At the end of May, Oborona together with Youth Committee of Solidarnost movement carried out direct-action performance as an “advertisement” of upcoming rally on May, 31th.

Several cardboard dummies were smuggled in “Okhotny ryad” shopping mall and successfully installed there: two dummies of police special squad (“OMON”) men and two “free people”, participants of Strategy-31 campaign. Inventive poet from Oborona created the slogan “OMON – that season is bygone”. Ingenious artists from Oborona depicted the aforesaid typical characters of every “31th-day” rally at Triumfalnaya square. “New fashion is FREEDOM”, the signboards on the pictures told.  “Cancel your lazy stupid shopping wandering, come to the rally at Triumfalnaya square on May, 31th” – was the clear implication directed to consumerism-surfeited visitors of rich boutiques,  that’s really cool for true citizen!

“United citizens of 31”, “Just do it” and “Be free” also became the slogans of our direct-action performance. The dummies fitted smoothly in respectable entourage and stood in place for an hour at least; dazed passerby-customers fervently took pictures of each other embracing our cardboard characters.

We remind the public that the rallies of Strategy-31 permanent campaign are intended to defend the freedom of assembly declared by 31th article of Constitution, and they take place on all 31th days of the months (if the date exists) in Moscow and other cities of Russia.

Be stylish, be FREE!

Recently ‘Oborona’ has performed a direct action against the latest would-be reform of school education, which is under discussion at the moment. With the help of a rope one activist of the movement descended from the roof of the Ministry of Education building in a gasmask and with the angel wings. Here we should remind that according to the reform much more attention will be paid to patriotic and religious education at schools.

Shortly after this spectacular performance brave angel was brought to earth and temporary detained by mundane police devils governed by very aggressive plain-clothed FSB officer Streltsov.

Three activists were arrested. One of them – Tivur Shaginurov – was beaten up by a policeman in civvies. The others said his face was bleeding. He is presumably accused of disorderly conduct and might be sentenced to 15 days of arrest.

Today Oborona organized at the office of Solidarity movement a seminar on the interaction of civil society activists and law enforcement officials. It was conducted by lawyer Elizabeth Prikhodina and human rights activist Nikolai Zboroshenko.

Since March 2011 militia (Russian law enforcement officials) was renamed to police. As we found out, that made no difference: police violates the rights of detainees as well as militia did it before and knows as little about law as the majority of Russia’s population. The lecturers told about all stages of detention. For example, the activists were reminded that policemen as well as militiamen must introduce themselves and explain the reason of detention. The law enforcement officials have no right to execute an illegal order. Even if they do it and arrest the activists, policemen may not take activists’ mobile phones which is very common.

Oborona reminds that legal literacy can help opposition activists in many situations. We shall continue to organize such seminars.

On the last weekend of February  Oborona organized and held the meeting with activists of Belarus youth democratic movement “Young Front”. We had a visit from the “Young Front” Vice-Chairman Mikalaj Dzemidzenka and activist Zmitser Yasevich.

About  30 activists of the two Russian opposition movements, ‘Oborona’ and ‘Solidarity’, came to meet and speak with their Belarusian colleagues.

In the course of the meeting guests have spoken about present situation in Belarus, including dramatic events of December 2010. A qualitative comparison of development, functioning and ways of liquidation of the authoritarian regimes in Russia and Belarus attracted audience’s great attention.

Moscow activists asked questions on the following political and economic issues:

– How the Belarusian youth organization “Young Front” has survived arrests of its leaders (Nasta Palazhanka and Zmitser Dashkevich) and whether there is any hope for their release;

– How the Belarusian opposition managed to lead about 30-50 thousand people who hadn’t been involved in civil-political movements before, to the streets;

– Which agitation methods can be used in Russia, where the opposition members have no access to media and cannot speak in public to their voters as officially registered candidates;

– What makes the budget of Belarus as a country;

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3-15 January, 2011. Daily solitary vigils were taking place near the detention centre on Simferopolsky boulevard, Moscow, dedicated to support unlawfully arrested oppositionists (who are under arrest since New Year’s Eve). In addition to these daily vigils, Oborona, and Youth Commitee of Solidarnost movement have installed onto the wall of nearby building the large canvas with portraits of Boris Nemtsov and Eduard Limonov, titled “Freedom to Heroes”. Police officers behaved brutaly, trying to wrest photocameras from journalists’ hands. Cops detained two activists, Anastasiya Rybachenko and Tivur Shaginurov. We’re not aware whether they really participated in the aforesaid action, but we’re sure they are true heroes themselves. Well, freedom to ALL heroes!

Activists Rybachenko and Shaginurov were detained and conveyed to Zyuzino police-station. There officers violently wrested the photocamera from Anastasiya by brute force, not bothering to explain on what grounds they are doing it and without writing confiscation protocol (which is compulsory). Another officer (who refused to give his name) tried to confiscate Tivur’s passport. Anastasiya and Tivur were charged with being responsible for “illegal rally”.

After 9 hours of detainment, about midnight(!), Rybachenko and Shaginurov were brought before J.P. court #99 of Zyuzino district, although maximum time of detainment for “non-arrestable offence” is 3 hours sharp. Only after midnight activists were released because JP, unwillingly, postponed the trial to another day due to the inconsistency of evidence and professionalism of defence lawyer.

