Forty hunger-strikers take part in protest in Astrakhan

The office of Oleg Shein, a member of the "Spraveldivaya Rossiya" (Fair Russia) Party and an ex-candidate for the Mayor of the city, has reported that the political hunger strike against the outcomes of the election of the Mayor of Astrakhan has now 40 participants.

"On Saturday, April 21, we were ready to quit the hunger strike in order to concentrate all efforts on the lawsuit. However, because of the police lawlessness against supporters of Oleg Shein, the decision to suspend the hunger strike was postponed indefinitely," said Elena Grebenyuk, a hunger-striker and the chair of the Audit Commission of the Astrakhan Branch of the "Spraveldivaya Rossiya".

A cyclist-traveller Vladimir Buzarov from St Petersburg was passing by the rally of Oleg Shein's supporters, when he was detained by the police. "I saw this episode; but I was convinced that the policemen would just talk to the guy and let him go. But he was arrested for two days. We're going to appeal against this action," said Oleg Shein.

The press service of the UVD (Interior Department) for the Astrakhan Region denied any detentions of Shein's supporters on April 22 and 23.

"Detentions happened on Saturday, April 21; and after that, no one was detained. As to the cyclist – he was at the rally and unfolded a poster; and he was detained for that," Pyotr Rusanov, Head of the Information and Public Relations Division of the above UVD for the Astrakhan Region, told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.