Royal Court plans Pussy Riot readings on day of trial verdict

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Source: Guardian

The Royal Court in London will stage verbatim readings of testimony given by members of Pussy Riot in their trial on the morning that the verdict is due to be delivered.

Proposed by the playwright EV Crowe, the event will be part of a global day of action called for by the families and defence lawyers of the three bandmates Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, Maria Alekhina and Yekaterina Samutsevich.

The women were arrested in March over a protest at a Moscow cathedral against the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, and charged with hooliganism motivated by religious hatred. The verdict is due at 3pm local time on Friday.

An hour before, at 11am BST, British actors will take to a small stage in the Royal Court's cafe bar to deliver rehearsed readings of the testimony, translated from Russian by Sasha Dugdale who has been following live feeds from the trial. She described their words as "extraordinary, poetic, full of passion and innocence".

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Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2012/aug/13/royal-court-pussy-riot-readings

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1. Pussy Riot Closing Statements

http://nplusonemag.com/pussy-riot-closing-statements

On August 8th, the three members of Russian feminist punk band Pussy Riot delivered their closing statements at the Moscow Khamovniki District Court. Charged with “hooliganism motivated by religious hatred,” Maria Alyokhina, Yekaterina Samutsevich, and Nadezhda Tolokonnikova were first arrested on March 3, a day before the controversial re-election of Vladimir Putin. Meanwhile, they had committed their crime on February 21, when five members of Pussy Riot staged a guerrilla performance on the altar of the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in Moscow. For less than a minute, the women danced, singing “Our Lady, Chase Putin Out!” and crossing themselves until they were apprehended by security guards. If found guilty, they face three years in prison.

In a country that was willing to sic its secular court on a “religious” cause, Pussy Riot are true revolutionaries. Nonetheless, it was not until they delivered these closing statements that their supporters—and opponents—heard what these three brave women stand for. Although they are being crushed in the jaws of the system—and know it!—their courage and steadfast sincerity are sufficient cause for (impossible) hope. If not for the Russian state, then at least for the Russian people.

—Bela Shayevich

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The three statements are at the link and they are worth reading.

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3. kicking because it was temporarily locked. nt