Opposition hits St. Petersburg

Thousands of demonstrators marched through the streets of St. Petersburg on Saturday to protest against Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, who is expected to win next Sunday's presidential election.

Some carried balloons and wore white ribbons, which, in recent weeks, have become a symbol of Russia's opposition movement.

"The event on March 4 cannot be called an election," protest leader Alexei Navalny told reporters prior to the demonstration. "People should not be looking at it as an election but as an opportunity to create as much stress for the authorities as possible … by voting for anybody but Putin."

Navalny, an anti-corruption blogger, has emerged as one of the leading figures in the Russian opposition. He spent 15 days in prison last December on charges of obstructing justice at a demonstration in Moscow.

Parliamentary vote sparks protests

It was one of the first major protests since the collapse of the Soviet Union nearly 20 years ago. It followed the December 4 parliamentary election, in which Putin's United Russia party won a slim majority. The protesters cried foul, claiming electoral fraud and calling on Putin to quit.

Opinion polls ahead of next Sunday's presidential vote suggest Putin should take well over the just over 50 percent needed to win the election outright, and avoid the need for a run-off against one of his four opponents.

"The state has obviously decided to declare Putin winner in the first round," former chess champion and opposition figure Gary Kasparov said. "It doesn't matter how much he really gets. The figure will be around 60 percent."

Navalny said getting a good turnout in St. Petersburg was important beyond the fact that it is the country's second city.

"All the leaders of the groups of swindlers and thieves came from here," Navalny said, in an apparent reference to the fact that both Putin and outgoing President Dimitry Medvedev were born there.

Putin is seeking to return to the presidency after an absence of four years. He was forced to take time out from the post in 2008, after serving the maximum of two consecutive terms. Medvedev, his hand-picked successor has served as president for the past four years, while Putin served as prime minister.

pfd/sb (Reuters, AFP)