Putin: Moscow riots show need for stronger order

[December 16, 2010]  MOSCOW (AP) -- Violent rampages outside the Kremlin have highlighted the need to strengthen public order and raise police prestige, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said Thursday, using the occasion to lash out at liberal critics.

Putin spoke after a weekend rally of 5,000 racists and hooligans in Moscow left more than 30 people injured and raised doubts about the government's ability to stem a rising tide of xenophobia. Police on Wednesday, however, prevented a replay of the violence between nationalists and mostly Muslim ethnic minorities in the capital and several other cities, detaining hundreds.

Putin struck out at liberal critics who have criticized his government for sending riot police to disband opposition protests.

"It's necessary to prevent extremism from all flanks," Putin said, during a call-in session broadcast live on state television and radio. "The liberal community must understand the need for maintaining order. The government exists to protect the majority's interests."

He continued the scathing attack, saying that the rallies demonstrated the need to raise the prestige of the nation's police force. The force has faced public criticism over corruption and other abuses.

"We mustn't paint them all in black and bring them down," Putin said. "Or otherwise the liberal intellectuals will be the ones who have to shave their thin beards off, put helmets on and go out on the square to fight the radicals."

Moscow police spokesman Viktor Biryukov said some of the 800 people detained in the capital on Thursday were released immediately. Others, particularly those found to be carrying weapons, were held for investigation. He said he could not say how many were still in police custody.

Preceding Putin's comments, his longtime aide Vladislav Surkov, now serving as the Kremlin's deputy chief of staff, accused critics of the government of helping pave the way for racist hooligans by holding unauthorized rallies. "People were different, but their attitude was the same," he said in an interview published Thursday in the daily newspaper Izvestia.

Former Deputy Prime Minister Boris Nemtsov, now a fierce Kremlin critic, fired the accusation of fomenting social disorder back at the authorities and at Putin himself.

"They don't have a shred of evidence that we are stirring up this trouble," Nemtsov told The Associated Press. "Surkov is personally responsible for flaring up these tensions."

Many Russian observers in the past have noted links between nationalist groups and some part of officialdom, saying that hard-liners within the government may be supporting nationalists to justify tight Kremlin controls and fend off efforts to open up Russia's political system.

While Russian police quickly and brutally disperse peaceful protests by anti-Kremlin activists, some nationalist groups have been allowed to hold their rallies freely in recent years. Opposition groups claim that pro-Kremlin youth organizations have hired soccer fans and ultranationalists to carry out attacks on Kremlin critics.

Nemtsov said it was in the Kremlin's interests to foment tensions so it can use the resulting violence as a pretext to introduce new, tougher laws on public protests ahead of a new presidential election cycle.

Russia votes on a new parliament in late 2011 and on a new president in March 2012. Putin is widely expected to seek another term.

Putin shifted into the premier's seat in 2008 following two consecutive four-year terms in office, but has remained the nation's No. 1 leader, overshadowing his protege and successor, President Dmitry Medvedev. Medvedev has initiated a constitutional amendment that will extend the presidential term from four to six years starting in 2012.

Putin's call-in show, a carefully orchestrated annual event helping him retain his pre-eminence, is closely watched for signals on whether he will seek to regain the presidency. As was the case in such previous shows, Putin read lists of positive economic statistics, made generous social promises and cracked occasional jokes.

Asked if the nation owes FIFA's decision to award the 2018 World Cup to his sheer luck, Putin said 'yes' with a 'self-complacent' smile. He added, on a more serious note, that Russia won the contest thanks to its "persistent and tactful" efforts to persuade FIFA of its merits.

The weekend's riots that came just days after FIFA's decision embarrassed the Kremlin and raised questions about Russia's ability to safely hold international sporting events, including the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi.

Putin insisted that the Sochi Olympics and the World Cup will help modernize Russia's infrastructure and improve living standards.

[Associated Press; By VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV]

AP reporter David Nowak contributed to this report.

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