Fallout of recent Marches

22th April a few well-known human rights activists were detained in the center of Moscow, while they tried to organize a peaceful walk in support of victims of the March of Discontent on 14th of April. Meanwhile, human rights activists created the Public Committee for investigation of the events, connected with severe violations of Constitutional rights of citizens, such as right to organize public meetings and demonstrations. They also sent an open statement to the President of RF. (26-APR-07)

Text: HRH/Moscow, by Yanina Savenko. Sources: zaprava.ru, demos-center.ru, newsru.com

Riot police violently break up the march
Police violently quashed an opposition marches in Moscow and St Petersburg on 14th and 15th of April, beating and detaining more than 100 people, including organizers of the March of the Discontent. The events unfolded as follows: the policemen formed a circle around the protesters, they then preceded to grab participants off of the rally, beat them with their nightsticks and carry them to a police trucks one by one. Commenting on the incedent, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov praised the way police handled the protesters: “The ultra-radicals were trying to carry out an illegal march. They were stopped. That´s the way it was, and that´s the way it will be.”

Independent investigation has been launched
16th April leaders of the Movement “For Human Rights” and of the Moscow Helsinki Group (member of the RRCHR) established the Public Committee in order to conduct an independent investigation of the dispersion of Marches in Moscow and St Petersburg on 14th and 15th of April. The committee calls other human rights organizations and ordinary citizens to join them. They also appeal to the Office of Public Prosecutor to file suits against administrative and law-enforcement officials who have treated the demonstrators with excessive force. The statement claims that the dispersion of the Marches brutally violated the Law “On Police” as well as the Criminal Procedure Code and the procedural law.

Blind obedience of courts
Meanwhile, Moscow’s courts were ordered to work during the weekend of the marches. According to the human rights activists this fact could be an evidence of collusion between law-enforcement and judicial bodies. Human rights activists stressed that policemen brutally dispersed people in places, which had been assigned in advance for mass actions. Furthermore, they detained not only demonstrators, but also passers-by, including old women and journalists who had special vests and badges with inscription “mass media”. Also, many policemen, in the KGB fashion, were operating in civilian clothes and arresting people, they didn’t show their documents. Many detained citizens were put into police trucks without even a mention of any accusation and without a written report. They were locked there for hours deprived of food, water and amenities. Moreover, representatives of law-enforcement bodies conducted a forced fingerprinting of the detained.

– Stop “law-enforcement extremism”
17th April human rights activists had a meeting where they supported the demonstrators and appealed to President Putin to stop violent dispersals of demonstrations and a general persecution of the opposition. “Extraordinary brutality during dispersal of demonstrations in Moscow, St Petersburg and Nijniy Novgorod demonstrates that Russian officials of high rank have been wittingly violating human rights”. Human rights activists demand that the President as guarantor of Constitutional rights and freedoms of RF citizens stop the lawlessness. “You can’t accuse organizers of extremist activities for their appeal to organize a peaceful protest action”. 

Violation of the right of personal immunity
22th April a few human rights activists, including Lev Ponomarev, leader of the Movement “For Human Rights” were detained in the center of Moscow. They wanted to support victims of March of Discontent and they organized a peaceful action called “Walking-tour in places of OMON military glory”. A few hundred policemen and OMON-soldiers controlled main city-squares and a few military buses were parked there. At noon Lev Ponomarev came to Trubnaya Square with his wife and three colleagues. They walked in silence without any posters and slogans. Suddenly a few policemen stopped them and pushed them in a bus. They released them only two hours later. Ludmila Alexeeva, leader of the Moscow Helsinki Group believes that it was a severe violation of human rights. “In fact people were just walking in the city without any posters and slogans, they didn’t break any law”, said Alexeeva.