{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["http://cohen.house.gov/press-release/cohen-putin-made-right-decision-free-imprisoned-musicians-and-other-political", "Cohen: Putin Made Right Decision To Free Imprisoned Musicians and Other Political Prisoners", "2013-12-20", "2013", "2013-12", "Democrat", "House", "TN", "Steve Cohen", "C001068", "cohen.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "[MEMPHIS, TN] \u2013 Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09) today reiterated that the imprisoned members of Russian punk music group \u201cPussy Riot\u201d should never have been incarcerated for an artistic performance and expressed approval of news that Russian President Vladimir Putin would\u2014at long last\u2014grant them their freedom. Congressman Cohen had\u00a0written to President Vladimir Putin\u00a0multiple times since the sentencing of Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina last year urging a pardon for their so-called crimes of \u201chooliganism.\u201d\n\u201cMs. Tolokonnikova and Ms. Alyokhina are not criminals, but artists who received neither fair trials nor humane sentences,\u201d\u00a0said Congressman Cohen.\u00a0\u201cTwo years in prison for a performance that\u2014at worst\u2014would be described as \u2018disorderly conduct\u2019 here in America is outrageous and inappropriate. And while they are among the best known political prisoners in Russia, there are thousands more incarcerated for things such as political speech, \u2018hooliganism,\u2019 and\u00a0other so-called \u2018crimes.\u2019 In granting amnesty to thousands of political prisoners, Russia and President Putin made the right decision. It is an important step towards correcting these injustices and furthering the cause of human rights\u2014but it must not be the last. I sincerely hope these actions are not simply window-dressing in advance of the 2014 Olympics, but reflect a shift in Russian policy regarding free expression. I look forward to seeing Ms. Tolokonnikova and Ms. Alyokhina perform with their band soon in the United States.\u201d\nPresident Putin yesterday\u00a0announced that he would pardon both Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina, several environmental activists, and Mikhail Khodorovsky\u2014who many feel was imprisoned because of political opposition to Putin\u2014as part of a mass amnesty that could affect more than 20,000 prisoners in Russia.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["http://cohen.house.gov/press-release/cohen-putin-made-right-decision-free-imprisoned-musicians-and-other-political"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.670630183070898, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}