We have met inside of Leningradski railroad station at midnight. Kasparov with his body guards, surrounded by liberal looking people from United Civic Front, as well as young, huge, skin-headed Sergei Udaltsov with his boys from Red Youth, and us - National Bolsheviks, who made more than a half of the crowd of one hundred. Later, the governor of St. Petersburg, Valentino Matvienko, would label us as “two carriages of agent-provocateurs from Moscow.”
Some groups of plain-clothed policemen were spread over Leningradski rail-road station building. We were ready to their attempt to arrest us here, in Moscow, but plainclothes policemen didn’t move when we started our move to platform. They have let us go. We boarded our train.
I have my seat in middle of “platzkart” carriage, those are the cheapest seats, they are not divided into compartments. Few dozens of journalists have flooded our carriage immediately. Gary Kasparov have joined us few minutes later, although it was almost impossible to move in dense crowd. We were interviewed. I regretted that Michael Kasianov couldn’t be here with us, he have intention to fly to St. Petersburg tomorrow morning. Kasianov traveling at “platzkart” carriage could harvest a lot of sympathy of simple folks.
Next morning at Moscowski Railroad station platform was populated with plain-clothed policemen, as well as with St. Petersburg’s National Bolsheviks, and with hundreds of journalists, most of them foreign journalists. We were told that dozens of buses filled with special militia forces are hidden in vicinity. I thought that they could arrest all of us here on platform of railroad station, but it didn’t happen. Actually we have calculated that even our arrest early will play for our cause, such scandalous event will only heat up an atmosphere for a “march of disagrees.” At 2 p.m. we have started political conference inside of hotel “Radisson” on Nevski Prospekt very near Moscowski railroad station. More than two hours later we all went to a bigger hall-room, because journalists arrived in full strength and very numerous. Again, they were predominantly foreign journalists. We held a press conference, but without Kasionov, who participated actively in meeting of “political conference”, but declined participation in press-conference.
Some police activity was visible, few dozens of activists of National Bolsheviks party were detained in regions in order to prevent them from going to St. Petersburg. In Petrozabodsk few activists were detained, driven to the forest and beaten up. But otherwise police activity was pretty low on day March 2.
On March 3, they got their day. When some time after 11 a.m. we started from headquarters of Yabloko party in St. Petersburg we were under heavy surveillance from our first steps. Our column included Maxim Resnik from Yabloko and his people, Sergei Guliaev, deputy of in St. Petersburg’s Low Assembly, Olga Kurnosova, head of Kasparov’s organization in St. Petersburg, and crowd of National Bolsheviks, in majority activists of Saint Petersburg’s organization. Also I was surrounded by my protection group from Moscow, about ten of them. All column maybe five hundred persons.
When we started out movement, policeman in plain-clothes on each corner started to talk in their mobile telephones and walkie-talkies. We were walking without flags and without slogans. Silently, just in order to reach a place of gathering. We didn’t expected to be attacked on that early stage half an hour before. But suddenly, armoured police cars (some call them “Hummers” or “Tigers” but their real police name is unclear) have appeared at cross-road of Mayakovski street with another street. Wearing black, looking like a crusaders, soldiers of a Special Police Forces have poured out of police armoured cars. Without any hesitation they runned to me. I understand that as a leader of the advance-guard of march, and as leader of National Bolsheviks, I was their target of preference. My protection group surrounded me in tight circle, so the first assault of crusaders who were making their way to me with sticks, beating and throwing people out of the way, wasn’t successful. We got through crusader’s chain, although have lost few members of protection group. We have runned out. But they got us near next cross road. Again crusaders have poured out of armoured trucks. That time they got me, as well as eight others, six of them from my protection group. Captured, I was dragged to the bus. Colonel Sorokin’s face, the second in command in St. Petersburg’s Ministry of Interior, have appeared almost immediately at the bus doors. He was satisfied. He said, “Weclome to St. Petersburg, Eduard Viniaminovich.”
Meanwhile, “two carriages of agents-provocateurs from Moscow” proved to be the most impressive people’s street disorders happened after 1993. I could judge from the voices in Col. Sorokin’s walkie-talkie. At first voices were jubilent, “everything is quiet.” Then voices changed.”I see crowd about…(hesitation) one hundred…no, more, much more…thousand persons…” Voices started to curse, then they cried for reserves. “Where are reserves?” Audio picture of a center of St. Petersburg was impressive, angry disagrees flooded the second capital of Russia.
Why so? Our publicity campaign was very good. During one month National Bolsheviks of St. Petersburg have distributed 150 thousand newspapers called “March of Disagrees.” Tens of thousands of stickers announcing “March” were glued to the walls and windows of St. Petersburg metro. Hundreds of announces of “March” were made on few radio stations. Of course in the bulk Russian medias have refused to put our ad on its pages and waves. But, anyway, disagrees of St. Petersburg got our message. So more than seven thousand angry citizens came out. Governor Matvienko helped us: from time to time on metro stations, announcers were addressing passengers, urging them, “do not go to the march of disagrees…”
Alas, captivity didn’t gave me the possibility to participate in jubilant people’s festivities. Although governor in skirt, Valentina Matvienko, have sended on the streets Special Police Forces from at least six neighboring regions, giving order to beat people up, crowds were triumphant, breaking chains of “crusaders,” National Bolsheviks in front lines.
In the end of the day, police have transferred me to a court house. Three of my people from protection group were sentenced to 15 days of imprisonment. I and few others were sentenced to be tried in Moscow. At ten in the evening Col. Sorokin have walked me through the courtyard filled with hundreds of “crusaders,” through arch on Ligovsky street. Hundreds of people greeted me. The biggest street disorders after tragedy of October 1993 ended when “disagrees” decided that they should be ended. We have won.
Edward Limonov, The Exile
Tags: Kasianov, Kasparov, Kurnosova, March of Disagrees, Matvienko, Moscow, National-Bolsheviks, Nevski Prospekt, St. Petersburg, Udaltsov, United Civic Front, Yabloko