Opposition activists remember victims of 1991 "August Putsch", rally скачать в хорошем качестве

Opposition activists remember victims of 1991 "August Putsch", rally

(19 Aug 2012) STORYLINE: Russian opposition activists remembered the victims of the "August Putsch" on Sunday, a coup d'etat attempt in 1991 by a group of members of the Soviet Union's government to take control of the country from the then President Mikhail Gorbachev. Dmitry Komar, Ilya Krichevsky and Vladimir Usov all died 21 years ago defending the White House - the Russian parliament - against troops sent by the GKChP (State Committee of the State of Emergency), communist hardliners who had launched a putsch in an attempt to derail Gorbachev's reforms. The President was on holiday in the Crimea at the time. On Sunday a rally was held in Moscow, with speeches from a number of opposition figures, including Vladimir Ryzhkov and Mikhail Kasyanov, both members of Parnas (People's Freedom party). They were both critical of President Vladimir Putin and the way he is running the country, claiming he is trying to restrict freedom and opposition. Nemtsov claimed Putin is 'the successor of the GKChP'. Kasyanov, himself a former Prime Minister under Putin, said the constitution was being destroyed by the government. "We shouldn't allow that. We need unity. We need to continue the protests because it is the key way to put pressure on the government," he said. Flowers and wreaths were also laid at a memorial in the Russian capital to remember the dead. Petr Verzilov, an activist and husband of Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, a member of the punk band Pussy Riot was also in attendance. His wife was jailed for two years on Friday after her band performed an anti-government protest in a Moscow cathedral. He told AP Television that the former KGB members and ex-Communist party members that were supporters of the GKChP were now trying to make the country more hardline. "20 years later they are trying to return to using cruel methods," he said. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...