Moscow: President Dmitry Medvedev on Monday
nominated a candidates to replace the governor of Russia`s
Baltic enclave of Kaliningrad after anti-Putin opposition
rally last week in the region.
According to the Kremlin, Medvedev has nominated
leader of the local unit of the ruling United Russia party
Nikolai Tsukanov a candidate to replace the unpopular governor
Georgy Boos.
On Saturday hundreds of resident`s of Kaliningrad,
former German enclave of Koenigsberg, surrounded by EU,
gathered on a central square to demand Prime Minister Vladimir
Putin`s resignation.
Several political parties including the Communists,
the liberal Yabloko Party and the Solidarity movement took
part in Saturday`s rally, chanting slogans like `down with
Putin`.
The United Russia, as the single largest party in the
local legislature has refused to back extension for Boos, a
former minister in the cabinet of Prime Minister Evgeny
Primakov, on August 16 amid growing public unrest in the
region.
The sword over Boos was hanging since January when all
the opposition parties including the Communist joined hands
brought over 10,000 Kaliningrad residents on to the streets
protest against transport tax hikes affecting car owners,
which transformed into a political rally against the local
administration and federal government of Putin.
Unlike in normal democratic countries, in Russia the
government sees calls for the resignation of Prime Minister
and his government as an expression of extremism and in most
cases such rallies are dispersed by police or not allowed to
assemble.
PTI
