Over 250 supporters of opposition leader Aleksei Navalny were arrested as they held peaceful protests in eighty cities across Russia on Putin’s birthday. They were demanding that Mr Navalny be allowed to stand in the March 2018 presidential elections. He is currently jailed for organising public meetings, and the authorities say he cannot stand in the elections because of a suspended sentence. Amnesty International said, ‘The Russian authorities must immediately and unconditionally release scores of peaceful protesters detained, and investigate allegations that the police used abusive force. The Kremlin’s intent is to choke the life out of the protest movement, but it has also become clear that this reproachful goal cannot be achieved. Peaceful protest is a right, and many people in Russia want to exercise that right.’ See: