About 3,000 people, including rock star Yury Shevchuk and movie director Alexander Sokurov, rallied Saturday for three hours against the policies of St. Petersburg authorities, Radio Liberty reported.
Police said the sanctioned rally, the fourth in a series dubbed “March in Defense of St. Petersburg,” only attracted a crowd of 800, Interfax reported.
Activists demanded the restoration of direct gubernatorial elections in the city and protested what they called the destruction of St. Petersburg’s historical center, as well as the construction of the Okhta Center, a tower that is to house Gazprom Neft’s headquarters.
(MT)
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