Russia Passes Amnesty Bill That Could Free Pussy Riot, Greenpeace Protesters

Russia's lower house of Parliament unanimously passed a bill that could lead to the release of two jailed members of Pussy Riot, along with 30 Greenpeace protesters currently awaiting trial in the country.

Russia's lower house of Parliament unanimously passed a bill on Wednesday that will likely lead to the release of two jailed members of Pussy Riot, along with 30 Greenpeace protesters currently awaiting trial. The well-timed amnesty measure, introduced to the State Duma by President Vladimir Putin, could clear the country of two high-profile human rights cases just in time for February's Sochi Olympics. The bill becomes a law in Russia once it's signed by Putin and printed in the state newspapers, which could be as soon as today.

The bill's stated purpose is to mark the 20th anniversary of the state constitution. About 2,000 people could be set for early release under the amnesty criteria, including anyone jailed for "hooliganism." Pussy Riot members Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina are finishing out their final months of a two-year prison sentence on those charges for their short "punk" performance (anti-Putin protest, really) in a Russian Orthodox church. A third member of the group, Yekaterina Samutsevich, was released early in October. Thanks to an amendment to the bill, the 28 Greenpeace protesters and 2 journalists currently on bail awaiting trial on "hooliganism" charges are also eligible to be cleared. They were rounded up after attacking and boarding an off-shore oil rig.

However, there are still a lot of unanswered questions out there about how the bill's amnesty provisions will be applied, and how quickly prisoners might be released. For instance, it's possible that some of the Greenpeace protesters could face additional charges at a later date not covered by the state's amnesty bill, as the AP explains. And its wording allows officials to take up to 6 months to clear and release eligible prisoners. Tolokonnikova's husband Pyotr Verzilov told the AP that he's certain the bill's wording will ensure his wife's release. Earlier, Verzilov was optimistic about the bill because it comes from Putin himself.

Tolokonnikova and Maria Alyokhina ended up in a notoriously horrible Russian prison following their 2012 sentences, eventually prompting a hunger strike from Tolokonnikova. She disappeared for several weeks following her strike, eventually turning up in a prison hospital in Siberia. Pussy Riot is just one of several high-profile human rights questions facing Russia as it prepares to host the 2014 Olympics. On Tuesday, in what's widely been interpreted as a rebuke to Russia's anti-gay laws, the U.S. announced that President Obama, Joe Biden, and Michelle Obama wouldn't attend the games. Instead, America will send two LGBT athletes as part of their delegation.