Moscow City Hall has turned down an application for a rally commemorating the August Coup of 1991, event co-organizer Mikhail Shneider announced on his Facebook page Wednesday. It is the first time in 24 years that the city authorities have turned down the application for the annual event, he said.
Organizers had
requested permission to march
from the Gorbaty Bridge to the “Defenders of
a Free Russia” monument close to the Novy Arbat. Authorities said
repairs to the streets near Moscow’s White
House, where the memorial events have taken place since 1992, meant that the march could not take place.
Two other events — one in memory of the dead
heroes of the Soviet Union and defenders of free Russia, the other in
memory of the defenders of the White House — were also turned down, Shneider said. Officials have offered Sokolniki Park and Suvorovskaya Ploshchad in the north of Moscow as
alternative venues.
Shneider and fellow co-organizer Lev Ponomaryov, a prominent human rights advocate, plan to contest the decision.
Russia's August Coup in 1991 saw hardliners within the Soviet Union’s Communist Party attempt to wrest control of the government from leader Mikhail Gorbachev. The coup’s bloodless failure is considered by many to have sparked the fall of communism and the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
A Message from The Moscow Times:
Dear readers,
We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."
These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.
We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.
Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.
By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.
Remind me later.
