Russian opposition

In a Northern Illinois University history professor's blog about Russian history, he discussed some of the current political developments in the country, in particular the imprisonment of political opposition. He specifically cited the jailing of a Russian diamond mine union activist. He talked about the "collusion"between capital interests in Russia and the increasingly powerful central government, discussing the evidence against the unionist that may or may not have been planted against him. This professor considered situations such as this one very important because the show the viewer the sort of opposition faced by unionists in Russia and possibly in other ex-communist states. Some of the governmental institutions were described by the blogger as carry-over institutions from the Soviet era, something that could be construed as a condemnation of Putin's 21st century Russia.
In my mind this draws many parallels with the imprisonment of Pussy Riot, the Russian pop-music group that has been imprisoned by the Russian government for speaking out against governmental actions. The government is happy to let the people do what they want, as long as what they want is in line with what the government is saying and how they are acting.