Large Protests Take Place In Moscow

Dozens arrested at huge opposition rally in Moscow

Romain COLAS

The rally by almost 50,000 people was one of the largest protests since President Putin's return to the Kremlin in 2012 Nearly 50,000 opposition supporters rallied and dozens were arrested in Moscow on Saturday at one of the largest authorised protests since President Vladimir Putin's return to the Kremlin in 2012.

Demonstrators crowded the central Prospekt Andreya Sakharova street, where city authorities deployed a massive police presence, including officers in riot gear, after giving permission for the rally to go ahead.

The White Counter, an NGO that tracks participants in rallies, counted 49,900 people, while Moscow police gave a much lower attendance figure of 20,000.

Police in Moscow said they detained more than 130 people. A further 80 were arrested in Russia's second-largest city of Saint Petersburg, according to OVD-Info, an NGO that monitors detentions at protests.

In recent weeks, thousands have attended street protests calling for free and fair elections after the exclusion of several opposition figures, including allies of top Putin critic Alexei Navalny, from local Moscow polls next month.

While the rally was authorised, Navalny -- who is currently in jail -- had urged supporters to walk peacefully through the city afterwards.

Navalny's associate, Boris Zolotarevsky, told protesters to proceed to Putin's administration offices. He was detained by police shortly afterwards.

At the rally, some protesters carried placards with slogans such as "Give us the right to vote!" and "You've lied to us enough", while others held up pictures of activists arrested at earlier demonstrations.

"I'm outraged by this injustice at every level. They're not letting candidates stand who have collected all the necessary signatures. They are arresting people who are protesting peacefully," said one protester, Irina Dargolts, a 60-year-old engineer.

As he enters his third decade in power, Putin's approval ratings have dropped significantly and critics say the authorities fear any outlet calling for wider political change.

The latest demonstration came this week as authorities mounted their harshest attack yet on Navalny's team, focusing on his anti-corruption foundation which publishes investigations of officials close to Putin.