vlad.tribnet.com / Issue #543 / Social life / Reading article...

Around 150 ultranationalists staged a so-called ‘Russian March’ in Vladivostok November 4 as part of a nationwide demonstration on People's Unity Day. Police watched the participants closely but did not interfere since no fights were ignited.

The rally participants, mostly young people, started the march in the city’s downtown from the Dalzavod, a ship repair plant, and proceeded to the Pacific Fleet memorial, where the two-hour rally ended with a meeting.



The participants included members of the ultranationalist ‘Movement Against Illegal Immigration’, or DPNI, and the Russian Club. Both organizations are officially registered in the city and have the right to hold public meetings.

“Vladivostok administration neither banned nor sanctioned this event,” a statement from the press service said. Instead of directly banning the demonstration, the administration strengthened police presence around the rally.

Order was maintained by about 200 policemen. “The police did not detain any of the rally members since they were calm, and did not skirmish,” Vladivostok’s Department of Internal Affairs reported on Monday.

According to police, the participants did not shout Nazi slogans and did not use Nazi symbols to stir hatred, and were clearly sticking to the slogan ‘Glory to Russia’. There were no grounds for halting the march or arresting any of its members.

The ultranationalist ‘Russian March’ also took place in the country’s other large cities. In Moscow, around 2,000 participants rallied to the streets to take part in the event despite the city’s Mayor Yuri Luzhkov’s ban of the march.