Meet the new Russia, same as the old Russia

Back in the bad old days of the Soviet Union, opposition to the government was treated as a mental illness, and dissenters were incarcerated in psychiatric institutions for "treatment". Under Putin, it has reared its ugly head again:

A Russian court has ordered a critic of President Vladimir Putin to be committed to a psychiatric hospital over clashes with police at a protest.

The court ruled that Mikhail Kosenko was not responsible for his actions because he has a mental illness.

Kosenko was accused of rioting at a protest in Moscow in May last year, on the eve of Mr Putin's inauguration.

Russia may have changed its political scenery, but its still the same old despotism, using the same old techniques.