Today, 25th October, marks the tenth anniversary of the arrest of Mikhail Borisovich Khodorkovsky, now Russia's most famous political prisoner. A short while ago, Ben Judah wrote to him asking about the circumstances of his imprisonment, and how that experience has changed him. This is what he sai
In another report from her recent visit to the Vyatlag prison complex in central Russia, Ekaterina Loushnilova is entertained by some of the camp's nurses. They share with her not only cranberry liqueur and pickled mushrooms, but also their vivid experiences of camp life.
The judgment in the Berezovsky vs Abramovich case was a long time coming. Berezovsky lost comprehensively, but Abramovich would do well to consider carefully whether his victory was actually worth winning, says Vladimir Pastukhov
The murder of the lawyer Sergei Magnitsky in 2009 looks likely to trigger legislation in the United States which strikes at the heart of Russia’s corrupt elite. Bill Browder, founder of the Hermitage Fund, moving spirit behind the impending Magnitsky Act, tells the story.
On 10th July a Moscow court extended the pre-trial detention of three members of feminist punk rock band Pussy Riot, charged with hooliganism after they performed a ‘blasphemous’ and anti-Putin song in the city’s main cathedral in February. Vladimir Pastukhov believes there is much the case tells
Vladimir Putin’s swearing-in as President last week was accompanied by protest rallies that were brutally broken up by police, and their organisers imprisoned. But as the Occupy Abay sit-in and organised ‘strolls’ through the centre of Moscow have shown, protesters are gaining confidence and adopt
Following the UK government’s bungled attempt to deport Abu Qatada, many Tory MPs have taken to heavy criticism of the European Court of Human Rights. While their rhetoric may please parts of the domestic audience, it risks damaging the very serious and substantial human rights work the Court is d
Vladimir Putin may have won Sunday’s presidential election, but his new term is unlikely to be an easy one. Russia has changed: the middle classes surf the Internet, compare themselves not to their parents but to their contemporaries in the rest of Europe, and demand change. Meanwhile, writes Andr
Politician-blogger Alexei Navalny and writer Grigory Chkhartishvili (a.k.a Boris Akunin) conclude their dialogue with an exploration of what their country might look like after democratic change. What should be the priorities for a new and free Russia?
Life for ex-prisoners is not easy in any country in the world, but there are so few opportunities in provincial Russia that it is hardly surprising a high percentage of the prison population in the Orenburg region are habitual re-offenders, says Elena Strelnikova
Formal hostilities may have ceased in Chechnya, but civilians continue to be abducted, tortured and murdered by the authorities in the region. Igor Kalyapin, head of the Committee Against Torture, talks to Svetlana Reiter about the remarkable and dangerous work being done to seek justice for the v
For many in Russia the word ‘Strasbourg’ is identified with justice and the protection of human rights and the European Court receives thousands of applications every year. But recent proposed amendments to Russian laws would make the process of applying to Strasbourg more complicated and give the
