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Saturday, 25 July 2020_Thousands of people have marched in the Russian far eastern city of Khabarovsk, for the third weekend in a row, over replacement of regional governor.
Residents of Khabarovsk, around 3,800 miles (6,110 km) and seven time zones east of Moscow, are unhappy about the July 9 detention of the wider region's popular regional governor, Sergei Furgal, who was arrested on murder charges he denies.
His detention, which his supporters say was politically-motivated, has triggered more than two weeks of street protests.
Footage of the protest showed people chanting "Disgrace!". City authorities estimated around 6,500 people had taken part. Local media put the number at up to 20,000 people.
The protests have highlighted anger among some in the far east over what they see as policies emanating from detached Moscow-based authorities on the other side of the country.
Supporters of Furgal, the arrested governor and a member of the nationalist LDPR party, feel he is being belatedly punished for defeating a candidate from the ruling United Russia party in 2018. The Kremlin says Furgal has serious charges to answer.
In an apparent move to defuse tensions, President Vladimir Putin on Monday named a new acting governor to head the region. But protesters said they felt insulted by the choice of Mikhail Degtyaryov, who has no connection with the region, and have called on him to step down too.
Source: Reuters
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