Glasnost

In Russian language the word glasnost (Russian: гла́сность, IPA: [ˈɡlasnəsʲtʲ]) has several general and specific meanings. Its meaning "publicity" in the sense "the state of being open to public knowledge" has been used in Russian at least since the end of the 18th century. In the Russian Empire of the later 19th century the latter meaning was particularly associated with reforms of the judicial system, ensuring that the press and the public could attend court hearings and that the sentence was also read out in public. It was revived and made popular again in the 1980s by Mikhail Gorbachev as a slogan for increased government transparency.

Dissident demand borrowed by Gorbachev

A dissident demand

The demand for glasnost was revived in the mid-1960s on the eve of the Sinyavsky-Daniel trial in Moscow. On 5 December 1965 protestors gathered on Pushkin Square in central Moscow (at what became known as the Glasnost Meeting) to demand that the Soviet authorities guarantee an open trial (glasny sud) for Andrei Sinyavsky and Yuli Daniel in accordance with the Russian Federation Code of Criminal Procedure (1961). This meant admitting the media, including foreign correspondents, to the trial, as well as the public, including relatives and friends of the accused. From then on this would be a regular, but only sometimes successful, demand from those who became known as dissidents. In 1975, for example, rather than travel to Oslo to collect his Nobel Peace Prize, Andrei Sakharov stood outside a courthouse in Vilnius (Lithuanian SSR) demanding access to the trial of human rights activist Sergei Kovalyov.

Glasnost (disambiguation)

Glasnost refers to a 1980s Soviet policy that called for increased openness and transparency in government institutions and activities.

Glasnost may also refer to:

Glasnost (album)

Glasnost is the second full length album by Nottingham alternative metal band illuminatus. The album was released through Headroom Records on February 7, 2011. All songs were written by illuminatus, with all lyrics by Julio Taylor.

Track listing

Personnel