Sunday, July 28, 2013

Three Women Activists Fined by Court in Ukraine; Women Arrested While Parading Naked in Kiev

A court in Kiev, Ukraine fined three activists of Femen -- the Ukrainian feminist organization known for its bare-breasted protests -- and a Russian photojournalist today (July 28, 2013), and released them following their arrest yesterday, according to the New York Times website.

Femen said that the women had been beaten and kidnapped when they were arrested and that they had been targeted by Ukraine's security service -- the SBU -- to prevent protests during a visit to Kiev by President Vladimir Putin of Russia and Patriarch Kirill of the Russian Orthodox Church, who have been accosted by Femen members in the past. President Putin and Patriarch Kirill came to Kiev this weekend to take part in the 1025th anniversary celebration of the Russian Orthodox Church.

Police said the three women -- Oksana Shachko, Alexandra Shevchenko, and Yana Zhdanova -- were detained by a patrol car after officers spotted them naked and arrested them for "petty hooliganism" after they failed to cover up. The photojournalist, Dmitry Kostyukov, was accused of disobeying police orders.

Today's fines were relatively small -- the equivalent of about $10.50 for each woman and just over $16.70 for Kostyukov, the Interfax-Ukraine news agency reported.                                  

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