Russia’s Activists Lose Hope in President The resignation of Russia’s top human-rights chief highlights the Kremlin’s backsliding. by Anna Nemtsova August 03, 2010 Oxana Onipko / AFP-Getty Images Police officers in Moscow arrest an opposition protester at a rally on July 31 When Dmitry Medvedev was elected president of Russia two years ago, he publicly criticized the country’s human-rights record as “far from perfect” and called for reform. But just last week, Medvedev’s image as a civil-rights champion was dealt a stunning blow when his chief adviser on human rights, Ella Pamfilova, resigned. Her reason? A new wave of violent attacks and threats against Russia’s human-rights activists, as well as what Pamfilova calls the “never-ending wave of hate” from the Kremlin toward anyone critical of its policies. (A Kremlin spokesperson would only comment that Pamfilova was not pushed out, but resigned of her own accord.) The past year has been a brutal one for activists in Russia: three...
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