Member Of Pussy Riot Protest Group Detained In Moscow

MOSCOW — A member of the Pussy Riot protest group has been detained for taking part in a protest performance in Moscow last week.

Maria Alyokhina, a member of the protest group, said on December 3 that police detained Rita Flores, also known as Margarita Konovalova, after she was taken to a Moscow hospital overnight to be treated for an unspecified illness.

According to Alyokhina, police charged Flores with repeatedly violating the law on public gatherings and remanded her in custody. Flores is expected to face trial later in the day.

On November 28, Flores, Alyokhina and artist Farkhad Israfilli-Gelman staged a protest performance called Fragile! Handle With Care! not far from the State History Museum near Red Square.

In the performance, two women in Russian national costumes tied Israfilli-Gelman, who was wearing riot-police uniform, to a light pole with packing tape.

The event highlighted several cases against protesters who received prison terms last year for throwing plastic cups and plastic bottles at police during dispersal of rallies in the Russian capital.

Police briefly detained Israfilli-Gelman on November 28 and Alyokhina on December 2. The two were charged with violating the law on public gatherings. Their trials are pending as well.