Putin Opponents Protest Presidential Win Amid Fraud Claims
Thousands of protesters rallied in central Moscow’s Pushkin Square the day after Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin claimed victory in a presidential election that international observers said was unfair.
More than 200 people were detained, some at unsanctioned rallies in other parts of Moscow, Interfax reported, citing an unidentified police official. Opposition leader Alexei Navalny was held along with activists Ilya Yashin and Sergei Udaltsov, it said. The Moscow police press office couldn’t immediately confirm the number or identity of those arrested.
“Putin threw down a challenge to us all,” Sergei Mitrokhin, leader of the pro-democracy Yabloko party, told the Pushkin Square gathering, estimated by organizers at 20,000 people. “From this moment on, the real battle starts.”
The opposition is seeking to maintain pressure on Putin after the Russian leader won another six years in the Kremlin with about 64 percent of yesterday’s presidential vote, according to the official tally. Putin, 59, has been in power for 12 years, including the last four as premier.
Crowd numbers were lower today than during protests over alleged fraud in December parliamentary elections that marked the biggest unrest during Putin’s rule. Navalny called for new tactics, such as a campaign of civil disobedience and sit-ins.
‘Difficult Third Term’
“Putin is facing a difficult third term,” Lilit Gevorgyan, Russia analyst at IHS Global Insight in London, said today by e-mail. “Here the opposition and the Russian public have an important role to play.”
A competing pro-Putin rally of 15,000 people took place near the Kremlin today, a day after more than 100,000 people attended the premier’s victory celebration there, state television said.
Observers from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe identified violations including ballot- stuffing at one-third of the polling stations monitored by the democracy watchdog.
The ballot “didn’t meet important democratic standards,” Tonino Picula from the OSCE’s parliamentary assembly told reporters in Moscow. “The point of an election is that the outcome should be uncertain. This was not the case in Russia.”
Independent Investigation
The U.S. State Department said it’s looking forward to working with Putin after the election results are certified and he’s sworn in. It also endorsed the OSCE’s preliminary report.
“We urge the Russian government to conduct an independent, credible investigation of all reported electoral violations,” spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said in an e-mailed statement.
Communist leader Gennady Zyuganov, who came in second place with about 17 percent, refused to congratulate Putin or recognize his election victory.
Putin last night insisted he obtained a fair victory. “We won in an open and honest fight,” he told backers hours after polls closed last night. “We showed that our people can easily distinguish between a desire for novelty and renewal from political provocations which have only one goal: to destroy Russian statehood and usurp power.”
To contact the reporters on this story: Ilya Arkhipov in Moscow at iarkhipov@bloomberg.net; Anton Doroshev in Moscow at adoroshev@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Balazs Penz at bpenz@bloomberg.net
Putin Denounces Rivals Who Claim Fraud Won Him Presidency
Alexander Zemlianichenko/AP
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, center, greets supporters at his election headquarters in Krasnoyarsk, Russia, on March 5, 2012.
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, center, greets supporters at his election headquarters in Krasnoyarsk, Russia, on March 5, 2012. Photographer: Alexander Zemlianichenko/AP
March 5 (Bloomberg) -- Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin claimed victory in a presidential election and six more years in the Kremlin after winning 63.8 percent of the vote, with more than 99 percent of all ballots counted. Linzie Janis reports on Bloomberg Television's "Countdown." (Source: Bloomberg)
March 5 (Bloomberg) -- Masha Lipman, an analyst at Carnegie Moscow Center, talks about Vladimir Putin's victory in a presidential election that his opponents say was marred by fraud. She speaks from Moscow with Caroline Hyde on Bloomberg Television's "First Look." (Source: Bloomberg)
March 2 (Bloomberg) -- Kirill Dmitriev, chief executive officer of the Russian Direct Investment Fund, discusses the outlook for Russia's business climate if Prime Minister Vladimir Putin is elected president. He speaks from Moscow with Maryam Nemazee on Bloomberg Television's "The Pulse." (Source: Bloomberg)
Putin Denounces Rivals Who Claim Fraud Won Him Presidency
Alexander Zemlianichenko Jr./Bloomberg
Russia's Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, left, and Russia's President Dmitry Medvedev speak to supporters during a rally in Manezh square following Putin's presidential election victory in Moscow.
Russia's Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, left, and Russia's President Dmitry Medvedev speak to supporters during a rally in Manezh square following Putin's presidential election victory in Moscow. Photographer: Alexander Zemlianichenko Jr./Bloomberg
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin
Yuri Kabodnov/AFP/Getty Images
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin delivers a speech during a rally with his supporters at the Luzhniki stadium in Moscow.
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin delivers a speech during a rally with his supporters at the Luzhniki stadium in Moscow. Photographer:Yuri Kabodnov/AFP/Getty Images
Vladimir Putin
Yuri Kabodnov/AFP/Getty Images
Russia's Prime Minister and presidential candidate Vladimir Putin votes in a polling station in Moscow, on March 4, 2012.
Russia's Prime Minister and presidential candidate Vladimir Putin votes in a polling station in Moscow, on March 4, 2012. Photographer: Yuri Kabodnov/AFP/Getty Images
Putin Wins Six More Years at the Kremlin
Viktor Drachev/AFP/Getty Images
A woman marks her ballot at home as a member of a local electoral commission stands behind her with a mobile ballot box in the village of Muravshchina.
A woman marks her ballot at home as a member of a local electoral commission stands behind her with a mobile ballot box in the village of Muravshchina. Photographer: Viktor Drachev/AFP/Getty Images
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