Translated material
Udaltsov is free!
Several hundred people (ordinary citizens, activist supporters and journalists) gathered yesterday at the special detention center of the Moscow Central Internal Affairs Directorate on Simferopol Boulevard to meet the leader of the Left Front Sergei Udaltsov and civil activist Yaroslav Nikitenko, who were to be released.
If Yaroslav Nikitenko was kept in a bunk for 10 days (he was detained illegally, for no reason - the guy just stood on the sidewalk and wrote on Twitter), then Sergei Udaltsov remained in custody for exactly a month, from December 4, periodically moving from prison bunks to a hospital bed under unrelenting control of riot police.
Taking into account the fact that legal chaos has long and systematically been happening in relation to Udaltsov (as a result of which he was deprived of his freedom for about 100 days over the past year), today there was no confidence that Udaltsov would be handed over to us, and not transported again under a far-fetched pretext to court.
The 2 hours we spent in the cold were rewarded - the guys were finally released (though Udaltsov was taken from the special detention center to the Nagatinsky Zaton police station, and Nikitenko to the Shchukino police station; protocols were drawn up “at the place of residence”).
At about 9 p.m., the emaciated and exhausted Udaltsov was brought to the support group at the special detention center by State Duma deputy Ilya Ponomarev.
The situation by this time was developing nervously, riot police and some bureaucrats from the OPOP tried to persuade everyone to leave, they say, Sergei and Yaroslav “have been at home for a long time, in the family” (which greatly surprised Sergei’s wife Nastya, who was on duty with us at the special detention center), then from the crowds grabbed some old man who raised a portrait of Udaltsov over his head, dragged him into a paddy wagon, but then, frightened by the grinning crowd, they decided to let him get away from harm.
A crowd surrounded the exhausted Udaltsov and did not let him go for about 40 minutes, asking questions, asking for an interview, and not allowing him to pass.
At the same time, every minute someone from the crowd shouted “Nastya, take him home!” Still, he is still very weak...
Sergei thanked everyone who took part in his life for a long time for their support and help, saying that he was happy and inspired, because he felt that people supported him, and also because the situation in Russia was changing before our eyes. He talked about the need to comprehend the tactics of further struggle, outline a plan for further actions, not succumb to the provocations of the authorities, maintain composure and sanity, explain to people your program and strategy for further actions, seize the initiative, and not trail behind your opponents.
On January 8, the Council of the Left Front will be held, and in the coming days the opposition will discuss preparations for mass protests on February 4.