Canadian Justice Minister Martin Cauchon answers questions about new legislation against child pornography in the House of Commons in Ottawa
IN PHOTO: Canadian Justice Minister Martin Cauchon answers questions about new legislation against child pornography in the House of Commons in Ottawa, December 5, 2002. The legislation will protect teens from sexual exploitation and make voyeurism a crime. Reuters/Jim Young

Britain has slapped child porn charges against former Soviet dissident Vladimir Bukovsky. He has been accused of making indecent images of children and now Bukovsky has to appear in a court on May 5 in connection with the 11 charges related to indecent images. The former rebel, however, denied the allegations and vowed to defend himself.

The investigation was conducted by Cambridgeshire Police, which is part of the Crown Prosecution Service. There are five counts of charges against him--making indecent photographs of a child, possessing indecent photographs of children and keeping other prohibited images. Police claim that Bukovsky committed these crimes before October 28, 2014.

The revelations about the ex political rebel comes at a time Britain is rocked by a spate of allegations against celebrities involved in cases of child abuse. One of the most controversial cases was about late Jimmy Savile. The ex Soviet dissident, who is now 72, has been living in Britain since 1976 after he was exiled from USSR under a prisoner swap for Chilean Communist Party leader Luis Corvalan. He is also a strident critic of Russian president Vladimir Putin and had accused Kremlin of a role in the mysterious death of former Russian intelligence officer Aleksandr Litvinenko in London, way back in 2006. Bukovsky’s effort to run for the 2008 Russian presidential election was botched by the stand of Russian embassy officials in the U.K, who refused to renew his Russian passport because of anti-Putin comments.

The veteran was arrested many times in the early 1960s and spent almost 12 years in prison and psychiatric hospitals for his activism and "anti-Soviet agitation and propaganda.” Bukovsky was the first to tell the world about the torture in erstwhile Soviet Union by putting political rebels in psychiatric institutions.

Fair Trial

Meanwhile, Jenny Hopkins, Chief Crown Prosecutor for the CPS confirmed the charges and said, “following an investigation by Cambridgeshire Police, we have concluded that there is sufficient evidence to prosecute Vladimir Bukovsky in relation to the alleged making and possessing of indecent images of children.” Hopkins claimed that the seized images did meet the definition of categories A, B and C defined by Sentencing Council guidelines, reports The Guardian. At the same time, he appealed all to respect the privacy of the concerned and endorsed the right of Bukovsky to get a fair trial.

As already mentioned, Bukovsky has not only denied the child porn charges but also stated he has no contact with any children whatsoever for many years. The Russian rebel, while rubbishing the allegations said they are coming at a time he is suffering from a grave illness and unsure of his chances of survival.

(For feedback/comments, contact the writer at k.kumar@ibtimes.com.au)

RELATED STORIES