SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
To donate by check, phone, or other method, see our More Ways to Give page.
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
Polling station officials clash with topless members of Ukrainian feminist group FEMEN members at a polling station in Moscow on Sunday, March 4, 2012. Written on the bodies of the anti-Putin women is the slogan "I steal for Putin", referring to their symbolic act of trying to steal a ballot box. (Misha Japaridze)
Activists from the Ukrainian feminist group FEMEN were arrested while protesting at a Moscow polling place just minutes after Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin cast his ballot Sunday afternoon.
The women had "I steal for Putin" written on their chests and shouted "Putin is a thief!", accusing him of rigging the vote, allegations widely repeated by Putin's critics during the campaign.
Earlier today, a Russian court ordered the 3 women to be held under arrest for up to 12 days. Upon their release the women will be expelled from the country.
* * *
The Wall Street Journal reports:
Naked theft. That appeared to be the message a group of women's rights activists were trying to convey Sunday in protesting Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's attempt to return to the Kremlin for a third term.
FEMEN, which made its name campaigning against sex tourism in Ukraine, has made bare-breasted protest its trademark ("We came, we undressed, we conquered" is its mission statement). It has demonstrated in the past against gas monopoly Gazprom's "gas blackmail," against former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's alleged links with prostitution and against the re-election of Alexander Lukashenko as president of Belarus in a vote that was widely criticized as being rigged.
Russian television had given FEMEN's protest against Lukashenko extensive coverage at the time. With a pleasing symmetry, Sunday's FEMEN operation was documented in loving detail by Belarusian TV.
* * *
The Russian Legal Information Agency reports:
The Gagarinsky District Court of Moscow upheld on Monday the administrative arrest ranging from five to twelve days of the Ukrainian FEMEN movement activists, who were detained for stripping at a Moscow polling station on Sunday, lawyer Violetta Volkova told.
The incident occurred at a polling station at the Russian Academy of Sciences where presidential candidate Vladimir Putin voted. Three FEMEN activists stripped to the waist and chanted anti-governmental slogans.
* * *
# # #
Donald Trump’s attacks on democracy, justice, and a free press are escalating — putting everything we stand for at risk. We believe a better world is possible, but we can’t get there without your support. Common Dreams stands apart. We answer only to you — our readers, activists, and changemakers — not to billionaires or corporations. Our independence allows us to cover the vital stories that others won’t, spotlighting movements for peace, equality, and human rights. Right now, our work faces unprecedented challenges. Misinformation is spreading, journalists are under attack, and financial pressures are mounting. As a reader-supported, nonprofit newsroom, your support is crucial to keep this journalism alive. Whatever you can give — $10, $25, or $100 — helps us stay strong and responsive when the world needs us most. Together, we’ll continue to build the independent, courageous journalism our movement relies on. Thank you for being part of this community. |
Activists from the Ukrainian feminist group FEMEN were arrested while protesting at a Moscow polling place just minutes after Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin cast his ballot Sunday afternoon.
The women had "I steal for Putin" written on their chests and shouted "Putin is a thief!", accusing him of rigging the vote, allegations widely repeated by Putin's critics during the campaign.
Earlier today, a Russian court ordered the 3 women to be held under arrest for up to 12 days. Upon their release the women will be expelled from the country.
* * *
The Wall Street Journal reports:
Naked theft. That appeared to be the message a group of women's rights activists were trying to convey Sunday in protesting Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's attempt to return to the Kremlin for a third term.
FEMEN, which made its name campaigning against sex tourism in Ukraine, has made bare-breasted protest its trademark ("We came, we undressed, we conquered" is its mission statement). It has demonstrated in the past against gas monopoly Gazprom's "gas blackmail," against former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's alleged links with prostitution and against the re-election of Alexander Lukashenko as president of Belarus in a vote that was widely criticized as being rigged.
Russian television had given FEMEN's protest against Lukashenko extensive coverage at the time. With a pleasing symmetry, Sunday's FEMEN operation was documented in loving detail by Belarusian TV.
* * *
The Russian Legal Information Agency reports:
The Gagarinsky District Court of Moscow upheld on Monday the administrative arrest ranging from five to twelve days of the Ukrainian FEMEN movement activists, who were detained for stripping at a Moscow polling station on Sunday, lawyer Violetta Volkova told.
The incident occurred at a polling station at the Russian Academy of Sciences where presidential candidate Vladimir Putin voted. Three FEMEN activists stripped to the waist and chanted anti-governmental slogans.
* * *
# # #
Activists from the Ukrainian feminist group FEMEN were arrested while protesting at a Moscow polling place just minutes after Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin cast his ballot Sunday afternoon.
The women had "I steal for Putin" written on their chests and shouted "Putin is a thief!", accusing him of rigging the vote, allegations widely repeated by Putin's critics during the campaign.
Earlier today, a Russian court ordered the 3 women to be held under arrest for up to 12 days. Upon their release the women will be expelled from the country.
* * *
The Wall Street Journal reports:
Naked theft. That appeared to be the message a group of women's rights activists were trying to convey Sunday in protesting Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's attempt to return to the Kremlin for a third term.
FEMEN, which made its name campaigning against sex tourism in Ukraine, has made bare-breasted protest its trademark ("We came, we undressed, we conquered" is its mission statement). It has demonstrated in the past against gas monopoly Gazprom's "gas blackmail," against former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's alleged links with prostitution and against the re-election of Alexander Lukashenko as president of Belarus in a vote that was widely criticized as being rigged.
Russian television had given FEMEN's protest against Lukashenko extensive coverage at the time. With a pleasing symmetry, Sunday's FEMEN operation was documented in loving detail by Belarusian TV.
* * *
The Russian Legal Information Agency reports:
The Gagarinsky District Court of Moscow upheld on Monday the administrative arrest ranging from five to twelve days of the Ukrainian FEMEN movement activists, who were detained for stripping at a Moscow polling station on Sunday, lawyer Violetta Volkova told.
The incident occurred at a polling station at the Russian Academy of Sciences where presidential candidate Vladimir Putin voted. Three FEMEN activists stripped to the waist and chanted anti-governmental slogans.
* * *
# # #