"Pussy Riot" members appeal to ECtHR to challenge law enforcers' refusal to investigate attack in Sochi

In their complaint filed to the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), members of the "Pussy Riot" punk group have stated that the law enforcement agencies violated the right to freedom of speech and fair trial when they refused to institute a criminal case against Cossacks, who allegedly attacked the "Pussy Riot" members in Sochi.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on February 19, the "Pussy Riot" members and members of "War" art group claimed that in Sochi, they were attacked by Cossacks, who sprayed tear gas and beaten them with whips, when they tried to shoot a video. According to a source in the medical community of Sochi, doctors recorded no injuries on the bodies of the "Pussy Riot" members. The law enforcement agencies refused to institute a criminal case on the attack.

The complaint to the ECtHR was filed on behalf of "Pussy Riot" members Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyoekhina, Krasnodar artist Lusine Djanyan, public activist Alexei Nekrasov, and Pyotr Verzilov, the husband of Nadezhda Tolokonnikova.

The complaint emphasizes that all the attackers have been identified. According to the complainants, the actions of the Cossacks were politically motivated, and the police did everything not to investigate the incident. At the ECtHR, the complainants are represented by lawyers of the "Agora" Association, the "Vedomosti" reported on May 24 with reference to Pavel Chikov, the head of the "Agora" Association.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.