London: Queen of Pop Madonna has come under attack for supporting the jailed band members of Pussy Riot with a senior Russian official labelling her a moralising “former slut”.
During a concert in Moscow earlier this week, Madonna called for the release of the three members of the all-girl punk band, who are on trial for performing a song against President Vladimir Putin at a church.
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“With age, every former s. tries to lecture everyone on morality,” Dmitry Rogozin, a deputy prime minister, wrote on Twitter late on Wednesday, using the first letter of the Russian word for “slut” or “whore”. “Especially during overseas tours.”
Madonna scrawled “Pussy Riot” across her back and performed “Like a Virgin” wearing Pussy Riot’s trademark balaclava during a concert in Moscow on Tuesday, The Guardian reported.
She praised the band’s three women – Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, Maria Alyokhina and Yekaterina Samutsevich – for being courageous and said she was praying for their freedom. The women are facing a three-year prison sentence on charges of hooliganism motivated by religious hatred. A verdict is due on 17 August.
Madonna is the highest-profile star to come out in support of the group. Artist Yoko Ono issued a statement calling for their freedom earlier this week. The tens of thousands of fans inside Olimpisky Stadium greeted Madonna’s gesture with wild applause.
Madonna is due to perform in St Petersburg today evening and has promised to issue a message against the city’s new draconian law banning “homosexual propaganda”.
The US embassy in Moscow has issued a statement warning citizens of the potential for violence.
PTI
