Russia's economic reform architect, Anatoly Chubais, is leading a chorus of opposition outrage at the arrest and imprisonment of the country's charismatic liberal leader, Boris Nemtsov. The incident has received almost no attention in Russia's state-dominated media but has drawn a furious response from the opposition
 Several opposition leaders, including former first deputy PM Nemtsov, breaks through police lines, prompting their immediate arrest in a rally. AFP photo |
Russian opposition and other leading figures condemned Monday the arrest and jailing of a prominent Kremlin critic, with the country's economic reform architect saying he did not believe the grounds for liberal leader Boris Nemtsov's arrest.
"I believe that the authorities have the right to detain the participants of unsanctioned meetings," Agence France-Press quoted Anatoly Chubais as writing in a public message posted on his blog.
"But the meeting that Nemtsov attended was sanctioned! Neither do I believe the court-accepted justification for the arrest – disobeying a police officer," Chubais said. "I am sure that any normal person will have the same question about this as I do."
Nemtsov was among the 130 people detained in Moscow and St. Petersburg on Dec. 31 – the date of traditional end-of-month rallies in which Russians assert their constitutional right to gather in public places.
The Moscow rally was sanctioned but still resulted in dozens of arrests that saw the police move against those trying to extend the rally beyond the small space assigned to them on a central Moscow square.
Nemtsov, who along with Chubais served as a first deputy prime minister under the administration of former President Boris Yeltsin, was sentenced Sunday to 15 days in prison for disobeying police orders. Three other opposition figures, Eduard Limonov, Konstantin Kosyakin and Ilya Yashin, were also given sentences of between five and 15 days in jail in connection with the same rally, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported on its website.
A spokeswoman for the Solidarity Movement that brings together Russia's small but disjointed opposition forces said the incident marked the first occasion in which Nemtsov had been sentenced to jail. The incident received almost no attention in Russia's state-dominated media but still drew a furious response from Chubais who now rarely breaks ranks with officials in his capacity as head of the Rosnano state technology firm.
Broader freedoms
The 300-strong Moscow crowd chanted slogans in support of the jailed Kremlin critic and former oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky, whose jail term was extended by six years last week, and called for broader political freedoms.
The gathering broke up after about an hour as dozens of people continued their protest outside police stations that were holding Nemtsov and the other detained opposition leaders.
The Moscow court also issued a 15-day prison sentence to the writer and National Bolshevik Party leader Limonov and a five-day sentence to liberal Yabloko party member Yashin.
"The arrest of Nemtsov, Yashin, Limonov and Kosyakin is an open attack on the opposition," For Human Rights group leader Lev Ponomaryov told the Interfax news agency. "This is an act of reprisal," said the man, who himself is subject to frequent detention during such rallies.
Kosyakin is one of the founders of the Strategy 31 movement that holds rallies in honor of the Russian constitution's Article 31 – freedom of assembly.
All such rallies had been banned in Moscow until President Dmitry Medvedev appointed a new mayor for the Russian capital in September.
Moscow has come under intense international scrutiny from actors like the European Union, as well as Germany and the United States, over the conviction and sentencing last month that extended the prison terms for former Yukos Chief Executive Officer and Kremlin critic Khodorkovsky and a business partner, Platon Lebedev, by six years.
"I believe that the authorities have the right to detain the participants of unsanctioned meetings," Agence France-Press quoted Anatoly Chubais as writing in a public message posted on his blog.
"But the meeting that Nemtsov attended was sanctioned! Neither do I believe the court-accepted justification for the arrest – disobeying a police officer," Chubais said. "I am sure that any normal person will have the same question about this as I do."
Nemtsov was among the 130 people detained in Moscow and St. Petersburg on Dec. 31 – the date of traditional end-of-month rallies in which Russians assert their constitutional right to gather in public places.
The Moscow rally was sanctioned but still resulted in dozens of arrests that saw the police move against those trying to extend the rally beyond the small space assigned to them on a central Moscow square.
Nemtsov, who along with Chubais served as a first deputy prime minister under the administration of former President Boris Yeltsin, was sentenced Sunday to 15 days in prison for disobeying police orders. Three other opposition figures, Eduard Limonov, Konstantin Kosyakin and Ilya Yashin, were also given sentences of between five and 15 days in jail in connection with the same rally, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty reported on its website.
A spokeswoman for the Solidarity Movement that brings together Russia's small but disjointed opposition forces said the incident marked the first occasion in which Nemtsov had been sentenced to jail. The incident received almost no attention in Russia's state-dominated media but still drew a furious response from Chubais who now rarely breaks ranks with officials in his capacity as head of the Rosnano state technology firm.
Broader freedoms
The 300-strong Moscow crowd chanted slogans in support of the jailed Kremlin critic and former oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky, whose jail term was extended by six years last week, and called for broader political freedoms.
The gathering broke up after about an hour as dozens of people continued their protest outside police stations that were holding Nemtsov and the other detained opposition leaders.
The Moscow court also issued a 15-day prison sentence to the writer and National Bolshevik Party leader Limonov and a five-day sentence to liberal Yabloko party member Yashin.
"The arrest of Nemtsov, Yashin, Limonov and Kosyakin is an open attack on the opposition," For Human Rights group leader Lev Ponomaryov told the Interfax news agency. "This is an act of reprisal," said the man, who himself is subject to frequent detention during such rallies.
Kosyakin is one of the founders of the Strategy 31 movement that holds rallies in honor of the Russian constitution's Article 31 – freedom of assembly.
All such rallies had been banned in Moscow until President Dmitry Medvedev appointed a new mayor for the Russian capital in September.
Moscow has come under intense international scrutiny from actors like the European Union, as well as Germany and the United States, over the conviction and sentencing last month that extended the prison terms for former Yukos Chief Executive Officer and Kremlin critic Khodorkovsky and a business partner, Platon Lebedev, by six years.
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