Rights — as “extremist.” The
court hearing is scheduled for May 17, but everyone already knows the outcome."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
