West’s alarm hypocritical, says Russia
Reaction to rally ‘legal’, says minister
THE REACTION of the West to detentions during an unauthorised rally in Moscow is a sign of double standards, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said yesterday.
On Sunday, a rally by Russian opposition figure Alexey Navalny took place without the permission of Moscow authorities in the Russian capital, with an estimated 7 000 to 8 000 people attending and some 600 people, including Navalny, being detained by police.
“You spoke of society’s reaction. To be honest I only heard the reaction of officials in several European capitals and Washington.
“When the same events trigger different reactions, these proverbial double standards come to mind.
“I do not remember anyone being concerned, or at least publicly, over the decisions taken recently in Germany, the Netherlands and Austria where authorities banned several rallies,” Lavrov told media.
He noted that the decision of Russia’s authorities on the rallies’ participants were made within the framework of their powers.
If in western countries demonstrators do not move across the agreed routes, local police sometimes use tear gas and rubber batons against them and reporters covering such rallies could be injured by police officers, just like the Russian television journalists in the US in autumn 2016, he said.
Earlier in the day, US Department of State acting spokesperson Mark Toner said Washington “strongly condemns the detention of hundreds of peaceful protesters” during the rally.
The European External Action Service said that police activities carried out in Russia “prevented the exercise of basic freedoms of expression, association and peaceful assembly”, enshrined in the country’s legislation.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow could not agree with and therefore take into account the US State Department’s and the EU’s statements on unsanctioned protests in Russia, adding that Russia’s authorities respected the people’s right to express their civil stance but not those who provoke illegal actions.
Peskov stressed that law enforcement officials conducted themselves lawfully and professionally in responding to Sunday’s unsanctioned rally.
A court yesterday sentenced Navalny to 15 days in prison, saying he had disobeyed a police officer during an anti-government protest in Moscow the previous day.
The same court fined Navalny 20 000 roubles (R4 455) for his role in organising the protest, which the authorities said was illegal.
Police detained hundreds of protesters across Russia on Sunday, including Navalny, after thousands took to the streets to demonstrate against corruption and demand the resignation of Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev.
Olga Mikhailova, Navalny’s lawyer, said she had expected such a verdict and would appeal against it.
A reporter saw Navalny being loaded into a van, which was quickly surrounded by supporters holding placards reading “We believe” and “Alexei, we are with you”.
Medvedev’s spokeswoman has called corruption allegations against him “propagandistic attacks”, saying they amount to pre-election posturing by Navalny, who hopes to run against Putin next year.
Opinion polls suggest the liberal opposition, which Navalny represents, has little chance of fielding a candidate capable of unseating Putin, who enjoys high ratings in the country.
But Navalny and his supporters hope to channel public discontent over official corruption to attract more support.