TODAY: U.S. lawmakers to expand Magnitsky Act worldwide; Kremlin’s rights council wants activists to be limited; Putin promises no ideology, no discrimination; Kozak denies misuse of Sochi funds; no prison for mayor who murdered journalist; Bolotnaya Square prisoner released; Microsoft will grant access to Skype data.

In what they are calling ‘a major human rights initiative’, two U.S. lawmakers are seeking to expand the country’s Magnitsky Act to countries all over the world and increase pressure Russia over rights issues.  A member of the Presidential Human Rights Council has suggested implementing a behavioural and ethical for activists that would limit the movements of those who ‘parasitise’ human rights issues to further their careers – such as, he says, Pussy Riot.  President Vladimir Putin insists that the state’s new standardised history textbooks will not impose state ideology; he also promised that no athletes will face discrimination at the Olympics next month.  The Finnish culture minister is boycotting the Games over ‘violations of human rights’.  Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak denies that there has been any misuse of funds allocated for the upcoming Sochi Olympics, and pointed out that only $2.96 billion of the total cost has come out of the state budget.  Russia and the E.U. have canceled their traditional yearly dinner to draw attention to soured relations resulting from the battle for Ukraine.  ‘It is not business as usual.‘