Mr. Speaker, I rise to bring attention to yesterday's mass detentions of over 1,500 peaceful protesters in Russia.
Alexei Navalny, an opposition leader and presidential challenger to Putin, was arrested and jailed for 30 days for organizing protests against the Russian Federation, from St. Petersburg to Vladivostok. These are the first protests since the March 26 peaceful anti-corruption marches against Putin.
On Russia Day, President Putin has again shut down democracy and prohibited freedom of expression, yet our Prime Minister continues to co-operate with Russia, while ignoring the country's rampant human rights abuses and anti-democratic practices. The Liberal government's appeasement of Putin is a continuation of a policy of cozing up to dictators.
President Reagan once said:
...this is the specter our well-meaning liberal friends refuse to face--that their policy of accommodation is appeasement, and it gives no choice between peace and war, only between fight and surrender.
We join the government on this side of the House in calling for the release of Alexei Navalny and Maria Baronova of Open Russia as well. They deserve freedom, democracy, and the protection of their human rights.