Oslo-based human rights activists organizes the first “Strategy 31“ demonstration in front of the Norwegian Parliament over the weekend, to urge Russian authorities to honor their citizen’s constitutional right to freedom of peaceful assembly.
In defense of free assembly
The demonstration in Oslo was scheduled for Sunday, the 31st of October, at 4pm. It’s meant to be one of many similar demonstrations held around the world to support human rights advocates in the Russian Federation and their struggle to assemble publicly.
Two of Russia’s foremost human rights advocates were recently in Oslo, at the invitation of the Norwegian Helsinki Committee, which monitors compliance with human rights provisions of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).
One of them, Ludmila Alexeeva, spoke of demonstrations regularly being broken up or not allowed by Russian authorities, in violation of the 31st article of Russia’s own constitution.
Demonstrators started meeting quietly to protest the disruptions, on the 31st day of every month with 31 days, and Alexeeva has since become active in Strategy 31. The secretary general of the Helsinki Committee, Bjørn Engesland, had promised to look into organizing an Oslo version of the international series of civic protests, which helped
lead to Sunday’s planned demonstration.
The Strategy 31 demonstration in Oslo was backed by several other groups including Amnesty International Norway, Bellona, Human Rights House Foundation, Norwegian PEN, the Anti-Racism Center, Norwegian Mission to the East and the Center for Studies of the Holocaust.
“Strategy 31“ in the Russian Federation
“Strategy 31“ is a series of civic protests in support of the right to peaceful assembly in the Russian Federation guaranteed by Article 31 of the Russian Constitution. Since July 31, 2009, the protests are held in Moscow on Triumfalnaya Square on the 31st of every month with 31 days.
The “Strategy 31“ rallies, which usually attract less than 300 people, usually ended in mass arrests.
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said in August that protestors at such demonstrations should get “whacked with a baton.”
After a year and a half of consistent rejections, the Moscow city authorities agreed to allow opposition activists to hold a rally on the capitol’s Triumfalnaya Square on October 31 as part of the Strategy 31 campaign in defense of free assembly.
HRH Bergen, Oslo, based on newsinenglish.no, theotherrussia.org and RIA Novosti information.
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