Protesters in the Far East and Siberia braved subfreezing temperatures and a heavy riot police presence to start the day’s demonstrations, which are expected to take place in cities across the country.
Riot police were out in force in Moscow and St. Petersburg, rounding up protesters as they assembled for rallies beginning at noon local time. Live footage from Current Time showed police in each city pulling demonstrators out of crowds and taking them to awaiting vehicles.
Live Stream Of Protests Across (Current Time, in Russian)
OVD-Info reported more than 500 arrests early in the day’s events, including over 100 people in the Far East city of Vladivostok and several journalists in other towns and cities.
The independent monitor also reported that activists in several cities across Russia had been visited by police ahead of planned anti-government demonstrations.
Video clips from Vladivostok, where hundreds of demonstrators were denied access to the city center, showed participants linking hands and chanting “Putin is a thief!” and “My Russia is in prison!” on the ice of Amur Bay. The demonstrations there ended after about two hours.
Protesters in Kazan, the capital of Tatarstan, were shown on social media clashing with riot police.
Live footage from Current Time showed a heavy police presence in Perm before the demonstration there ended.
In Irkutsk, where 24 people were reportedly arrested, protesters were filmed being detained after police moved in to break up a rally in the city center.
A correspondent working for RFE/RL’s Russian Service, Andrei Afanasyev, was detained in the Far East city of Blagoveshchensk as he was heading to cover protests there.
Russian authorities were bracing for a groundswell of protests, with police issuing warnings that participants at “illegal” rallies will face criminal charges for violating coronavirus-related health restrictions.
Last weekend, almost 4,000 people were detained in demonstrations in more than 110 cities in some of the largest anti-government rallies in years.
Since then, authorities have swiftly moved against Navalny’s closest allies, the media, and common supporters in a bid to quell an outpouring of dissent through a wave of detentions and acts of intimidation.
Navalny’s team is planning rallies in 142 cities across the country’s 11 time zones, with the largest beginning in Moscow at noon local time.
In the capital, protesters were being called upon to gather in Lubyanka Square outside the headquarters of the FSB security agency and Staraya Square, where the presidential administration has its offices.
The first arrest in Moscow was reported about two hours before the rally and live footage from the city showed a large number of police on the streets.
Ahead of the protests, Moscow police had said they would shut down much of the central part of city, including seven subway stations.
