Page 14 - RUSRptApr17

2.5 Navalny strikes chord with anti-corruption protests
Anti-corruption blogger and opposition leader Alexei Navalny has struck a chord with his protests. More than a third (38%) of Russians approve of recent anti-corruption protest rallies organised by opposition politician Alexei Navalny, according to another a poll conducted by Levada Centre.
The same number of respondents said that people were pushed to take to the streets by their dissatisfaction with the situation in the country.
Meanwhile, 36% of the respondents explained the protest rallies by people's desire to express their outrage at widespread corruption in the country.
Only 24% of Russians believed the participants were paid to take part in the rallies, as claimed by the authorities.
The poll also revealed that over 60% of Russians are "well aware" of the protest rallies or at least "heard something" about them.
Still, public interest in the protest rallies is now lower than that in 2011-2012 when the biggest wave of protest activities took place, Alexei Grazhdankin, deputy director of Levada Centre, comment about the results of the poll.
He added that the proportions of those approving and disapproving of the rallies are roughly the same, compared with 2011-2012 when the proportion of those approving was 2.5 times greater.
"The government's approval rate has been declining since 2015," he said. "Now the documentary on Medvedev, released by [Navalny's] anti-corruption fund, was the trigger."
According to Grazhdankin, Navalny's recognition has hit a maximum figure as 55% of Russians said they know him and 10% would vote for him in a presidential election.
"Currently, there is a balance between supporters and opponents of the protest rallies," Grazhdankin concluded. "If the authorities don't take countermeasures,
14 RUSSIA Country Report April 2017 www.intellinews.com