RUSSIA:Anti-Kremlin protesters in St Petersburg clashed with police on Saturday after violence broke out during an unsanctioned march through the city.
Ignoring orders to disperse, at least 2,000 marchers, drawn from disparate political parties, forced their way through the city's historical centre in a rare clash in President Vladimir Putin's home town.
Riot police moved in just after former world chess champion Gary Kasparov had addressed the crowd, arresting dozens of people. The protesters disputed this figure and claimed that many hundreds had been arrested.
Kasparov and activists from the Other Russia movement have been trying to drum up public interest in changes to the country's electoral system which they argue are intended to curb political dissent. More extreme groups like the National Bolshevik party urge revolutionary change in the country.
The violence was unexpected, given that police usually outnumber protesters at small demonstrations in both Moscow and St Petersburg. But this time the protesters, waving banners emblazoned with words like "freedom", pushed their way through three lines of police, who responded with smoke grenades and baton charges.
Members of the liberal Yabloko party were angry that it had been struck off the list of eligible parties in local elections next weekend in St Petersburg, because it had allegedly failed to collect enough valid signatures. "I came here because I am against this system, which does not like elections, which does not allow demonstrations," said Alesya Galkina, an activist with Yabloko.