DOCUMENT: STOP ILLEGAL "200 CHURCHES" PROGRAM
Statement of the Moscow City Coalition of Initiative Groups
The Moscow City Coalition of Initiative Groups issued a statement on an incident on Red Square in Moscow of the arrest of citizens in T-shirts with an image of a moose.
On 26 July 2015 more than a dozen Muscovites were arrested who were strolling on Red Square. The reason for the detention, according to police personnel, was simply that these people were wearing T-shirts with an image of a moose and the inscription "Public movement for Torfyanka."
Fifteen detainees, including a woman with a small child, were taken to an internal affairs department [OVD] in Kitai-gorod. The woman with a child was released soon and the rest of the detainees were divided up: 7 persons remained in the OVD in Kitai-gorod and 6 were taken to an OVD in Basmannoe. As a result of the trip in the police vehicle in the heat, one of the detainees became sick and an ambulance was called for him.
We, initiative groups and public organizations from all districts of Moscow, declare that the incident is the consequence and manifestation of demonstrative disregard of the laws of the Russian federation and Moscow by city leadership.
The actions of defenders of parks and the rights of Muscovites to land do not have an illegal character, and they are aimed exclusively against violations of citizens' rights and laws of the country committed by city officials. Officials of the structures of the government of Moscow have provoked citizens by their demonstrative irresponsible actions.
In conducting the arrest of Muscovites in T-shirts with the image of a moose the authorities merely emphasize their own selective relationships toward citizens. Although the law does not prohibit wearing T-shirts with inscriptions that do not contain profanity, on 26 July, protectors of a park who were peacefully strolling on Red Square were arrested by police not for performing some kind of aggressive actions, not for some kind of urgings, and not for violation of public order, but it was for T-shirts with the image of a moose and the phrase "Public movement for Torfyanka."
The reason for the arrest seems extremely strange, since a rather well known group of persons in Moscow, who call themselves the movement of "Forty forties," are not only not bothered by police while wearing identical T-shirts with the name of their organization and identical images of a warrior (the colors of the nazi party), but they also encourage their attempts to start massive brawls in public places. It is hard to escape the conclusion that in this case we are talking not about arbitrary action by police officers but about the fulfillment of a political order, essentially the cooperation with the illegal program of "200 churches." It is Torfyanka Park that must be protected from illegal construction within the framework of this alleged "program." Instead of legal mechanisms for the solution of a problem, some muscular fighters from the aggressive group of "Forty forties" are unleashed against Muscovites.
Builders and officials who are egging them on, trying to put pressure on residents, do not understand that the patience of the most loyal citizens is coming to an end. Legal meters of living spaces are being taken from people. The regime of arbitrariness and illegality which is being forced upon Muscovites is unbearable and unacceptable.
We demand that the prosecution of citizens who were arrested on Red Square on 26 July be stopped immediately and that the illegal program of "200 churches" that has been forced upon the city be halted.
The demonstrative supports by the authorities of builders and the attempt to solve the problem from a position of strength only intensifies conflict and tension within society.
The period when our dissatisfaction was addressed to the boards, prefectures, departments of Moscow government, and the supervisor of the program, V.I Resin, has passed. We understand with complete certainty that all the threads of the arbitrariness and illegality lead to No. 13 Tverskaia, and they are concentrated in the hands of the mayor of the city.
We consider that by his conscious actions the mayor of Moscow has frequently and deliberately violated the laws of the Russian federation and the city of Moscow and has shown blatant abuse of authority.
Coalition of Initiative Groups of the city of Moscow (tr. by PDS, posted 5 August 2015)
Russian original posted on Portal-credo.ru, 3 August 2015
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