Strategy 31 protest: at least 25 arrested in Moscow

Police arrested at least 25 people protesting at Triumphalnaya Square in central Moscow for the right to free assembly today, the Associated Press reported.

The group of 50 to 100 demonstrators who gathered for the New Year’s Eve protest are part of a movement called Strategy 31 that holds unauthorized protests on the last day of every month with 31 days, Reuters reported.

According to Reuters:

Freedom of assembly is guaranteed in Article 31 of Russia's constitution, but activists say the government restricts that right by requiring organizers to get official permission, which is frequently denied.

Prominent radical writer Eduard Limonov was among the protesters who were arrested this evening, the AP reported.

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The arrests were not unexpected. Central Moscow’s chief of police had warned protesters not to show up at the demonstration after City Hall rejected the group’s application to hold a sanctioned rally, RIA Novosti reported.

Last year, about 200 protesters turned out for the rally, and 60 people were detained.

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