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Headlines : InternationalPutin moves against Kasparov and the 'white knight' revolution
The protesters, part of the Another Russia movement, were drawn from disparate political groupings including liberals and nationalist radicals; all of them called themselves “dissenters”.
They are united by one thing: an implacable opposition to Mr Putin whom they accuse of stifling freedom of speech and moving the country in an increasingly authoritarian direction. Among the marchers was former prime minister Mikhail Kasyanov and outspoken former presidential adviser Andrei Illarionov.
In pictures: Anti-Putin rally quashed
[Posted By Judy]Republished from The Independent (UK)
A protest staged by opponents of President Vladimir Putin in the heart of Moscow was broken up by thousands of baton-wielding riot police yesterday and one of the event’s main organisers, former world chess champion Garry Kasparov, detained.
The protesters, who numbered up to 2,000 people, ignored a warning not to march from Moscow’s central Pushkin Square to another square after their application to do so was rejected. They argued that free speech was more important, and the response from thousands of camouflage-clad riot policemen wearing full body armour was immediate.
Within 10 minutes, Mr Kasparov, one of Mr Putin’s fiercest critics, was detained then whisked away to a police station. Up to 200 anti-Putin activists shared a similar fate and were bundled into police vans, at times with extreme force.
Appearing briefly outside a central Moscow court after being charged with public order offences Kasparov later said: “Today the regime showed its true colours, its true face….
Posted by Judy
Born and raised in Toronto, I'm now heading over to the UK to pursue an MA in Russian Politics, Security and Integration. I'm crazy about feminism, multilateralism, peacekeeping, the Toronto Maple Leafs and puppies.
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London exile Berezovsky says force necessary to bring down President Putin
OPEN QUOTE
Mr Berezovsky, 61, a former mathematician, turned to business during the Yeltsin years and made his fortune by capturing state assets at knockdown prices during Russia’s rush towards privatisation.
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and plunging the country into economic desperation. . . . from which Putin appears to have rescued it rather nicely.
OPEN QUOTE
Mr Berezovsky said he had dedicated much of the last six years to “trying to destroy the positive image of Putin” that many in the west held, portraying him whenever possible as a dangerously anti-democratic figure
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