Road police blocked YABLOKO’s motor column - 15 cars with
YABLOKO’s flags and symbols – by the Kremlin. The motor race
was organised on the last day of collection of signatures
required for registration of YABLOKO in the Moscow City Duma
election race.
The police ordered YABLOKO’s cars to stop and took all the
driving licenses. Only after that the police explained their
actions. Police officers asked for a permit to conduct such
an action, and when Sergei Mitrokhin came to the site they
accused the activists in “creating traffic obstacles” and
ordered to draw protocols of administrative violations.
Deputy head of the Moscow Road Police also came to the site.
He was dissatisfied with a long queue of YABLOKO’s cars at
the side of the road the President’s cortage may pass along.
He also ordered to check all YABLOKO’s drivers in the security
data base for any violations. “If we detect a single violation,
we shall deprive that person of his driving license,” he said.
Sergei Mitrokhin negotiated with the police simultaneously
connecting with the watch officer of the Moscow Road Police,
the Central Electoral Commission and the Moscow Electoral
Commission. A representative of the Moscow Electoral Commission
came to rescue and explained to the officers that collection
of signatures, even if conducted in the form of a motor race,
does not require and permits or prior registration with the
authorities.
However, the police were determined to pursue their line.
The police officer ordered to draw protocols of violation
and also summoned a group of policemen (whose uniform looked
very much like that of a special police force OMON) to accompany
YABLOKO’s activists to the Arbat police department, where
they had to give explanations about ‘the demonstration’.
Drawing protocols took quite a long time, and the police
officer got nervous as his telephone always rang. With each
call he was ready to new concessions. Most of the cars were
released. In another half an hour only Mitrokhin’s car and
a car of one of the activists were left.
The police officer took the driving license from this driver,
sat in his car and left the site. We did not succeed in finding
out the name of this policeman. The lieutenant who was the
last to stay at the site could not help either. The activist
had to go to the Arbat police department where he got only
a certificate that “he had lost his documents”.
