VZCZCXRO5363
OO RUEHDBU
DE RUEHMO #1310/01 0851216
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 261216Z MAR 07
FM AMEMBASSY MOSCOW
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 8612
INFO RUCNCIS/CIS COLLECTIVE
RUEHXD/MOSCOW POLITICAL COLLECTIVE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 MOSCOW 001310 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/26/2017 
TAGS: PGOV PHUM KDRM SOCI RS
SUBJECT: OVERWHELMING POLICE PRESENCE STOPS MARCH IN 
NIZHNIY NOVGOROD 
 
REF: MOSCOW 1240 
 
Classified By: Ambassador William J. Burns.  Reason:  1.4 (d). 
 
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Summary 
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¶1. (C) Nizhniy Novogorod authorities used an overwhelming law 
enforcement presence to thwart the efforts of several hundred 
"Other Russia" activists to stage a "March of Dissenters" 
down a central pedestrian avenue on March 24. Eyewitnesses 
report that a number of would-be marchers were beaten.  About 
one hundred participants, including as many as 12 
journalists, were detained by police.  "Other Russia" leaders 
Garry Kasparov, Eduard Limonov, former Prime Minister Mikhail 
Kasyanov, and activist Irina Khakamada were notably absent. 
Human Rights Ombudsman Vladimir Lukin reportedly urged Mayor 
Vadim Bulavinov in a March 24 telephone call to rein in the 
police.  We are expressing out concern about the behavior of 
the police and local authorities to the GOR.  Suggested press 
guidance, para 8.  End summary. 
 
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March Pre-empted 
---------------- 
 
¶2. (SBU) City authorities on March 24 followed through on 
their promise to crush any effort by "Other Russia" and 
affiliated organizations to stage the third in a series of 
"March of Dissenters" in central Nizhniy Novgorod.  (The 
first two marches had been held in Moscow and St. 
Petersburg.)  According to press reports and eyewitness 
accounts, as many as 20 thousand (sic) uniformed law 
enforcement officials, many bused in from other cities, 
detained passengers arriving by train on the morning of March 
24, then wrapped up anyone attempting to visit the city's 
central square in advance of the planned march. (Note:  We 
find this figure difficult to believe, as larger rallies in 
Moscow are "managed" by forces numbering closer to 7 
thousand.) 
 
¶3. (SBU) Oksana Chelysheva of the Nizhniy Novgorod-based 
Russian-Chechen Friendship Society told us that among those 
detained were the local leaders of the National Bolshevik 
Party (NBP); an aide to Garry Kasparov; Russian-Chechen 
Friendship Society Chairman Stanislav Dmitrievskiy, and 
Vanguard of Red Youth movement leader Sergey Udaltsov.  Also 
detained and, in at least one instance beaten, were as many 
as twelve journalists, including several foreign 
correspondents.  In addition to the would-be participants and 
journalists, a number of observers and passers-by were also 
detained and in some cases struck by the police.  As of March 
26, the vast majority of the estimated 110 persons detained 
have been released. 
 
------------------------------------ 
City - Marchers Stand-off 
Follows Disagreement on Meeting Site 
------------------------------------ 
 
¶4. (SBU) The stand-off between march organizers and city 
authorities crystallized after "Other Russia" rejected the 
Nizhniy Novgorod's near-central Lenin Square as a site for 
its rally (reftel).  With the end of the negotiations, city 
authorities began to harass "Other Russia," confiscating 
special edition newspapers announcing the march, calling in 
organizers for questioning, hastily scheduling a children's 
event for the same venue on March 24, beginning construction 
on the main thoroughfare along which demonstrators were to 
march, and deploying disinformation. 
 
---------------------- 
Human Rights Ombudsman 
Intervenes with Mayor 
---------------------- 
 
¶5. (C) Deputy Director of the Nizhniy Novgorod-based United 
Civil Front Mikhail Yevdokimov March 26 attributed city 
overkill to Mayor Bulavinov's efforts to convince the Kremlin 
that he had the city well in hand as his current term of 
office comes to an end. 
 
¶6. (C) Svetlana Gannushkina of the NGO Civil Assistance told 
us March 26 that she had asked GOR Human Rights Ombudsman 
Vladimir Lukin to intervene on March 24.  Lukin, she said, 
had immediately via telephone urged moderation on Bulavinov. 
Gannushkina believed Lukin's telephone call may have 
restrained city authorities from filing criminal charges 
against any of the participants.  (The media report, however, 
that 29 participants may face administrative charges.) 
 
MOSCOW 00001310  002 OF 002 
 
 
 
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Movement Leaders Absent 
----------------------- 
 
¶7. (C) Notably absent on march day were "Other Russia" 
luminaries Garry Kasparov, National Bolshevik Party Eduard 
Limonov, ex-Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov, and political 
activist Irina Khakamada.  Kasparov was reportedly traveling 
in Germany on business, while Limonov may have been 
preoccupied in Moscow with GOR efforts to shut down his 
movement on charges of extremism. 
 
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Suggested Press Guidance 
------------------------ 
 
¶8. (SBU) Embassy suggests the following press guidance for 
use in responding to inquiries about the march: 
 
-- We are very concerned about the detention and beating of 
political opposition activists in Nizhniy Novgorod, who were 
attempting to participate in a peaceful protest, called the 
"march of dissent." 
 
-- A march earlier this month in St. Petersburg was marred by 
similar, heavy-handed police behavior. 
 
-- The actions of the local authorities in St. Petersburg and 
Nizhniy Novgorod raise serious questions about the Russian 
government's commitment to freedom of assembly and expression. 
 
-- We urge the Russian government to respect freedom of the 
press, speech, and assembly, and to adhere fully to 
international standards for the protection of human rights. 
 
-- (If asked):  Has the USG raised its concerns with the GOR? 
 We have expressed our concerns to the Russian government, 
and have urged it to respect the right to freedom of assembly. 
 
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Comment 
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¶9. (C) The city and law enforcement authorities' overreaction 
in Nizhniy Novgorod is likely a by-product of several 
factors: 
 
-- the precedent set by the Matvienko administration's 
handling of the March 3 St. Petersburg march, 
 
-- exaggerated fears about the possibly volatile behavior of 
National Bolshevik Party participants, 
 
-- inexperience in that formerly-closed city in coping with 
opposition street activity, 
 
-- a desire to prove to the Kremlin that everything is under 
control, 
 
-- a consensus among those in power that those who have 
rejected electoral politics, however constrained that 
environment may be, are beyond the pale. 
 
¶10. (C) Mission is conveying our concern about the behavior 
of the authorities to relevant GOR officials, including the 
MFA and Russian Human Rights Commissioner Vladimir Lukin. 
BURNS