Harris Lies, Americans Die. Illegal Aliens are more Important

[rooster59]

Russian police detain over 800 in opposition crackdown in Moscow

By Andrew Osborn and Maria Tsvetkova

 

Law enforcement officers detain Russian opposition politician Lyubov Sobol before a rally calling for opposition candidates to be registered for elections to Moscow City Duma, the capital's regional parliament, in Moscow, Russia August 3, 2019. REUTERS/Tatyana Makeyeva

 

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian police forcibly detained over 800 people attending a protest in Moscow on Saturday to demand free elections, including prominent activist Lyubov Sobol, after authorities warned the demonstration was illegal.

 

Police removed Sobol from a taxi and bundled her into a van minutes before the start of what anti-Kremlin activists described as a peaceful walk to protest against the exclusion of their candidates from an election next month.

 

Soon after the start of the protest, a Reuters reporter saw several hundred people milling around at one of the designated protest points in central Moscow. Minutes later, a line of riot police began to squeeze people out of the area.

 

OVD-Info, an independent monitoring group, said police had detained 828 people, in some cases beating them with truncheons as they lay on the floor. Reuters reporters witnessed dozens of arrests. In one case police carried off a man as he clung upside down to his bicyle.

 

Police said they had detained 600 and said 1,500 had attended the protest, though footage of demonstrations which flared in different parts of Moscow suggested many more had taken part.

 

Saturday's protest was smaller than one a week earlier, but underlined the determination of some Kremlin critics -- especially younger people -- to keep pressing to open up Russia's tightly-choreographed political system.

 

The focus of protesters' anger is a prohibition on a number of opposition-minded candidates, some of whom are allies of jailed opposition politician Alexei Navalny, from taking part in a September election for Moscow's city legislature.

 

That vote, though local, is seen as a dry run for a national parliamentary election in 2021.

 

Authorities say opposition candidates failed to collect enough genuine signatures to register. The excluded candidates say that is a lie and insist on taking part in a contest they believe they could win.

 

"They (the authorities) are wiping their feet on us," said Elena, a student attending Saturday's protest.

 

Another attendee, Yevgeny Snetkov, a 61-year-old engineer, described as brazen the way the authorities had prevented opposition candidates from running. "I had no option left but to protest," he said.

 

Some protesters chanted "Putin is a thief" as they marched.

 

 

INTERNATIONAL CONDEMNATION

 

Observers said the police presence was one of the biggest at such a protest in nearly a decade. Mobile internet access was cut in some areas and police cordoned off swathes of central Moscow to stop people gathering.

 

At a similar protest a week earlier, police detained more than 1,300 in one of the biggest security operations of recent years that brought wide international condemnation.

 

Authorities carried out a new round of detentions and home searches before Saturday's protest and opened criminal proceedings for what they term mass civil unrest, an offence which carries a penalty of up to 15 years in jail.

 

Activists say the Russian constitution allows them to freely protest. But authorities say they need to agree the timing and location of any demonstrations in advance, something that was not done ahead of Saturday's protest.

 

Opposition activists say the authorities have repeatedly refused to allow protests in central Moscow, leaving them with no choice but to go ahead anyway.

 

At least eight of Sobol's allies, including Navalny, are in jail for breaking tough protest laws. The ruling United Russia dominates the national parliament and Navalny plus his allies are starved of media air-time.

 

Russian investigators said on Saturday they had opened a criminal investigation into the alleged laundering of 1 billion roubles ($15.3 million) by an anti-corruption foundation which Navalny set up. Navalny and his allies say the foundation is transparently financed from public donations.

 

President Vladimir Putin and the Kremlin have not commented on the standoff with the opposition, but Moscow prosecutors on Friday warned would-be protesters that Saturday's demonstration had not been approved and its organisers could be brought to account.

 

At well over 60 percent, Putin's approval rating is still high compared with many other world leaders, but is lower than it used to be due to discontent over years of falling incomes.

 

Last year the 66-year-old former KGB intelligence officer won a landslide re-election and a new six-year term until 2024.

 

(Additional reporting by Tom Balmforth, Andrey Kuzmin and Dmitry Madorsky; Writing by Andrew Osborn; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne and David Holmes)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2019-08-04

Follow Thaivisa on LINE for breaking Thailand news and visa info

 

 

[metisdead]

Troll posts and a reply have been removed. 

[Burma Bill]

Sad, but interesting - perhaps "Hong Kong" flu has arrived in Moscow!

[usviphotography]

1 hour ago, Burma Bill said:

Sad, but interesting - perhaps "Hong Kong" flu has arrived in Moscow!

Protests and marches are legal in Russia so long as you get a permit. They choose not to go that route because getting arrested was their intent. This is entirely for Western Media consumption and to allow the West to further their anti-Russian propaganda. 

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_of_assembly_in_Russia 

[Krataiboy]

No wonder suicide and depression rates are rocketing across the developed(sic) world when one considers the nutjobs who we allow to run our lives.

 

Just consider the motley crew in control of the world's most developed economies. . . 

