A Russian protest art collective based in Moscow became an icon for the tentative resistance to the ‘Putin regime’. Founded in 2011, it has a varying membership of about 11 women, who see Putin as a dictator and also denounce his strong ties to the Russian Orthodox Church. Their name “Pussy Riot” became known worldwide when they staged a punk performance against Putin at the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in Moscow on February 21, 2012. On Sunday, the systemically critical punk band will give their only concert in Austria, in the quiet Tyrolean market town of St. Johann in the Kitzbühel district of nearly 10,000 inhabitants.
Two band members, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina, were imprisoned for two years. In 2021, shortly before the Duma elections, the arrests of members of the collective came to a head. A number of those who have fled, who have remained in Russia, are under house arrest, fined or imprisoned. As reported, one of them, Maria Alyokhina, managed to escape from Russia despite house arrest. On Friday, the “Pussy Riot Anti-War Europe Tour” started in Berlin, which mainly focuses on the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine.
“I removed the electronic anklet with scissors”
In an interview with the “Tiroler Krone” she talks about these turbulent days of her escape: “I decided to do the tour. We planned it in November, but I was already working on my second load. I was sentenced to a year prison sentence, of which I had already been under the strictest house arrest for seven months. I was not allowed to stray a meter from my apartment, plus 90 days in a real prison. Then my sentence was extended from one year to one and a half. At that moment I thought: I have had enough time in jail I decided to go on this tour I removed the electronic ankle bracelet with scissors.
We got the suit from the internet, my apartment was surrounded by police officers. So I had to go through the back door in the supplier’s uniform. I left my phone at home. At that time it was important for me to clarify my opinion about Ukraine. As loud as possible and we do that in the 19 stations of our Riot Days – Europe Tour in the old tannery in St. Johann.”
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
