Pussy Riot Member Maria Alyokhina Reveals She Won't Leave Russia When She's Freed From Prison
Wednesday, 26 June 2013
Written by Elliott Batte
Jailed Pussy Riot member Maria Alyokhina has revealed that she’ll not be leaving Russia when she gets out of prison, despite the country’s harsh punishments against her and her bandmates.
Alyokhina was only released from hospital this week, after embarking on a hunger strike in protest at the decision to refuse her the right to attend her own parole hearing. She is one of two members of the band - alongside Nadezhda Tolokonnikova - who is still imprisoned following their protest outside a cathedral in Moscow last year.
Speaking to NME on the same day she was discharged from hospital, Alyokhina revealed that she wouldn’t be leaving the country when she’s freed - and even hinted at the possibility of the band releasing an album.
“I have no intention of emigrating. Under no circumstances will I emigrate. That's certain.”
Asked how she was feeling at the time, she replied:
“Wonderful! I've just got out of the camp hospital. Tomorrow I go back to work [sewing uniforms for prison guards for 12 hours a day]. I stopped [the hunger strike] because they met my demands – they got rid of the locks [on the doors of the workshops]. I wasn't surprised. What they were doing was illegal. I thought it would happen sooner or later – I just expected it to take much longer.”
Alyokhina - who was speaking via a video-phone while under the strict supervision of prison guards - said of the band’s future work:
“Ah it's a surprise – I can't tell you! I hope we'll do some sort of action, but I can't say much about the concrete content because that would contradict the main idea of the band – spontaneity. But as for whether it'll be with Pussy Riot… it's possible that it'll be with Pussy Riot, let's put it like that.”
What do you think of the news - is staying in Russia a brave move, or a silly one? Leave us a comment with your opinion in the box below!
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