A-Infos (en) Russia, Azov protests update 12th of August 2003 - Police launches wholesale repression - protest against arrests now!

[Worker <a-infos-en@ainfos.ca>]

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7th of August around 9 am security of the construction site came to blockade
of the supply line of the terminal. Security ordered to close the protest
camp which they claimed to be located to area of the construction site, and
threated to run over the camp with a bulldozer. Security failed to show any
documents which could prove that camp was located to area owned by the company.
There were only few people in camp that time, and they had to submit to
threats of the security.  Tents were pulled down, but after one hour campers
came back to set up one tent. Security moved to pull tent down and to catch
one activist, but police which had arrived refused to arrest her. After this
security calmed down and tried not to interfere during rest of the day. In
the morning of 8th of August security once again moved to pull down one of
the tents, they also hit two persons who had slept in the tent, and threated
that they will call nazis to attack the camp.

In the afternoon of the 8th of August, action for comrades arrested 6th of
August (see previous update, dated 8th of August) was organised 4 PM as it
was planned. People came to police station with flags and banner "Free
Evgeni Chyotov!".

9th of August a blockade of Rostov-Krasnodar highway was organised. Action
began with a rally
11 AM, 12.15 participators moved to blockade highway, everything lasted
until 3 PM. More than 150 people participated to action, blockade was a
mobile one which walked 2.5 kilometres on the highway to one direction and
then back to the city, following the same way.

During meeting and demonstration the following slogans were scanned: There
won't be any terminal! Azov is unpolluted land, build that terminal to
Kreml! Shame on the city mayor! Down with power and capital! There won't be
any terminal here! Today we are here with placards, tomorrow with spades!
(or alternatively with machine guns) Remove governor Chuba!

There were few skirmishes with police during the blockade, provoked by
police and plain-clothes FSB. A couple of times police tried to catch
speakers but they failed. Three participators of the campaign were singled
out from the march by plain clothes police and FSB, one of them was brutally
beaten by six officials. In end of the action police officers wrote down
personal details of most of the organisers.

11th of August 7 Am four police officers invaded to camp and arrested two
campaign participators,
Aleksander Zimbovski and Marina Popova. Cops were lead by officer Dimitri Li
Chun Shan, and they did not showed any documents to prove their identity and
for justification of the arrest. Later people learned that two persons
arrested are charged with "minor hooliganism".

Popova was sentenced to 12 days of imprisonement, and Zimbovski to 15 days
of imprisonement. Prosecutor had 2 witnesses, who gave contradictory
testimonies - another said that action (of 9th of August) went on Kirov
street, another said it was on Mehtok street. Judge K. A. Gordienko did not
allowed accused to use their own lawyer, and public lawyer provided by the
state was denied his legal right to make a closing statement.

When 5 camp activists from Rainbow Keepers, Association of Anarchist
Movements (ADA, Russian section of IFA) and Autonomous Action went to police
station to learn about reasons of the arrests, they were arrested as well.
Their names are Ekaterina Kislova, Ivan Voynatovskiy, Vladimir Pronin,
Evgeniya Sautina and Andrei Tsarevskiy.

This wave of arrests is for sure because of the blockade of the Saturday,
police was just too afraid to arrest people during the demonstration.
Currently camp has failed to return to area which has been under dispute
since last thursday.

In the evening of Monday the 11th, participators of the camp learned that
police stops participators in the street, asks their documents, takes
documents and then arrests people for the lack of the documents. Arrested
people are sent to jail in Rostov-na-Donu. One of the local people has
information that Marina Potapova and Aleksander Zimbovski have already been
sent to Rostov-na-Donu, and other 5 arrested people are being sent there as
well. Evgeni Schyotov, arrested 6th of August should have been released
today, but seemingly he has been sent to Rostov as well.

Please call to following numbers in order to protest against repression:

Police in Azov:
+7-86342-4-01-06
+7-86342-4-01-14,

People's court of Azov
Chairman: +7-86342-4-02-75,
Reception: +7-86342-4-09-74

Prosecutor's office:
Vice procuror:+7-86342-4-29-59
Reception: +7-86342-4-01-52

Peace court of Azov
+7-86342-5-20-57
+7-86342-5-20-58
+7-86342-5-28-21
+7-86342-5-28-22
+7-86342-6-18-85
+7-86342-6-19-60

Backround of the problem

Methanol is a strong poison influencing nervous system, and has a strong
cumulative effect. ZAO "Asovprodukt" majority of which is owned by Italian
multinational Triboldi, is constructing a terminal which will store 25 000
cubic meters of
methanol to be exported via Azov and Black seas. Construction site is in the
city of Azov, which has 80 000 inhabitants and is located 45 kilometres
south from Rostov-na-Donu which is the biggest city in South of Russia. More
than 7000 people have participated to biggest protest actions in Azov.
Planned export of methanol will be 400 000 tons annually. Sanitary and
security zones around such objects should be one kilometers by Russian
legislation and 7 kilometers by Italian, but in Azov terminal is being
built 400 meters from closest houses. One accident with a tanker will be
enough to destroy ecological system of the shallow Azov sea.

Update is written by activists of Rainbow Keepers and Autonomous Action.
Previous updates have been dated 21st of July, 2nd and 8th of August.

For more information:

>From Azov: +7-86342-409-92, +7-86342-4-17-18,  +7-928-924-06-37 (mobile),
y_golubev@rambler.ru (Yuri Golubev)
from Moscow: +7-8916-732-78-96, kuzja@ecoline.ru
Rainbow Keepers:  duplo1@mail.ru, vty2@mail.ru
(better to write to all e-mails at once)


Follow continuous updates in Russian language from Autonomous
Action-website,  www.avtonom.org


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