Breaking News

Russian regions say vote protests largely peaceful

11 Dec 2011 - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Authorised and unauthorised protests in dozens of Russian cities, in which at least 60,000 people across the country are estimated to take part, were largely peaceful.

"According to the Interior Ministry's emergency response centre, unauthorised protests were held in a number of Russian regions. During most of them, protestors left the area after warnings by police that their actions were against the law," an interior ministry spokesman said.

Demonstrations against alleged electoral fraud in favour of the ruling United Russia took place across the country, from the European exclave of Kaliningrad to Vladivostok on the Pacific coast. Organisers say the protests may continue next weekend and probably on December 24-25.

United Russia saw its share of the vote fall sharply in the December 4 polls, although it just managed to hang onto its parliamentary majority. But opposition activists claim the party's real figures were much lower.

The Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe said the election was marked by a "lack of fairness" and "slanted" in favour of United Russia. The Russian electoral commission has said the vote was fair and valid, though President Dmitry Medvedev has said accusations of cheating must be investigated.

The largest rallies to demand a rerun of last weekend's parliamentary polls and vent anger at Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and his United Russia party were held in Moscow (at least 20,000 participants), St. Petersburg (7,000) and Novosibirsk (3,000).

A spokesman for the St. Petersburg Police Department said the rally "ended without serious incidents". About 10 people were detained during the sanctioned rally at the Pionerskaya Square. Later, police detained 20 out of some 50 protestors who gathered for an unauthorised event at the Senatskaya Square.

No arrests were reported in Russia's third largest city, Novosibirsk, although the event gathered three times more than it was previously expected.

From 1,000 to 1,500 people are estimated to take part in protests in four major regional centres. In the Siberian city of Tomsk and Chelyabinsk in the Urals the rallies were authorised and no detentions or violence took place. No detentions were also made during an unsanctioned rally in southwest Siberia's Omsk. In the Urals city of Yekaterinburg, where 100 people attended a sanctioned rally and ten times more gathered for an unauthorised event, 20 people were detained but released shortly after, according to the city's police sources.

Protestors organised themselves via social networking sites, and, according to them, protests all across Russia were to gather about 150,000 people, including 12,000 in the Urals city of Yekaterinburg, 11,000 in St. Petersburg and 6,000 in Siberia's Novosibirsk.

In the Far Eastern city of Khabarovsk police detained 38 people from about six dozens who gathered for an unauthorised rally.

Some 15 people were detained in the Urals city of Perm and about 35 during an unsanctioned rally in Syktyvkar west of Urals. Detentions were also made at an unauthorised rally in South Russia's Pyatigorsk.

In Kazan, the capital of the Volga Republic of Tatarstan, police surrounded people who gathered for an unsanctioned protest and asked them to leave the place. They started to disperse the rally only 2.5 hours later and a dozen of protestors were detained.

Regional media say protests in other cities went on rather peacefully, and in Central Russia's Voronezh police and protestors even shook hands with each other after the rally was over. (Source: RIA Novosti)

Breaking News

Russian regions say vote protests largely peaceful

Most Popular Articles

Breaking Down the Israel–Iran Conflict: What We Know So Far - Day 108

’’Cut out the noise, focus on your game’’; Sri Lanka great reaches out to Sooryavanshi

Struggling Pizza Hut chain to be sold for $2.7bn

Alleged mastermind behind Rs. 210 Billion illegal Dollar transfer network arrested

Sri Lankan Rupee appreciates further against US Dollar

Sri Lanka find right combination in WI defeat

Latest News

Main suspects arrested in Jaffna over female physiotherapist’s body found in car

Athapaththu century powers Sri Lanka past Ireland

Ronaldo becomes first player to score at six World Cups as Portugal thrash Uzbekistan

FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 32 Bracket and Schedule: Road to the Final Takes Shape

Cityscape over Colombo