A Saint Petersburg court on Thursday sent three Russian musicians to jail after their street performance of an anti-Putin song went viral.
Pop band Stoptime had been performing songs by groups known for their opposition to the war in Ukraine.
Videos published on social media showed them playing to dozens of people on the streets of Saint Petersburg, with some of the crowd signing along in a rare display of dissent.
Russia has escalated its decade-long crackdown on rights and freedom of speech at home since President Vladimir Putin ordered troops into Ukraine in February 2022.
On Thursday, Saint Petersburg’s court service jailed lead singer Diana Loginova, 18, as well as drummer Vladislav Leontiev and guitarist Alexander Orlov for short-term sentences of 12 and 13 days for “disrupting public order” after organising “a mass gathering of at least 70 people.”
“During this event, negative consequences occurred, namely, pedestrian traffic was disrupted,” the court said on Telegram.
Russian media said singer Loginova was also subject to an ongoing investigation into alleged acts of “discrediting the army,” a charge that carries a harsher sentence and is regularly used by Moscow to stifle dissenting voices.
Thousands of people have been tried on such charges, and hundreds have been sentenced to prison, often to lengthy terms.
Almost all Russian opposition figures are now in prison or in exile and public criticism of the authorities or the war inside the country are rare.
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