The U.S. - sexist, xenophobic Donald Trump. Russia - corrupt multibillionaire VladimirPutin.  China - creator of the ultimate surveillance state, Xi Jinping. Germany -  inept architect of the European refugee crisis, Angela Merkel.  France - despised globalist pawn and Rothschild protege, Macron.

 

Things couldn't possibly get worse - or so we may have imagined until the recent election of a habitual liar, womaniser and all-round risible rogue as Britain's prime minister.

 

History is replete with similar aberrations, ranging from bloodthirsty monsters like Stalin and Hitler to subtler abusers of political clout such as "Tricky Dicky" Nixon and "Iron Lady" Margaret Thatcher.

 

What on earth makes civilised, educated people in the world's most advanced economies hand control over their lives to sociopaths and psychopaths? 

 

 

Edited August 4, 2019 by Krataiboy

[usviphotography]

37 minutes ago, usviphotography said:

Protests and marches are legal in Russia so long as you get a permit. They choose not to go that route because getting arrested was their intent. This is performance theater done entirely for Western Media consumption and to allow the West to further their anti-Russian propaganda. 

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_of_assembly_in_Russia 

 

[BobBKK]

Russia election turnout was 68% and Putin got 77%, the Communists 12% and Independent 6%. If they hate Putin they can vote him out but I can assure you the vast majority of Russians support him whether USA likes it or not.

Apply for the permit and demonstrate as is their right. All the rest is noisy politics.

[bristolboy]

7 hours ago, BobBKK said:

Russia election turnout was 68% and Putin got 77%, the Communists 12% and Independent 6%. If they hate Putin they can vote him out but I can assure you the vast majority of Russians support him whether USA likes it or not.

Apply for the permit and demonstrate as is their right. All the rest is noisy politics.

And the opposition was freely permitted to air their programs and criticisms via the freedoms afforded them by the Russian government. If anyone believes the previous sentence, then I guess it's possible to believe that the Russian electoral system isn't massively corrupt.

[usviphotography]

1 hour ago, bristolboy said:

And the opposition was freely permitted to air their programs and criticisms via the freedoms afforded them by the Russian government. If anyone believes the previous sentence, then I guess it's possible to believe that the Russian electoral system isn't massively corrupt.

Europe's premier vote monitoring agency, OSCE, disagrees with you. They proclaimed vote itself quite fair. Their only quibbles were with "restrictive environment" in Russia itself. Note that many of their criticisms in this regard (such as state owned news outlets and state funding for media in general) can be just as easily apply to places such as UK and France.

 

Putin ran as an Independent rather than under the United Russia banner for the express purpose of maximizes his vote (Putin is more popular as an individual than his party is as a whole). He wouldn't have been forced to do that if the system were "massively corrupt". Moreover, exist polls in Russia were consistent with the final tally, which is not what happens when there is massive corruption.  

 

https://www.osce.org/odihr/elections/375661

[bristolboy]

2 minutes ago, usviphotography said:

Europe's premier vote monitoring agency, OSCE, disagrees with you. They proclaimed vote itself quite fair. Their only quibbles were with "restrictive environment" in Russia itself. Note that many of their criticisms in this regard (such as state owned news outlets and state funding for media in general) can be just as easily apply to places such as UK and France.

 

Putin ran as an Independent rather than under the United Russia banner for the express purpose of maximizes his vote (Putin is more popular as an individual than his party is as a whole). He wouldn't have been forced to do that if the system were "massively corrupt". Moreover, exist polls in Russia were consistent with the final tally, which is not what happens when there is massive corruption.  

 

https://www.osce.org/odihr/elections/375661

"The vote itself" Wow! Weren't some candidates prohibited from running? How many investigative  journalists have been physically assaulted and even murdered? How can a population systematically denied negative information about the government make an informed vote? 

[usviphotography]

8 minutes ago, bristolboy said:

"The vote itself" Wow! Weren't some candidates prohibited from running? How many investigative  journalists have been physically assaulted and even murdered? How can a population systematically denied negative information about the government make an informed vote? 

Russia prohibits certain classes of criminals from running for office. The candidate you are referring to that was prohibited from running under this law was polling in the low single digits (below the Communist Party and Ultra Nationalist Party candidates respectively) at the time he was ruled ineligible. Does the UK not have the world's most famous investigative journalist in a cage as we speak? Have they not also jailed one of their own most prominent political journalists? 

 

And the idea Russians are "denied" negative information is just silly. Have you ever been to Russia? Russians are among the most cynical people on earth and know exactly what is going on in their country. Putin is as popular as he is because most voters lived through the 1990's and they appreciate the massive improvement in general quality of life that has occurred since Putin has become President. 

 

Russia does not have some perfect political system. Nobody does. But any system (democracy, oligarchy, military dictatorship, absolute monarchy) can produce good or bad leaders. Russia happens to have found itself an incredibly talented leader, whatever the flaws of their system, and that has been a very good thing for both Russia and the word. 

[emptypockets]

Incredibly talented? How so?

A murderous ex KGB thug by all reports. I like your TV station...give it to me or die.

