- Sputnik International
Russia
The latest news and stories from Russia. Stay tuned for updates and breaking news on defense, politics, economy and more.

Russian opposition claims first court win over unsanctioned demos

© RIA Novosti . Alexei Kudenko / Go to the mediabankDay of Wrath rally on Moscow's central Pushkin Square on March 20
Day of Wrath rally on Moscow's central Pushkin Square on March 20 - Sputnik International
Subscribe
The top court in the city of Moscow has ruled that the city authorities acted illegally in refusing opposition activists the right to stage a protest in downtown Moscow, leading Russian business daily Vedomosti said on Friday.

The top court in the city of Moscow has ruled that the city authorities acted illegally in refusing opposition activists the right to stage a protest in downtown Moscow, leading Russian business daily Vedomosti said on Friday.

The Moscow City Court ruling was issued on Thursday amid increased pressure on Moscow Mayor Yury Luzhkov, whose possible departure has been the hot political topic in the Russian capital for several weeks.

The city's highest court granted an appeal by the opposition against a decision by a Moscow district court barring activists from holding a Day of Wrath rally on Moscow's central Pushkin Square on March 20. The Day of Wrath protests are aimed against the policies of Luzhkov, who has been mayor since 1992.

One of the complainants, Sergei Udaltsov of the Left Front opposition group, told Vedomosti that Thursday's ruling was the first time the opposition had won an appeal. Hundreds of appeals have been filed against the Moscow authorities, who refuse to authorize protest rallies in downtown Moscow.

As well as the Day of Wrath protests, Russian opposition groups rally on Triumfalnaya Square in Moscow on the last day of each month that has 31 days in defense of their right to freedom of assembly, as enshrined in Article 31 of the Russian Constitution. The rallies, which the city government says cannot be held at the protesters' preferred locations on the main Tverskaya Street, usually result in mass detentions.

The Moscow City Court also demanded the city government provide additional evidence to demonstrate that a decision to ban a gay parade in Moscow in May was in line with law, Vedomosti said.

Since 2006, the court has rejected some 200 appeals by Moscow gays against the city's authorities who have repeatedly prohibited the parades, Vedomosti reported.

Udaltsov and another complainant, Moscow gay activist Nikolai Alekseyev, were quoted by the paper as saying that the court decision was probably a result of Luzhkov's expected departure.

A full-fledged media campaign has recently been launched against Luzhkov and his billionaire wife by several national television stations. The TV channels aired documentaries accusing Luzhkov and Yelena Baturina, who was named by Forbes the world's third richest woman, of large-scale corruption.

The Moscow mayor, considered an ally of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, is allegedly at odds with President Dmitry Medvedev. Their conflict is thought to have its roots in a September article by Luzhkov in the Rossiiskaya Gazeta government daily that hinted at criticism of the Medvedev-Putin tandem.

Some media reports quoted sources in the presidential staff and the ruling United Russia party as saying that the long-serving Moscow mayor would leave office no later than December.

Luzhkov's term expires in the summer of 2011 and the mayor said last week he believed he would not be asked to leave office early.

 

MOSCOW, September 24 (RIA Novosti)

Newsfeed
0
To participate in the discussion
log in or register
loader
Chats
Заголовок открываемого материала