Members of the pro-Kremlin youth group Locals march in Lyubertsy, outside Moscow, May 19, 2007.
Photo: Alexander Miridonov
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Pro-Kremlin Youth Ready to Rid Moscow of Opposition
The pro-Kremlin youth group Locals (Mestnye) held Marches for Agreement in 20 towns in the Moscow area with the participation of 20,000 teenagers, by their own count. Movement leaders say that “if the Homeland calls,” they will be ready in an hour to drive the “dissident bastards” out of downtown Moscow. “We are against political charlatans who want to divide our society before the elections. They are preparing to sell Russia out to the West,” Local leader Sergey Fateev told Kommersant.
Of the 1000 marchers declared in the nearby suburban city of Lyubertsy, 150 were counted. “The city administration insistently made it clear that we should not close off streets, and we heeded their request. Unlike the dissenters, we are law-abiding,” another movement leader explained. They marched and chanted peacefully on the sidewalk of the city's main street. Few passersby seemed to understand what they represented.
About 300 Locals members gathered on Revolution Square in Moscow, where State Duma member from the United Russia Party Valery Galchenko told them, “Do you know who the dissenters are? They are people who defy all principles of the political battle. They are not satisfied by growing salaries and a battle-ready army. They are not satisfied that Russia is a sovereign power and its authority in the world is growing.” Locals leader Alexander Kazakov declared that “I am proud to be loyal to the Kremlin.”
The police did not see any need to defend public order against the marchers.
www.kommersant.com
All the Article in Russian as of May 21, 2007
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