Kremlin cracks down
Police detain hundreds of Russians protesting Putin’s rigged win
The day after Russia’s presidential election, the country was suffering a dangerous hangover, as international monitors declared the poll rigged and police forces were massing to break up protests.
“It is a scary situation,” says Masha Gessen, an expert on the reign of Vladimir Putin, who won with 64 per cent of Sunday’s vote, according to official reports. “There were webcams in all the voting precincts and people spent hours watching them. The vote fixing was brazen, and a lot of people are upset.”
An attempt by Putin’s foes to protest his victory by occupying a Moscow square Monday ended with riot police quickly dispersing and detaining hundreds of demonstrators — a stark reminder of the challenges faced by Russia’s opposition.
The harsh crackdown could fuel opposition anger and bring even bigger protests of Putin’s 12 years in power and election to another six, but it also underlined the authorities’ readiness to use force to crush such demonstrations.
The rally, which drew about 20,000 people, marked a change of tactics for the opposition, which has been looking for ways to maintain the momentum of its demonstrations that flared in December. Alexei Navalny, a popular blogger and protest leader, was the first to suggest that supporters remain on Moscow’s streets and squares to turn up the heat on Putin.
The government’s response Monday night was fast and decisive. Lines of officers in full riot gear marched into Pushkin Square and forced protesters into waiting police buses. About 250 people were detained around the city, police said, and Navalny and other leaders were reportedly among them.
“There are tens of thousands of police,” Gessen said. “And they have bused in youths from the provinces in the clear hope that there will be a
“There were webcams in all the voting precincts and people spent hours watching them. The vote fixing was brazen, and a lot of people are upset.”
MASHA GESSEN AN EXPERT ON THE REIGN OF VLADIMIR PUTIN
confrontation with the protesters.”
In past years, the authorities have used agents provocateurs to battle Kremlin opponents who turn out in the street. But crowds in recent months have swelled to new proportions in Moscow and St. Petersburg — though far fewer have joined protests in Russia’s sprawling regions.
Moscow-based Gessen — author of The Man Without a Face, which details Putin’s rise to power — said the danger of confrontation has risen because of Putin’s failure to accept the fact that many people doubt his legitimacy. “Putin has a warped view of reality, and he is getting bad information,” she said Monday. “He thinks all he has to do in a period of unrest is to declare victory and tighten the screws. We are in for a tightening of the screws.” The unrest began after a December parliamentary election that Putin’s United Russia party narrowly won, in spite of numerous allegations of election fraud, documented with photographs and videos. Fresh allegations are expected to fuel more anger and bigger protests. “This time the fraud was new and systematic,” said Gessen, speaking of reports that hundreds of people who were not registered at polls turned up on “supplementary voting lists,” which are extended to those unable to vote in their own district. “People who legitimately try to get on the list usually can’t,” she said. “But suddenly hundreds showed up en masse and voted, then appeared to leave and vote elsewhere.” She said there were also “old tactics” from previous polls, such as ballot-stuffing. Meanwhile, Putin received a slap in the face from observers from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. While finding less of the ballot stuffing and other flagrant violations that marred parliamentary elections in December, the observers said Putin had faced no real competition and unfairly benefited from lavish government spending on his behalf. Election authorities deny any wrongdoing. But the public is unlikely to be convinced, Gessen said. “Before the election, polls released by (state-linked) organizations that make predictions said Putin would win by 64 to 66 per cent. But independent exit polls showed his support was hovering around the 50 per cent mark.” That bodes ill for the election’s aftermath, Gessen said. “Putin governs by instinct. When the first protests began, he and his inner circle floundered. One day they’d try one thing, the next they’d try another. They are into no-plan territory. “I think he’ll persist as long as possible thinking he can ignore the situation. When he feels it’s not possible, he will use force.” With files from Star wire services