Alla Konstantinova is a correspondent for the North Desk of RFE/RL's Russian Service.
When the Kolisnichenko family discovered their apartment in Crimea had a resident they knew nothing about, they soon realized Russia had seized their property. Hundreds of Ukrainians have had to either sell their assets in Crimea for almost nothing or take Russian citizenship to retain their rights.
Students in Petrozavodsk say the Interior Ministry has threatened them with a probe on extremism charges for plastering posters of President Vladimir Putin resembling Big Brother across the northwestern city, illustrating what government critics say is the Russian state's lack of tolerance for dissent.
