Catching up with the all-Russia movement

December 10, Saturday.
Predetermined time: 14:00 local time.
Place: Major squares in Russian cities.
Event: non-violent protest against falsification of the results at the latest parliamentary polls.
Participants: Russian citizens. Thousands and thousands.

In solidarity with the mass protests in Russia, Russian citizens abroad decided to join the political action and go out to the streets of the countries they currently reside in. Not all, not everywhere, not in the same identical fashion with uniform slogans and demands, but in the same common outburst, with the same feeling of being deprived of the essentials of modern democracy - the right for free elections, the right to cast a vote for the party one decided to be worthy voting for.

In Korea procedures of legally permitting the protest actions require time and specific way of registering the organiser, or the person responsible for the event. Not being able to get the permit for the mass protest on time,  a group of activists decided  to proceed anyway. Of course, individual protests are less spectacular, catchy, or anything, but they are still protests. 

Now about how it all went:

1. At 2pm we gathered at the Seoul Press Centre building to write the slogans and to decide the route we should take.

2. We went on the streets and ran into the squads of policemen, dozens of police buses and a few water cannons.

3. Down to Cheonggyecheon and then to Insadong, we went strolling with banners in our hands saying 'Free Elections to Russia!'

4. People on the streets were quite sympathetic, asking about the event, supporting, sharing their opinion with us.

5. We even gained attention from the local press.

6. By the end of the action we gathered in one of the dumpling places in Insadong area to chat, reflex, and upload the photos so to share them with other protestants.

Thank you everyone who joined, and those who wanted to, who supported ouк modest action here, far away from the main political scene. 

Response to the picture of Koreans

What do Koreans think about Russians? (based on non-official poll among people I know and several-years' exposure to the country and its people)

Russia is big and cold. Very cold! This is the reason all people drink vodka. Russian women are tall and beautiful. Russian men are just big, as well as Russia itself. The territory from Vladivostok up to the very Ural mountains is called Siberia (even if it is not.) There is also Moscow which is a capital city of the country. Everyone* dreams about crossing Siberia and going to Moscow, and if to open the rail way through North Korea, there will be nothing to dream about any more.

There is crude oil in Russia. Too much of it. However, not more than natural gas.

There is also one representative of the nation notable for a his 'career trajectory' - Fyodor Emeljanenko (who is he anyway?) He, as well as many others, was born during the Soviet period. But times have changed. Russia became stronger when Mr. Putin became a president. What? Putint isn't a president any more? Well, it doesn't really matter! Still Russian army is the strongest, and one should be really careful not to fool around with this autocratic giant. 

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* inexcusably rough generalisation