On 10 December the Yuri Dolgorukiy monument participated in a picketing on Tverskaya square in Moscow. Oborona’s activists attached to the horse of Moscow’s founder a huge train ticket from Moscow to Tyumen for the capital’s new mayor, Sergei Sobyanin. On the ticket it was written: “We did not elect you!” We suggest that Sobyanin should come back to Tymen where he was a governor in 2001-2005. According to the ticket, he will have to travel 3rd class on the seat near the toilet, but then the bedclothes are included in the price.

The action took place as a part of Oborona’s federal campaign for returning governor elections in Russia. The campaign is particularly successful in St. Petersburg. It has been 6 years since the governor elections were cancelled. We shall not tolerate this anymore.

On November, 14 the meeting “Stop the violence in Khimki!” was hold in Moscow, near the Griboedov’s monument. It was timed to the second anniversary of attack on M. Beketov.
The meeting was supported by noise in token of indignation because of political terror. There were a lot of posters at the Square: “Won’t nobody respond?!”, “Down with political terror!”, “Who will protect the human rights advocates?”, “Konstantin Fetisov and Oleg Kashin were beaten, I demand to find clients!”, “unsolved attempted murders is shame of the state” and so on.
The action was supported in St. Petersburg. There was the meeting against arrests of “Strategy-31″ participants, commencements of prosecution against leaders of Peterburg’ branch of “Drygaya Rossia”, against beatings of journalists and inhuman unfounded activity of authorities aimed at intimidation of opposition in St. Petersburg.  The same actions were hold in other Russian cities and in Paris.
Later defenders of Shtutgartskiy park joined the action in token of solidarity with Himki’ activists.
Participants of all actions express indignation because of violence against journalists, public and political activists.

On the 12th of November activists of “Oborona” Nikolay Glykhin, Ryslan Islamov and Andrey Dykhonin were arrested during “The Day of Wrath” action. They were brought to the “Meschanskoe” and “Arbat” police departments. They are charged with administrative infractions according to the paragraph 20.2 of the Code of Administrative Offences of the Russian Federation.
Participants of the meeting got together at the Tverskaya Square in order to demand mayoral elections, demolition of a disreputable fence encircling the Triumfalnaya Square, discontinuance of construction in Kozikhinskiy lane. The Moscow citizens distributed leaflets, blew the whistle. The one of activists Gregory Torbiev set on fires at the Square, and because of it he is charged with the paragraph 318 of the Code of Criminal Offences of the Russian Federation – “violence against the public agent”.
In one moment the police began to push aside participants of the meeting in the direction of Bolshaya Dmitrovka street. At that time more than 100 participants went to the “Tverskoe” police department and continued the meeting there. By that time the organizers of “The Day of Wrath” Sergey Ydaltsov and Konstantin Kosyakin had already been in the department. Group of participants supporting activists got together near the police department and chanted “Discharge our friends!” Officers divided the crowd into groups of 15-20 people and took them away to the nearest police departments. Thereby Andrey Dykhonin was detained.
At present time all the “Oborona” acrivists  are free.

On the 9th of November Moscow-branch of “Oborona” celebrated 21st anniversary of the Fall of the Berlin wall. Activists came to disreputable ”Berlin wall” of our city – a fence encircling the Triumfalnaya Square. We are sure that within this fence no building activities are actually taking place, and it is only a flimsy pretense for the authorities to allow no protesters (who defend here the freedom of assembly) to the Square on every 31th date.

Coordinators of “Oborona” Tivur Shaginurov and Ilya Mishchenko glued the updated Dmitry Vrubel’s collage onto the fence of Triumfalnaya Square. Brezhnev and Putin, passionately kissing, are represented on the picture. 20 years ago the same artist depicted Brezhnev’s and Honecker’s kiss on the Berlin wall. Now, on the face of it, our political agenda has changed, but the official course hasn’t become less absurd.

The appeal of the developer (building company) looked like a cruel joke under the banner of “Oborona: “Dear Moscow citizens! We apologize for causing temporary inconvenience”.

 We don’t need the Berlin wall. We need the free city!

On the 31st of October the Strategy-31 action was hold in Pyatigorsk. Before the beginning of the action, on Friday, members of the center “Э” have led “preventive” discussion with one of its participants Michael Parshin. Employees of this structure blurted phrases like: «if you haven’t personal claims what for do you go into the streets?», «you [Michael Parshin] are the BenLaden’s right hand» or « in Soviet period people were put into prisons for such caricatures». Despite of such pressure, it was decided to held the action.
The action’s format was a number of single pickets (activists Michael and Vladimir stood in picket). Though there were not a lot of participants of the meeting on the streets, passers-by were interested in the event, and activists told them about Strategy-31 and that its purpose is protection of 31 articles of the Russian Constitution, guaranteeing to citizens a freedom of assembly.
A militiaman came soon and demanded to “bring to a close”. In reply to the request to show the certificate and somehow to prove his actions, he departed aside and started to call somewhere by a cellular telephone. Soon some more militiamen and one employee of center “Э” came. Victor Mihajlovich Fisenko, the deputy chief of Pyatigorsk’s Interior department supervised personally their actions. It is remarkable that some militiamen personally expressed support for the picket because «it’s impossible to achieve something from our authorities».
Then militiamen started to demand that the participants of picket to write explanations and also forced one of eyewitnesses to remove some photos on which militiamen have been embodied. On the question «what law do we break when we photograph militiamen?» we didn’t receive the answer.
Concerning Vladimir’s participation in the action Victor Mihajlovich Fisenko has told that in the near future a certain letter will come to his university. Michael was tried to expose the infringer of rules of the public actions’ organization in connection with that «probably, it will be administrative infringement». The report about the administrative offense wasn’t made, nobody was transmit to department.