Angry protesters estimated at 20k and 40k have rallied in Moscow for the third consecutive weekend, protesting against unfair elections and calling for the authorities to allow opposition and independent candidates to run in Moscow’s forthcoming regional elections.
Although the demonstration had been formally authorized by the officials, dozens of individuals were imprisoned since they dispersed to several other areas of the town, many outside the town center headquarters of President Vladimir Putin. According to independent analysts, this believed to be Moscow’s biggest rally of opposition since 2011.
Several rally participants held slogans like “Give us the right to vote!” and “You’ve lied enough to us,” while others carried photographs of the demonstrators who had been captured at previous protests. The recent arrests occurred after the group of protesters decided to ditch the formal rally outside the town center. Representatives of the rally had later advised the participants to take part in an unapproved “stroll.”
Although the election of the city council is relatively stable, brutal assaults by riot cops on calm protesters have traumatized the citizens that are disappointed by the rule of President Vladimir Putin. A post that went wild on Saturday showed a video of a police officer punching a young female demonstrator in the abdomen while five guards dragged her away.
Following last month’s latest “permitted” demonstration, that drew more than 20k citizens to Sakharov Avenue, authorities charged a handful of rank-and-file members participating in the protests for taking part in mass hassle.
“My mother taught me to vote, and these elections show that even that’s not possible,” said Sergei Orlov, a 33-year-old IT employee, as he walked along with the crowd of protesters.
This summer’s protests were significantly more youth-led than the one back in 2012. Many of the citizens that are seen protesting are the teen members of society that are doing financially well, but still want a fundamentally different kind of nation.
