Russian MPs arrested over pension protest
Three Russian opposition leaders were detained by police minutes after a demonstration to protest a government plan to raise the age for receiving state retirement pensions ended yesterday.
The demonstration in central Moscow had been authorised by city authorities and attracted thousands of people. No reason for the arrests was immediately given.
Oleg Stepanov, a top aide to Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, reported his detention on Twitter. He posted a photo of himself and the two others sitting in what appeared to be a police vehicle. The Libertarian Party of Russia organised the demonstration. Kirll Samodurov, the party’s deputy chief, said that party chairman Sergei Boiko and rally leader Mikhail Chichkov were the other detainees.
The government’s proposal to raise the pension age for men from 60 to 65 and from 55 to 63 for women has sparked dissent across the political spectrum. The Communist Party sponsored a Moscow rally attended by an estimated 10,000 on Sunday.
The Bely Schetchik organisation, which tracks attendance at public rallies, estimated the crowd at yesterday’s event at about 6000.
Navalny, who is President Vladimir Putin’s most prominent foe, attended the demonstration, but did not address the crowd. He has been arrested multiple times for calling unauthorised protests.