Russian Activists Hold Action Against Torture
June 26, 2009
Ten activists in the Russian city of Orenburg have held a public demonstration to protest torture in the region, RFE/RL's Russian Service reports.
The activists of the Orenburg branch of the Interregional Committee Against Torture (MKPP) told RFE/RL that the number of police surrounding them was twice as many as the number of protesters.
They said the main obstacle to eliminating torture in Orenburg Oblast is the passivity of local prosecutors.
They also said that despite their small number they have managed to attract attention to the problem.
In the last two years, the Orenburg branch of the MKPP has received 150 appeals from local citizens who claimed they had faced torture.
Local courts have found three claims to be true.
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