- Title: Thousands of communists call for fair poll in Moscow
- Date: 17th August 2019
- Summary: PROTESTERS HOLDING POSTER READING (Russian): 'SEPTEMBER 8 / VOTE FOR REAL OPPOSITION'
- Embargoed: 31st August 2019 13:25
- Keywords: Russia communists rally Moscow election Moscow city parliament Zyuganov
- Location: MOSCOW, RUSSIA
- City: MOSCOW, RUSSIA
- Country: Russia
- Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace,Civil Unrest
- Reuters ID: LVA003ASLVN7R
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Around four thousand communists staged a rally on Saturday (August 17) for the fair election to the Moscow city parliament.
Members of the Russian communist party as well as other socialist and left-wing movements gathered for an authorised protest in Moscow, calling for the political change in the country and open dialogue between the authority and the people.
Moscow has been rocked by weekly protests for more than a month since the authorities barred opposition candidates from running in an election for the city's legislature in September.
Police have briefly detained more than 2,000 protesters in recent weeks, launched criminal cases against some dozen people for mass disorder and used force to disperse what they said were illegal protests.
The recent opposition demonstrations have turned into the biggest sustained protest movement in Russia since 2011-2013, when protesters took to the streets against perceived electoral fraud.
Earlier on Saturday some 4,000 people attended a Communist rally in Moscow that had been authorised by the authorities to call for "clear and honest elections" in Moscow, police said.
(Production: Mikhail Antonov, Anton Derbenev) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2019. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
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