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Experts: Kremlin Yielded to Protests for Political Self-Preservation

Danila Galperovich

   This story originated in [1]VOA's Russian service.

   Since last week's stunning reversal, when Russian officials abruptly
   scrapped drug charges against a prominent investigative reporter and
   then jailed the officers who fabricated them, the multitudes who
   rallied for his release seemed to revel in a brief victory over an
   often-repressive state apparatus.

   But numerous regional experts say the unexpected -- and unexpectedly
   swift -- act of leniency had little to do with adherence to legal
   procedure or an expanding respect for a free press.

   They say the sudden arrest, detention, and shockingly rapid release of
   [2]Ivan Golunov, 36, whom Moscow police officers tried to frame with
   drug charges based on demonstrably false evidence, was fueled by a
   blend of internal Kremlin politics and burgeoning domestic crises.

   "The first reason is internal conflicts and complexities in the Kremlin
   -- some of which are visible on the surface, some not -- among various
   groups governing Russia in Putin's name," media analyst Vasily Gatov of
   the University of Southern California told VOA.

References

   1. http://www.golos-ameriki.ru/
   2. https://www.voanews.com/europe/journalists-eye-new-protest-strategy-golunov-acquittal

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