Kuban farmers state mass dispatch of provocative SMS messages

Messages with an appeal to block the federal highway in the KrasnodarTerritory have been received by residents of the village of Kazanskaya. They were sent on behalf of the wife of Oleg Petrov, one of the activists of the “tractor march”, from an unknown telephone number, Alexei Volchenko, the leader of the movement “Polite Farmers”, told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

Mr Volchenko has stated, "activists have nothing to do with these messages; that had no plans to hold any events." "Elena Petrova will give birth to a baby in a week," he added.

In his opinion, "law enforcers want to open a case, based on these SMS-messages, against Petrova for organizing an unsanctioned rally."

The farmer Oleg Petrov told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent that today since morning he had been receiving calls from villagers, who reported the mass dispatch of SMS-messages from his wife, who allegedly asked them to rally and block the federal highway. He fears for the health of his wife and the expected baby, and asserts that she had not sent any messages to villagers.

"This is a provocation and act of pressure on the participants of the ‘tractor march’, who intend to organize a new march," Mr Petrov is sure.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported on August 21, 2016, the protesting farmers held a rally and began their so-called “tractor march” to Moscow, but law enforcers interfered, stopped the action and punished the participants with administrative arrests and fines. After their disrupted "tractor march" and a failed attempt to meet President Vladimir Putin, farmers have repeatedly stated the authorities' attempts to suppress the protest movement in the Krasnodar Territory.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.