(23 Oct 2013) A Greenpeace lawyer said on Wednesday that a decision by Russia to drop piracy charged against jailed activists "doesn't go nearly far enough."
Russia's main investigative agency charged the activists instead with hooliganism, which could still mean years in prison.
The 28 Greenpeace activists, a Russian photographer and a British videographer have been held since their ship, the "Arctic Sunrise" was seized by the Russian coast guard after protesting outside the oil rig belonging to Russia's Gazprom state energy giant on 18 September.
"It doesn't go nearly far enough. Our colleagues were at first accused of being terrorists, then they were accused of being pirates. Now they are accused of being hooligans. They are innocent of all these charges and they should be released immediately," said Daniel Simons, a lawyer for Greenpeace, speaking in Amsterdam.
The Investigative Committee's statement follows a comment by Russian President Vladimir Putin, who said last month that he does not think that the Greenpeace activists were pirates.
Piracy is punishable by a prison term of up to 15 years, while the specific hooliganism charge being applied now carries a maximum sentence of seven years.
The Investigative Committee also warned that it could file additional charges against the Greenpeace activists, including violence against authorities - punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
The Investigative Committee said that the detainees' refusal to testify has impeded the investigation.
It dismissed the Greenpeace claim that the protest was peaceful, saying it was a crime under an international law to try to seize an oil rig.
The platform is the first offshore rig in the Arctic.
It was deployed to the vast Prirazlomnoye oil field in the Pechora Sea in 2011, but its launch has been delayed by technological challenges.
Gazprom said in September that it was to start pumping oil this year, but no date has been set.
The Netherlands has asked the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea to order Russia to release a Greenpeace protest ship and the activists who were on board.
"The Russian Federation has said that it feels that the International Tribunal of the Law of the Sea does not have jurisdiction to hear the case against Russia. Well if that is the case, the normal way, the normal thing to do, would be to go to the Tribunal and to explain why they lack jurisdiction," said Simons.
"And then it's up to the Tribunal to decide that. I think it's a sign of weakness of the Russian Federation that is not turning up for these proceedings."
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