Perilous
Times
Hundreds of protesters arrested following Russian elections
Hundreds of people have been arrested in Russia following
widespread protests at election results that saw Vladimir Putin's
United Russia scrape home with a majority.
By Andrew Osborn, Moscow and Alex Spillius in Bonn
6:30AM GMT 06 Dec 2011
Despite the failure of the ruling United Russia party to win even
half the vote, monitors said the polls had been slanted in its
favour.
The contentious vote sparked vast opposition rallies in Moscow and
the second city of Saint Petersburg with police saying 300 people
were arrested in Moscow alone, including popular anti-corruption
blogger Alexei Navalny.
"Russia without Putin," the demonstrators cried.
Police said they arrested about 100 others at the Saint Petersburg
rally, which was not authorised.
Britain and the United States have expressed "serious concern"
about the conduct of Russia's parliamentary elections, which
election monitors said had stifled competition and shown a "lack
of fairness".
Hillary Clinton, the US Secretary of State, called for an
investigation into the polls, which saw United Russia party
narrowly gain a majority of seats but lose nearly 15 per cent of
its support from the previous election.
In remarks sure to antagonise Russia's most powerful man, she said
monitors from the Organisation of Security and Cooperation in
Europe had raised questions about the possible stuffing of ballot
boxes, manipulation of voter lists "and other troubling
practices".
She said Washington was also concerned that internal Russian
election monitors were harassed, including by cyber-attacks on
their websites.
"Russian voters deserve a full investigation of all credible
reports of electoral fraud and manipulation and we hope in
particular that then Russian authorities will take action" said
Mrs Clinton, attending an international conference on Afghanistan
in Bonn.
She added: "The Russian people, like people everywhere, deserve
free, fair, transparent elections and leaders who are accountable
to them."
William Hague, the Foreign Secretary, said Britain accepted the
OCSE's reporting without question. "It does give rise to serious
concerns and I hope this will be taken very seriously by the
Russian authorities. We look forward to seeing how they will act."
Observers from the OSCE declared that the election was marred by
"serious indications of ballot stuffing" and "a convergence of the
state and the governing party, limited political competition and a
lack of fairness."
"These elections were like a game in which only some players are
allowed on the pitch, and then the field is tilted in favour of
one of the players," said Heidi Tagliavini, chief observer from
the OSCE's Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights.
Winning almost half the share of the vote would be considered a
triumph in many other countries, but the sharp fall in support
coupled with credible fraud allegations meant United Russia had
little to celebrate.
The election was the first chance Russians were given to pronounce
on Mr Putin's decision to return to the presidency next year after
serving four years as prime minister with his hand-picked
successor Dmitry Medvedev as president. It was hardly a ringing
endorsement.
With 96 per cent of the vote counted, the Central Election
Commission said United Russia had won 49.5 per cent of the vote,
technically short of a simple majority but just enough to win a
majority of seats in the Duma, the lower house of parliament. The
party is forecast to control 238 seats in the 450-seat Duma for
the next five years, down from 315 seats previously.
The Communist party came second with almost 20 per cent of the
vote with two Kremlin-friendly parties coming third and fourth.
Several thousand people on Monday night protested in Moscow
against Mr Putin and his party, in what was perhaps the largest
opposition rally in years. Police detained some of the activists.
A group of several hundred then marched toward the Central
Elections Commission near the Kremlin, but were stopped by riot
police and taken away in buses.
Estimates of the number of protesters Monday night ranged from
5,000 to 10,000. They chanted "Russia without Putin."
"The honeymoon is over," Boris Nemtsov, one of the country's main
opposition leaders, told Ekho Moskvy radio. "Putin and his party
have suffered a crushing defeat. Nobody will consider this
parliament legally elected." Mr Nemtsov, whose anti-Kremlin PARNAS
party was banned from contesting the election on a technicality,
said an incident last month in which Mr Putin was publicly booed
risked becoming routine unless the strongman allowed more
political freedom.
"The main result of these elections is that the people have
understood that the king has no clothes," he said.
Mr Putin and Mr Medvedev put a brave face on the results insisting
the elections were entirely fair.
"This will allow us to work calmly and smoothly, maintaining
stability," Mr Putin told a government meeting on Monday.
Many Russians credit Mr Putin with delivering higher living
standards and restoring national pride. But for some the appeal is
wearing thin.
Nadezhda Khromchenko, a pensioner handing out leaflets outside a
central Moscow metro station, said she had voted Communist and was
pleased United Russia had been given a black eye.
"Look how poorly we live," she fumed. "They have looted the state
but done nothing to help people like me. It is not for nothing
they are called the party of thieves and swindlers."