The Moscow authorities need to designate a special area for peaceful protests, similar to Speakers' Corner in London's Hyde Park, a Russian human rights defender said on Thursday.
"I don't think it would be a bad idea to create in Moscow an area for rallies and demonstrations, like Hyde Park in London," said Russian Public Chamber member Alexander Brod.
The suggestion follows a recent violent police crackdown on an opposition rally in Moscow. Police forcefully detained up to 170 people, who had gathered in the city's Triumfalnaya Square on May 31 for a March of Dissent rally. Among them were people with disabilities and even a WWII veteran.
Russian opposition leader Lev Ponomarev said Brod's suggestion was misguided.
"We have the wrong idea here about London's Hyde Park. Many people think protests don't take place at all in other areas of London, but that's not true," he told RIA Novosti.
Ponomarev said he was not against the idea of creating an area for rallies but people "should have the right to protest and express their opinions in other places as well."
Head of Moscow Helsinki Group human rights NGO Lyudmila Alekseyeva agreed with Ponomarev's stance.
"I am in favor of creating a Hyde Park in Moscow, but only if it's established on the permanent basis and is not the only place where protests can be held," she said adding that this area should be a site of historical significance in the city center, such as Red Square.
MOSCOW, June 3 (RIA Novosti)
