Page 15 - RUSRptApr17

the number of supporters could again go up." Almost 40% of Russians approve of Navalny protests
More than a third (38%) of Russians approve of recent anti-corruption protest rallies organised by opposition politician Alexei Navalny, according to 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.
The poll also found that the approval rate of Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, the main target of the anti-corruption rallies, declined by 10% to 42% in the wake of the claims made against him in March by Navalny and the ensuing protests across more than 80 Russian towns and cities..
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, the number of supporters could again go up."
2.6 Politics - misc
Russian special forces have arrested a Kyrgyz-born man suspected of recruiting and training the bomber who killed 14 people in this month's attack on the St Petersburg metro system , media reports said on April 18. The man, identified as Abror Azimov, was detained the previous day Federal Security Service (FSB) agents in the Moscow region's Odintsovo district.
The casualty toll from the April 3 bombing of the St Petersburg metro system has risen to 14 people killed and more than 60 injured , Russian officials said a day later as the quest to identify the bomber grew to include a suspect from Kyrgyzstan. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for
15 RUSSIA Country Report April 2017 www.intellinews.com