2020 Russian protests

2020 Russian protests
2020 Russian protests
Part of the Russian opposition protest rallies
	Opposition leader Alexei Navalny taking part in a rally in memory of the murdered former Deputy Prime Minister Boris Nemtsov on 29 February in Moscow
Date	February 27, 2020 – October 2020
Location	Various cities and towns across Russia, including Moscow, Saint Petersburg and Yekaterinburg
Caused by	Authoritarianism and lack of civil liberties; Corruption; Discontent with Vladimir Putin and his ruling party; 2020 Russian constitutional referendum; Poisoning of Alexei Navalny; Arrest of Khabarovsk Krai Governor Sergei Furgal; COVID-19 pandemic mismanagement;
Goals	Resignation of Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin; Democratization; Repeal the 2020 Russian constitutional amendments; Support for Alexei Navalny and the Russian opposition;
Resulted in	Protester demands not met; Navalny poisoned with Novichok, forced to leave Russia for medical treatment, and arrested after the return in January 2021; Protests merged into 2021 Russian protests; Increased autocratization of Russia;
Parties
Russian opposition Anti-Corruption Foundation; Russia of the Future; People's Freedom Party; Solidarnost; Yabloko; Furgal's supporters; Bashkir protesters; ;	Government of Russia National Guard National Guard Forces Command; OMON; SOBR; ; Ministry of Internal Affairs Police; ; Cossacks; United Russia; ;
Lead figures
	Alexei Navalny; Leonid Volkov; Ilya Yashin; Grigory Yavlinsky; Sergei Furgal; Fail Alsynov Vladimir Putin; Mikhail Mishustin; Sergey Sobyanin; Radiy Khabirov
Number
On 29 February:; around 23,000 protesters

The 2020 Russian protests were a continuation of the previous demonstrations from 2017-2018 and 2019 caused by authoritarian rule of Vladimir Putin, repression of opposition, 2020 constitutional amendment which increased Putin's power and allowed him to stay in power until 2036, and the poisoning of opposition leader Alexei Navalny 2020. The protests began on 29 February with a march in Moscow in memory of a killed former Deputy Prime Minister and Putin's critic Boris Nemtsov, during which several opposition figures, including Navalny and Grigory Yavlinsky were giving speeches and accusing President Putin for assassination of Nemtsov. Similar rallies were held in others cities, including Saint Petersburg.

Another demand of the opposition was to release Sergei Furgal, a popular Governor of Khabarovsk Krai, whose arrest was viewed by critics as politically motivated.

Opposition leader Navalny was poisoned with Novichok in August by the FSB, resulting in his flight to Berlin, Germany for a medical treatment. When he returned to Russia on 17 January 2021, he was arrested and imprisoned, which fueled another wave of protests which was violently suppressed by the Putin's regime's forces.