Europarlementariërs geschokt door harde politieoptreden bij demonstratie in Moskou (en)
A delegation of MEPs attending a protest rally in the Russian capital on Tuesday (31 August) have criticised the police's rough treatment of demonstrators.
"This is an amazing way of dealing with democracy, shocking," Dutch Socialist Thijs Berman i told the UK's Associated Press news agency after being himself violently shoved around by bulletproof-vest-wearing and baton-armed officers. "A government that considers itself strong should be able to allow a few protesters."
Finnish Green deputy, Heidi Hautala, who chairs the parliament's human rights subcommittee and who was also present at the event, said: "It is disappointing to see that a country that wants to profile itself as such a strong actor in the world cannot even tolerate a few dissenting voices."
Moscow police said around 400 protesters took part and that 300 journalists turned up to report on the event. Riot police also came out in force, with estimates of around 1,000 officers backed by a fleet of vehicles.
The police charged at protesters a few seconds after they unfurled their banners, making 70 arrests, including of senior opposition leaders such as Boris Nemstov. A similar protest the same day in St Petersburg ended in 79 arrests.
Another demonstration outside the Russian embassy in London on Tuesday was attended by 30 people, including the exiled oligarch Boris Berezovsky and the widow of a Russian spy killed by radiation poisoning in 2006, Marina Litvinenko.
The protests take place regularly on the 31st day of the month in reference to Article 31 of the Russian constitution on freedom of assembly.
The European Parliament delegation is travelling to Beslan in the North Caucasus region on Wednesday to meet the families of victims of the 2004 Beslan school massacre on the sixth anniversary of the events.
"There has never been a proper investigation into what took place," Ms Hautala told this website by phone from Russia on Tuesday morning.