Translated material
Just the children came out
Dancing for Catalonia, police violence and the song "Battery" for promotions on October 7 in St. Petersburg. Reporting Pavel Merzlikin
On October 7, throughout Russia, a protest announced by politician Alexei Navalny passed through. Their participants demanded to free Navalny from custody and allow him to the presidential election in 2018; The shares were also timed to the birthday of Russian President Vladimir Putin. In St. Petersburg, where the action was not agreed with the authorities, the supporters of Navalny first gathered on the Field of Mars, then blocked the foundry Prospekt, and eventually reached Palace Square. In total, according to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, 1800 people participated in the rally and procession; During the action, several dozen activists were detained (and later released), some of them were beaten during the detention. The Medusa correspondent Pavel Merzlikin spent six hours with the protesters and told how the action went in support of Navalny in St. Petersburg.
Six o’clock in the evening on October 7th. Marse field. Six people - four girls and two guys no older than 18 years old - take hands. On the shoulders of two - the flag of Catalonia. Spanish music plays. Having lowered their eyes to the floor, young people begin to dance. Nearby - several more Petersburgers with the same flags and manuscript posters with the slogans "Catalonia is freedom!" And "Catalonia, we are with you." They do not dance - they stand and look at the supporters of Alexei Navalny surrounding them: it was at 18.00 that the action was formally announced, dedicated to the birthday of Vladimir Putin, in St. Petersburg, and by this moment about a thousand supporters of the opposition politician gathered here. Most of them are not older than those who are dancing for the independence of Catalonia.
- How much do you pay? - one of the supporters of Navalny asked people with flags.
- Not at all, we are just students.
About the same, activists answered the Medusa correspondent, saying that they are not in any organization and support the people of Catalonia from the heart. At the same time, a source familiar with the representatives of the “Young Guard of United Russia” told Medusa that the action was organized by them, and the dancing activists received a “bonus” in the amount of 500 rubles or more. (The press service of the St. Petersburg branch of the "Young Guard" "Medusa" on October 6 stated that they did not plan shares in support of Catalonia.)
While some activists talked with others, from the other end of the Mars of the field, the announcement was heard from the specially brought speakers: "You were deceived, the action was not agreed." Further, the voice said that the police would probably begin to detain Navalny's supporters, but those have an excellent way out - specially for them in the Rodina cinema at 18.30 a free session of the film “Crimea” will be held. Oppositionists responded to the proposal of applause and began to chant “shame!”; Nobody wanted to go to the cinema.
The St. Petersburg action of Navalny's supporters in the same surreal spirit continued. In the center of the crowd of protesters, activists in masks of Vladimir Putin and State Duma deputy Vitaly Milonov were discovered. A little at a distance, a group of opposition -minded young people in chorus performed the song of the Lumen group “Burn”: “A huge blue whale cannot break the network / surrender or not, but still burn.” They were drowned out by the jeal of tractors that clear the territory of the Mars of the field as part of the planned repair work, which began there this week.
Those activists who did not find artistic application looked confused. They languidly discussed the corruption and age of Putin (on October 7 he turned 65), and also complained that the Russians could not understand the importance of the change of power: "Putin thinks that he is an emperor." Numerous police officers who arrived at Marse Paul a few hours before the start of the action almost did not react to the opposition - unless they asked not to climb the memorial.
Half an hour later, a crowd of protesters resolutely moved to the exit from the Mars of the field, chanting “Putin - thief”, “Putin - grandfather” and “Happy Birthday, Vova”. Several hundred people went to the foundry of the avenue and actually blocked the street. At first, no one bothering the protesters - however, closer to the intersection with Nevsky Prospect, a chain of riot police officers in full uniforms blocked the road to them. Supporters of Navalny (most of them were no more than 20 years old) demanded to miss them, but law enforcement officers refused to do this. Scandration "Police with the people" also did not help. About 10 activists were able to break through the riot police chain and slip to the exit to Nevsky, after which the first detentions began.
The police detained the opposition in groups, grabbing those who had at least some attributes with the word “Navalny”. In total, several dozen people were detained (according to various sources, from 40 to 100), many were injured. Activist Marina Bukina from the Group of Assistance to the detainees said that one of the riot police hit her with a club on the head when she tried to protect the journalist David Frenkel from the police. “According to preliminary examinations, the wound is 4 centimeters long, bifurcating. While I am conscious, ”she said . Activist Ildar Dadin and an employee of the Corruption Fund Georgy Alburov were detained here.
Police and other activists beat . Some were more fortunate - the riot police approached them and demanded that they tear the leaflet of Navalny or throw out another paraphernalia into the trash, after which the protesters were released.
Those who managed to remain at large, shouting slogans (this time - “Russia will be free” and “patriots are we”) moved to the alleys to the Square of the uprising. By 19.30, at least 500 people accumulated there - and they were again met by a chain from riot police. They discussed with each other that they did not want to detain anyone: “just the children came out” - and complained that Navalny stole a day off
The organizers of the action, the St. Petersburg headquarters of Navalny, called on those gathered at the Gallery to go home: “Friends, we gloriously congratulated grandfather. OMON is tightened, let's leave them with nothing - we diverge. ” However, the protesters judged differently. They crashed into several groups. Someone shouted slogans, someone waved the flag of Russia, someone sang songs-from Russian and Ukrainian hymns to "everything goes according to plan." Others simply talked-with each other or with passers-by who called the supporters of Navalny “idiots”, “gay community” or “youngsters”. One of these discussions ended in a fight that the police eventually spread.
The next two hours on the Square of the uprising were stably. Every ten minutes, the police detained especially active participants in the action, and the rest of the opposition were asked to disperse; Those in response chanted the “fourth term - prison”, and once even threw a glass bottle into the police car. Someone left, but several hundred protesters continued to remain in the square-besides, people who left the Gallery shopping center were mixed with them (however, at some point they still closed it).
Around 21.30, activists decided to go to Palace. With the chanting "Kelterov!", "Ligalasis!" And “only traffic lights will stop us” about three hundred people marched along Nevsky, not meeting any resistance. In parallel from the police branches, they began to release the detainees - according to official figures, there were 40 of them; The vast majority of them were designed as violators of the rules of the road (probably for access to the roadway). They want to start a criminal case for hooliganism on an activist, who allegedly threw a bottle in a car zapak.
The crowd shouted “We are power” to the palace. There they were met by a street musician who at that moment performed the song to the “watchmen” of the Boombox group. Supporters of Navalny in chorus supported the composition, and then tried to persuade the artist to give them a microphone - he, however, refused, saying that the music was outside the politics, and tightened the composition of the “battery”. About two hundred protesters picked up her.
Not meeting on Palace Square any resistance from law enforcement agencies, Navalny's supporters gradually began to diverge home - and by midnights they completely dispersed. Some of them said that they would come again. Brushing their hands for goodbye, they seemed to say a toast: "For the beautiful Russia of the future!"
Pavel Merzlikin , St. Petersburg