22:02, 6 August 2019

Complaint about Internet interruptions at rallies in Ingushetia and Moscow sent to UN

A rally in Magas. October 7, 2018. Photo: REUTERS/Maxim Shemetov

The human rights group "Agora" requested UN Special Rapporteur David Kaye to intervene in the situation with restrictions on Internet access during mass protests. In Moscow and Ingushetia, protesters faced disconnection of the Internet.

On August 3, in Moscow, 828 people were detained at a protest action against the refusal to register opposition candidates for the elections to the Moscow City Duma, the "OVD-Info" reported. On July 27, hundreds of people were also detained at a similar rally.

In October 2018, protests started in Ingushetia after an agreement on the border between the republics. A new phase of protests began on March 26, 2019. In the autumn of 2018 and in March, mobile Internet was not available at the place of the protest actions.

According to the "Meduza", the human rights defenders urged UN Special Rapporteur David Kaye to request the Russian authorities to provide the information about Internet disconnections during the protests and recommend them to refrain "from expanding the practice of arbitrary interference with citizens' right to freedom of expression."

Let us remind you that in the autumn of 2018, the protests were held peacefully in Ingushetia. On March 27, law enforcers used force against protesters for the first time, when an attempt to disperse a rally in Magas turned into clashes.

In April, arrests of oppositionists began in the republic. According to the estimates of the "Caucasian Knot", at least 96 activists were subjected to prosecution. On July 1, the Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial" recognized five protest leaders in Ingushetia as political prisoners.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on August 6, 2019 at 02:45 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.