Arrested by border police at Moscow’s airport before boarding a flight to Geneva, LGBT activist Nikolai Alekseev, who managed to text colleagues about his apprehension before his phone was confiscated, has so far disappeared into the ether, with Russian authorities refusing to comment on why he was taken into custody or where he is.
tallskin2
God’s teeth! Russia really is becoming a state with no laws.
paulcanning
He’s in Minsk http://madikazemi.blogspot.com/2010/09/russian-lgbt-leader-exiled-to-minsk.html
Dan
The central government of the Russian Federation is as corrupt as it was when it was the Soviet Union. The FSB is the KGB under a different name, and back in July of this year the central government (which controls all broadcast media) restored all the corrupt power back into the FSB (any interfering with FSB officials lands you in prison automatically for 15 days, even if the FSB officials are commiting blatant crimes when you “interfere” with them). It is pathetic. The Russian Federation is going to break apart again and more regions will flee, just like it happened before when so many republics in the federation declared their independence. Heck, even rudimentary human rights – like freedom of peaceful assembly, and freedom of religion (to be something other than Russian Orthodox) are not protected in practice, making the Russian constitution one giant sad joke.
L.
It’s a scary indictment of today’s Russia that a gay man would be deemed safer in *Bielorussia*, of all places – the closest Europe has to its own North Korea.
I hope he’ll be well and truly safe soon.
Lyndon Evans
You’ll find full expanded coverage on the disappearance of Nikolai Alekseev using a variety of sources at “Focus On The Rainbow”.
http://focusontherainbowopine.outloudblogs.com/2010/09/16/russian-activist-nikolai-alekeev-arrested-by-fsb-formally-kgb-at-moscow-airport/
Paul
more thuggery from the putin’s regime
tallskin2
I’ve just found out that, apparently, there is a huge power struggle going on between the vile, homophobic mayor of moscow and the Russian president, Medvedev.
The president is attempting to force the mayor out.
“Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has made no secret of his desire to get rid of Moscow’s strong-willed mayor, Yuri Luzhkov. The power struggle is threatening to split the pro-Kremlin United Russia party and could leave Medvedev with egg on his face.
Yuri Luzhkov, who has been Moscow’s mayor for the last 18 years, looked like he was in a good mood. During a reception not far from the Kremlin on Monday evening of last week, he was even singing revolutionary songs. He also seemed relaxed as he chatted with Emergencies Minister Sergei Shoigu, the man who some consider to be Luzhkov’s possible successor.
But the guests seated at the surrounding tables were gossiping about how the once omnipotent Luzhkov, whose current term in office is supposed to extend until 2011 at least, could now be facing a worst-case scenario: He might be removed from his post by Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, who has the power to appoint governors. The guests also talked about how there might even be a show trial on corruption charges that could implicate Luzhkov’s wife, Yelena Baturina, whose estimated fortune of €2 billion ($2.6 billion) makes her Russia’s richest woman. “Luzhkov should shoot himself like an officer,” suggested one provincial governor.”
to read more, click on the link
http://www.spiegel.de/internat…..96,00.html