Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
08MOSCOW990
2008-04-10 12:41:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Moscow
Cable title:
YOUNG YABLOKO LEADER IVAN BOLSHAKOV DETAINED AND
how-toVZCZCXYZ0004 PP RUEHWEB DE RUEHMO #0990 1011241 ZNY CCCCC ZZH P 101241Z APR 08 FM AMEMBASSY MOSCOW TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 7556 INFO RUCNCIS/CIS COLLECTIVE PRIORITY RUEHXD/MOSCOW POLITICAL COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
C O N F I D E N T I A L MOSCOW 000990
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/10/2018
TAGS: PGOV PHUM PINR SOCI RS
SUBJECT: YOUNG YABLOKO LEADER IVAN BOLSHAKOV DETAINED AND
QUESTIONED
Classified By: Acting Political M/C Bob Patterson. Reason: 1.4(d).
C O N F I D E N T I A L MOSCOW 000990
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/10/2018
TAGS: PGOV PHUM PINR SOCI RS
SUBJECT: YOUNG YABLOKO LEADER IVAN BOLSHAKOV DETAINED AND
QUESTIONED
Classified By: Acting Political M/C Bob Patterson. Reason: 1.4(d).
1. (C) Summary: Ivan Bolshakov, leader of the Moscow branch
of Young Yabloko, was detained by police on April 8 for four
hours. He was questioned about his alleged assault on a
policeman in May 2007, an incident he had been questioned on
before without any criminal case filed against him. He was
also questioned about allegedly false signatures on the
nominating petition for his candidacy in the March 2
municipal council elections in Moscow for which he faces
potential criminal charges. Bolshakov traces his legal
problems to his participation in protests against unpopular
construction projects in Moscow. End summary.
Under a Watchful Eye
--------------
2. (C) On April 9, we met with Ivan Bolshakov, leader of the
Moscow branch of Young Yabloko. On April 8, plain clothes
militia detained him as he was exiting the metro. The
militia told Bolshakov he was the subject of a federal search
and took him to the local prosecutor's office, where he was
questioned for about four hours. Two issues appear to be the
immediate cause of his detention.
3. (C) In May 2007, Bolshakov and a group from Young Yabloko
were protesting construction projects in the region of Moscow
where he lives. The militia broke up this protest claiming
it was illegal. According to the militia, during the attempt
to break up the picket, Bolshakov broke the arm of one of the
policemen. Although Bolshakov denies the charge and has seen
no evidence against him, the militia has regularly detained
him to question him about the incident. He told us that the
charge was again raised during his questioning on April 8.
4. (C) Bolshakov's second problem stems from his attempt to
run for a council seat in Yuzhnoye Butovo, one of the many
municipal councils in Moscow. To secure a place on the
ballot, Bolshakov collected sixty signatures. According to
him, the local election commission questioned several of
them, but he was able to prove that all were legitimate.
However, on April 8, the prosecutor's office indicated to him
that nine of the signatures were falsified, potentially a
criminal offense. Bolshakov told us that no charges have
been brought against him although he had to appear again for
questioning on April 10. (Note: Bolshakov was not registered
as a candidate for the March 2 local elections, although the
reason he was not registered is unclear.)
5. (C) Bolshakov traced his ongoing problems to his efforts
to impede efforts of developers, with the cooperation of
corrupt officials, to illegally take title of buildings and
evict the residents in order to profit from Moscow's real
estate boom. Bolshakov thought the developers and bureaucrats
who stand to benefit from such construction projects have
arranged for his legal troubles.
Biographical Note
--------------
6. (C) Bolshakov was born on October 20, 1984. Although
only 23, he has been active in politics since first joining
Yabloko five years ago. Unlike most other university
students, he was very well dressed, carried a briefcase and
had professional business cards. He was very well spoken and
could discuss at length political science (his major in
college) and the current status of Yabloko. He said he
joined Yabloko to express his opposition to the conflict in
Chechnya. His convictions took him to a protest in Belarus
in April 2005 where he was arrested and sentenced to ten days
in prison -- although he served only five. Since 2006 he has
served as an assistant to Moscow Yabloko chairman Sergey
Mitrokhin. He currently attends the International
Independent Ecological-Political University (MNEPU).
