Russia detains more than 1,300 in anti-mobilisation protests
Rallies held in cities including Moscow and St Petersburg, says independent protest monitoring group
21 September 2022 - 23:28
byAgency Staff
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Russian police officers detain men during a protest against the mobilisation of reservists ordered by President Vladimir Putin, in Moscow, Russia, September 21 2022. Picture: REUTERS
London — Security forces detained more than 1,300 people in Russia on Wednesday at protests denouncing mobilisation, a rights group said, hours after President Vladimir Putin ordered Russia’s first military draft since World War 2.
The independent OVD-Info protest monitoring group said that according to information it had collated from 38 Russian cities, more than 1,311 people had been held by late evening.
It said those figures included at least 502 in Moscow and 524 in St Petersburg, Russia’s second most populous city.
Unsanctioned rallies are illegal under Russia’s anti-protest laws.
Russian interior ministry official Irina Volk, in a statement quoted by Russian news agencies, said officers had cut short attempts to stage what it called small protests.
“In a number of regions, there were attempts to stage unauthorised actions which brought together an extremely small number of participants,” Volk was quoted as saying.
“These were all stopped. And those persons who violated laws were detained and taken to police stations for investigation and establish their responsibility.”
One-way flights out of Russia were rocketing in price and selling out fast on Wednesday after Putin ordered the immediate call-up of 300,000 reservists.
Meanwhile, EU members Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia, which border Russia, will not offer refuge to any Russians fleeing Moscow’s mobilisation of troops, their ministers said on Wednesday.
“A refusal to fulfil one’s civic duty in Russia or a desire to do so does not constitute sufficient grounds for being granted asylum in another country”, Estonian foreign minister Urmas Reinsalu said in email to Reuters.
On Twitter, Latvian foreign minister Edgars Rinkevics cited security concerns for the refusal. The Lithuanian interior ministry said each asylum case would be weighted separately.
The three countries, and Poland, began turning away Russian citizens from their borders at midnight on Monday, saying they should not travel while their country is at war with Ukraine.
The ban excludes Russian dissidents seeking refuge in the EU along with lorry drivers, refugees and permanent residents of EU countries, as well as those visiting close family members.
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
Russia detains more than 1,300 in anti-mobilisation protests
Rallies held in cities including Moscow and St Petersburg, says independent protest monitoring group
London — Security forces detained more than 1,300 people in Russia on Wednesday at protests denouncing mobilisation, a rights group said, hours after President Vladimir Putin ordered Russia’s first military draft since World War 2.
The independent OVD-Info protest monitoring group said that according to information it had collated from 38 Russian cities, more than 1,311 people had been held by late evening.
It said those figures included at least 502 in Moscow and 524 in St Petersburg, Russia’s second most populous city.
Unsanctioned rallies are illegal under Russia’s anti-protest laws.
Russian interior ministry official Irina Volk, in a statement quoted by Russian news agencies, said officers had cut short attempts to stage what it called small protests.
“In a number of regions, there were attempts to stage unauthorised actions which brought together an extremely small number of participants,” Volk was quoted as saying.
“These were all stopped. And those persons who violated laws were detained and taken to police stations for investigation and establish their responsibility.”
One-way flights out of Russia were rocketing in price and selling out fast on Wednesday after Putin ordered the immediate call-up of 300,000 reservists.
Meanwhile, EU members Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia, which border Russia, will not offer refuge to any Russians fleeing Moscow’s mobilisation of troops, their ministers said on Wednesday.
“A refusal to fulfil one’s civic duty in Russia or a desire to do so does not constitute sufficient grounds for being granted asylum in another country”, Estonian foreign minister Urmas Reinsalu said in email to Reuters.
On Twitter, Latvian foreign minister Edgars Rinkevics cited security concerns for the refusal. The Lithuanian interior ministry said each asylum case would be weighted separately.
The three countries, and Poland, began turning away Russian citizens from their borders at midnight on Monday, saying they should not travel while their country is at war with Ukraine.
The ban excludes Russian dissidents seeking refuge in the EU along with lorry drivers, refugees and permanent residents of EU countries, as well as those visiting close family members.
Reuters
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