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Russia’s “managed thaw”

This week, two political prosecutions in Russia were quashed — to much applause. But it’s too early to talk about positive trends — the authorities are merely changing their tactics.

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Political prisoner Ildar Dadin is reunited with his wife Anastasia Zotova following his release. Altai Region, Russia. Image still via Krym.Realii/YouTube. Some rights reserved.

This article was originally published in Russian on RBC. We are grateful for their permission to translate and republish it here.

This week, a Russian regional court revoked the five-month prison sentence against a children’s camp instructor and released her from prison. Evgenia Chudnovets had already served four months in prison for alleged distribution of child pornography online. In August 2015, Chudnovets reposted a 30-second video showing the humiliation of a child at a summer camp — plus, of course, a few words of outrage.