By way of Reuters, a troubling interview with Prime Minister Vladimir Putin:
Russia’s paramount leader, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, hinted on Monday he would return to the presidency in 2012 for six more years and said democracy protesters marching without permission deserved to be beaten…
In Monday’s interview, Putin robustly defended police crackdowns on pro-democracy protesters in recent months. He said those who marched must obey current laws requiring them to seek advance permission from local authorities.
“If you get (permission), you go and march,” Putin said. “If you don’t – you have no right to. Go without permission, and you will be hit on the head with batons. That’s all there is to it.”
In Monday’s interview, Putin robustly defended police crackdowns on pro-democracy protesters in recent months. He said those who marched must obey current laws requiring them to seek advance permission from local authorities.
“If you get (permission), you go and march,” Putin said. “If you don’t – you have no right to. Go without permission, and you will be hit on the head with batons. That’s all there is to it.”
That’s the kind of rhetoric you’d expect from a man who just spent the last few days hunting whales with crossbows and delivering stern warnings to Russia’s bear population. Aside from the fact that Putin is wholly comfortable with discussing cracking protesters’ skulls in a public forum, these latest reports are revealing.
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