“The Russian government continues to bring charges against the protesters of four years ago in an attempt to intimidate its critics into silence and discourage civic activism.”
This statement was originally published on freedomhouse.org on 6 May 2016.
On the fourth anniversary of the Bolotnaya Square protests in Moscow, when tens of thousands of Russians protested the election results that gave Vladimir Putin a third term as president, Freedom House issued the following statement:
“The Bolotnaya Square protests marked the beginning of both a new presidential term for Putin and the harshest crackdowns on civil society since the end of the Soviet Union,” said Robert Herman, vice president for international programs. “The Russian government continues to bring charges against the protestors of four years ago in an attempt to intimidate its critics into silence and discourage civic activism.”
Russia is rated Not Free in Freedom in the World 2016, Not Free in Freedom of the Press 2016, and Not Free in Freedom on the Net 2015.
