The art collective were classified as an extremist group on December 15th by the Ministry of Justice in the Tverskoy Court in Moscow, after their series of outspoken incidents against the Russian government.
The judge who presided over the ruling was Judge Maria Moskalenko, who has a history with the members of Pussy Riot as well as other political prisoners, including Alexei Navalny.
[…]
With regards to the latest ruling, members of the art collective made an extensive statement. Its founder, Nadya Tolokonnikova, said: “When I was tried for the punk prayer, facing seven years in a labour camp, I told the judge and prosecutors that I was still freer than they would ever be. Today, exiled from my own country, I still feel the same.”
She continued: “I can say what I think about Putin — that he is an aging sociopath spreading his venom around the world like cancer. In today’s Russia, telling the truth is extremism. So be it – we’re proud extremists, then.”
Russian law introduced which makes searching for Pussy Riot videos illegal
“What’s most striking is that under the draft law, even Interior Ministry officials monitoring such content could technically be acting illegally. And any private citizen who reports, say, [potential school shooters] to law enforcement could also face fines,” she added.
Mizulina concluded: “We actively monitor this kind of [‘extremist’] content and share findings with law enforcement as part of our chartered mission.”
Meanwhile, Margarita Simonyan, editor-in-chief of the state-funded RT network, also hit out at the bill, writing on Telegram, “How are we supposed to carry out investigations and throw shade on all types of extremist groups like FBK if we are barred from even reading about them?”