I heard that there was going to be a protest in St. Petersburg against electoral fraud in the ongoing parliamentary elections. The Finnish Consulate has adivced people to avoid these places. That's where I'm headed.
Nevsky Prospekt in the morning
10 a.m. Coffeeshop Nevski:
Rumour has it that people would start gathering at 11 a.m. in front of Gostiniy Dvor. Nothing to be seen yet.
10.30 a.m.
Received new information: time and place have been changed to 2 p.m. at Vostania (near the Stockmann department store).
11.30 a.m.
Ministry of internal affairs police troops (OMON) have started to gather at Vostania.
2 p.m.
The permission to set up a demonstration at Vostania has been denied, but another location at Pushkinskaya has been approved. The square appears to be practically empty. Three men are building a platform and close to twenty policemen are patrolling the area. I guess this is the right place?
2.40 p.m.
People are starting to show up. Approximately ten policemen in full riot gear have taken up positions.
3.30 p.m.
The square is full of people. Political rants can be heard. A recurring theme emerges from the slogans and catch phrases:
- Our country is free!
- We are free!
Riot control is well organized.
Nothing is left at chance. Uniformed servicemen are brought in by
the carload.
The black visor gives the policemen an ominous look.
I guess that's the point.
Young policemen anxiously fondling their weapons. With excited eyes they scan the crowd for instigators. What a pity if a good chance to put to use their riot training was wasted!
The event was over at about 5 o'clock. I was a bit surprised when it ended. I was warming up at a nearby theater, and when I came back, the speeches were over and people were rolling up banners. I asked a nearby group of youngsters if that was it. One of them told me that event was indeed over, but if I wanted to see a brawl I should stick around. I was starting to get a bit tired at that point, but since the action was going to pick up, I might as well stay for a while. I waited for an hour, but nothing happened. All the policemen in riot gear had exited their vehicles, and there was a lot of them.
The event was much more peaceful than I had expected. Images of policemen battering and dragging protesters did not become reality that day. I have to keep an eye on Finnish news broadcasts to see if anything interesting happens later tonight.
Screenshot from Finnish TV1 News
Dammit!
I just watched the Finnish news and apparently there had been a real hassle at Vostania. Should have stayed there instead of going to Pushkinskaya.
More pictures from the protest at Vostania courtesy of www.newsru.com.
Pic1
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