Comment
--------------
7. (C) The housing market in Moscow has been hot for the
past several years with demand routinely outpacing supply,
and stratospheric housing prices make construction extremely
lucrative. Bolshakov's activism could well have irked many
builders and the bureaucrats who profit from the development
projects. In any event, the recent spate of arrests of
Yabloko leaders (e.g., Maksim Reznik in St. Petersburg and
Oleg Kochkin in Penza) suggest continuing efforts to
intimidate the party's inconvenient political activists.
RUSSELL
SIPDIS
SIPDIS
E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/10/2018
TAGS: PGOV PHUM PINR SOCI RS
SUBJECT: YOUNG YABLOKO LEADER IVAN BOLSHAKOV DETAINED AND
QUESTIONED
Classified By: Acting Political M/C Bob Patterson. Reason: 1.4(d).
1. (C) Summary: Ivan Bolshakov, leader of the Moscow branch
of Young Yabloko, was detained by police on April 8 for four
hours. He was questioned about his alleged assault on a
policeman in May 2007, an incident he had been questioned on
before without any criminal case filed against him. He was
also questioned about allegedly false signatures on the
nominating petition for his candidacy in the March 2
municipal council elections in Moscow for which he faces
potential criminal charges. Bolshakov traces his legal
problems to his participation in protests against unpopular
construction projects in Moscow. End summary.
Under a Watchful Eye
--------------
2. (C) On April 9, we met with Ivan Bolshakov, leader of the
Moscow branch of Young Yabloko. On April 8, plain clothes
militia detained him as he was exiting the metro. The
militia told Bolshakov he was the subject of a federal search
and took him to the local prosecutor's office, where he was
questioned for about four hours. Two issues appear to be the
immediate cause of his detention.
3. (C) In May 2007, Bolshakov and a group from Young Yabloko
were protesting construction projects in the region of Moscow
where he lives. The militia broke up this protest claiming
it was illegal. According to the militia, during the attempt
to break up the picket, Bolshakov broke the arm of one of the
policemen. Although Bolshakov denies the charge and has seen
no evidence against him, the militia has regularly detained
him to question him about the incident. He told us that the
charge was again raised during his questioning on April 8.
4. (C) Bolshakov's second problem stems from his attempt to
run for a council seat in Yuzhnoye Butovo, one of the many
municipal councils in Moscow. To secure a place on the
ballot, Bolshakov collected sixty signatures. According to
him, the local election commission questioned several of
them, but he was able to prove that all were legitimate.
However, on April 8, the prosecutor's office indicated to him
that nine of the signatures were falsified, potentially a
criminal offense. Bolshakov told us that no charges have
been brought against him although he had to appear again for
questioning on April 10. (Note: Bolshakov was not registered
as a candidate for the March 2 local elections, although the
reason he was not registered is unclear.)
5. (C) Bolshakov traced his ongoing problems to his efforts
to impede efforts of developers, with the cooperation of
corrupt officials, to illegally take title of buildings and
evict the residents in order to profit from Moscow's real
estate boom. Bolshakov thought the developers and bureaucrats
who stand to benefit from such construction projects have
arranged for his legal troubles.
Biographical Note
--------------
6. (C) Bolshakov was born on October 20, 1984. Although
only 23, he has been active in politics since first joining
Yabloko five years ago. Unlike most other university
students, he was very well dressed, carried a briefcase and
had professional business cards. He was very well spoken and
could discuss at length political science (his major in
college) and the current status of Yabloko. He said he
joined Yabloko to express his opposition to the conflict in
Chechnya. His convictions took him to a protest in Belarus
in April 2005 where he was arrested and sentenced to ten days
in prison -- although he served only five. Since 2006 he has
served as an assistant to Moscow Yabloko chairman Sergey
Mitrokhin. He currently attends the International
Independent Ecological-Political University (MNEPU).
Comment
--------------
7. (C) The housing market in Moscow has been hot for the
past several years with demand routinely outpacing supply,
and stratospheric housing prices make construction extremely
lucrative. Bolshakov's activism could well have irked many
builders and the bureaucrats who profit from the development
projects. In any event, the recent spate of arrests of
Yabloko leaders (e.g., Maksim Reznik in St. Petersburg and
Oleg Kochkin in Penza) suggest continuing efforts to
intimidate the party's inconvenient political activists.
RUSSELL