Mikhail Khodorkovsky walked out of a Russian prison today, but not everyone is as fortunate.
Earlier today, in a very sudden turn of events, Russia's most famous political prisoner Mikhail Khodorkovsky was set free.
After spending more than ten years in prison, Khodorkovsky has now fled to Germany to see his family.
Sergei Karpukhin / Reuters
While Putin's pardon of Khodorkovsky has shocked the world, there are still countless political prisoners around the world who are serving time for similarly politically-charged sentences:
Sergei Karpukhin / Reuters
Mukhtar Dzhakishev (Kazakhstan)
Much like Khodorkovsky, Dzhakishev was the head of the state-run uranium firm Kazatomprom before being imprisoned on charges of alleged corruption and embezzlement. Since March 2010, he's been in a high security prison serving a 14-year term, with details of the trial remaining unknown due to the secrecy of the government. It is believed that his conviction is politically motivated partially because he participated in a petition for President Nazarbayev to pardon Mukhtar Ablyazov, another businessman who was also charged for fraud and claims the charges were fabricated for political reasons.
Via dzhakishev.org
Nabeel Rajab (Bahrain)
Rajab is the president of the Bahrain Centre For Human Rights and a well-known human rights activist who was arrested several times for protesting during the Bahrain uprising, aimed at achieving more political freedom for the Shia population. He was later arrested and sentenced for 3 months for an allegedly "insulting" tweet, then, while still in prison, had new charges brought against him related to the protests and has been serving a two year term since Dec. 2012.
Stringer / Reuters
