Mass detentions following anti-Putin protests
Hundreds of protesters are detained by Russian authorities following rallies challenging the election of Vladimir Putin as president.
Around 20,000 people were drawn to Moscow’s Pushkin Square to call for new elections and an opening up of the political system created by Putin during his 12-year rule following the weekend’s contest, in which Mr Putin secured almost 64 per cent of the vote.
More than 500 protesters, including the high-profile anti-corruption blogger, Alexei Navalny, were arrested in Moscow. He told the crowd before his detention: “They robbed us. We are the power.”
Although the atmosphere in the crowd was jovial at first, it soon turned tense after riot police in helmets moved in to disperse several thousand activists in the square.
Demonstrators chanted “Russia without Putin” and “Putin is a thief”.
The detained protesters were marched to nearby waiting police vans. Navalny was released three hours later.
In the northern city of St Petersburg – Mr Putin’s hometown – at least 300 people were detained by riot police, following a demonstration by 3,000 people.
Figures for the total number of arrests varied. Opposition leaders said 500 to 1,000 were arrested. However police put the figure at 250.
The demonstrations followed comments by vote monitors from the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) that the election had been slanted to help Mr Putin.
Tonino Picula, an OSCE vote monitor, said: “The point of elections is that the outcome should be uncertain. This was not the case in Russia. According to our assessment, these elections were unfair.