President for 6 years Prime minister for 6 years, president for 6 years? People are waking up. It will happen in China too.

[Thongkorn]

16 minutes ago, emptypockets said:

Incredibly talented? How so?

A murderous ex KGB thug by all reports. I like your TV station...give it to me or die.

President for 6 years Prime minister for 6 years, president for 6 years? People are waking up. It will happen in China too.

You forgot he was just a foot soldier, how did he become one of the richest men in the world, Maybe just good business sense ,

[usviphotography]

19 minutes ago, emptypockets said:

Incredibly talented? How so?

A murderous ex KGB thug by all reports. I like your TV station...give it to me or die.

President for 6 years Prime minister for 6 years, president for 6 years? People are waking up. It will happen in China too.

 

The quality of life for the average Russian has improved in almost every way since he took office. Life expectancy itself has gone up in Russia by eight years since Putin took office. And who cares how long he's been in office. Elizabeth I reigned for over 40 years. Theresa May just over 3. Which one will history remember more fondly? 

 

It isn't just that Putin has been a good to great leader by any objective metric. It is also the fact there is no apparent alternative who is in remotely the same class. You think Grudinin or Zhirinovsky or Medvedev would do better than Putin? This is a problem for Russia. Perhaps their biggest problem, and the one Putin should be focusing on with increasing urgency.  

[bristolboy]

56 minutes ago, usviphotography said:

Russia prohibits certain classes of criminals from running for office. The candidate you are referring to that was prohibited from running under this law was polling in the low single digits (below the Communist Party and Ultra Nationalist Party candidates respectively) at the time he was ruled ineligible. Does the UK not have the world's most famous investigative journalist in a cage as we speak? Have they not also jailed one of their own most prominent political journalists? 

 

And the idea Russians are "denied" negative information is just silly. Have you ever been to Russia? Russians are among the most cynical people on earth and know exactly what is going on in their country. Putin is as popular as he is because most voters lived through the 1990's and they appreciate the massive improvement in general quality of life that has occurred since Putin has become President. 

 

Russia does not have some perfect political system. Nobody does. But any system (democracy, oligarchy, military dictatorship, absolute monarchy) can produce good or bad leaders. Russia happens to have found itself an incredibly talented leader, whatever the flaws of their system, and that has been a very good thing for both Russia and the word. 

Quite common in the UK for journalists to be beaten and murdered, is it? Cynicism is one thing, actualy knowledge of the facts is another. That's what investigative journalists are for. And as for Navalny and other being found guilty of criminal acts..it's a good thing that the judicial system in Russia makes is an honest and upright one, or I might be inclined to doubt evidence of his criminality.

[emptypockets]

29 minutes ago, Thongkorn said:

You forgot he was just a foot soldier, how did he become one of the richest men in the world, Maybe just good business sense ,

My hazy memory says he was a KGB colonel anointed by the old drunk Boris for some reason. He is a cold calculating bastard with an absolute lust for complete power and control. As he has proven. Not a nice man at all.

Don't hold that against him...every politician dreams of that.

[bristolboy]

40 minutes ago, usviphotography said:

 

The quality of life for the average Russian has improved in almost every way since he took office. Life expectancy itself has gone up in Russia by eight years since Putin took office. And who cares how long he's been in office. Elizabeth I reigned for over 40 years. Theresa May just over 3. Which one will history remember more fondly? 

 

It isn't just that Putin has been a good to great leader by any objective metric. It is also the fact there is no apparent alternative who is in remotely the same class. You think Grudinin or Zhirinovsky or Medvedev would do better than Putin? This is a problem for Russia. Perhaps their biggest problem, and the one Putin should be focusing on with increasing urgency.  

Well given that Russia was in a state of collapse following the dissolution of the Soviet Union, it's not surprising that things improved from that low base. But if an objective measure is the economy, not so much. Most of the increase in GDP derives form the export of fossil fuels and other raw materials. Not an indication of a highly developed economy. What's more...

"There has been a substantial rise in wealth inequality in Russia since 1990 (far more than China and other Eastern European countries).^[33][34] Credit Suisse has described Russian wealth inequality as so extreme compared to other countries that it "deserves to be placed in a separate category."^[34][35] One study estimates that "the wealth held offshore by rich Russians is about three times larger than official net foreign reserves, and is comparable in magnitude to the total household financial assets held in Russia."^[33]

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_Russia

 

And then there's this:

Russians’ Real Incomes Set to Fall Again in 2019

 

Real incomes are set to drop once more next year, dragged by slower growth in real wages and higher spending, according to the latest forecast from Moscow’s Higher School of Economics (HSE).

Russia is on track to see off 2018 as the fifth consecutive year of falling real disposable personal incomes. A planned value-added tax (VAT) hike from 18 percent to 20 percent starting Jan. 1, 2019 is expected to fuel consumer inflation.

HSE, according to the university’s Commentary on State Business bulletin published by the RBC news website Thursday, reports that its view is “supported by a decline in savings and an increase in consumer lending.”

https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2018/12/27/russians-real-income-set-to-fall-again-in-2019-a63986