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Updated 19.00pm
THOUSANDS OF MOURNERS turned out to the funeral of slain Russian opposition leader Boris Nemtsov in Moscow today.
Crowds thronged the Russian capital to mourn the 55-year-old former deputy prime minister, a longtime Putin critic and anti-corruption crusader who was laid to rest at a Moscow cemetery.
The funeral caused a fresh spat between Russia and the European Union, which condemned what it called “arbitrary” bans after Russia blocked prominent figures from Poland and Latvia from attending.
Nemtsov, a 55-year-old former deputy prime minister, and longtime Vladimir Putin critic and anti-corruption crusader was shot dead in central Moscow four days ago.
In 1997, The New York Times profiled Nemtsov after he was promoted to deputy prime minister.
Discussing the challenges the new first deputy prime minister would face in Moscow, the director of an economic consulting firm described the job as potentially “suicidal.”
“Many say it is a suicidal job and it will be his last political post,” Pavel Chichagov, the director of the Epicenter economic consulting firm, told The Times.
”There is something to that. But he has often faced resistance. And if history repeats itself you can’t exclude that he may be quite successful in government.”
According to The Times, “Nemtsov’s vow to crack down on energy and transportation monopolies, find ways to pay pensions and fight endemic corruption means he will have to confront economic quandaries few in Russia have had the courage to tackle.”
A liberal critic of Vladimir Putin, Nemtsov first became involved in Russian national politics in 1997, when he was named First Deputy Prime Minister by then-President Boris Yeltsin. Nemtsov was best known at the time as a regional governor and a notable free-market reformer.
Nemtsov himself also acknowledged the potential dangers of his appointment in Moscow.
”It is obvious that I will make a huge number of enemies among the industrial and financial oligarchy that now in many respects controls the situation in Russia,” [Nemtsov] said in a television interview quoted by The Times.
”As to what I have to do in Moscow now, that is the function of a kamikaze.”
Today, as thousands turned out to pay their respects, Polish Senate speaker Bogdan Borusewicz was refused entry by Moscow in reprisal for EU sanctions against Russia’s upper house of parliament speaker Valentina Matviyenko, the Polish foreign ministry said.
Latvian MEP Sandra Kalniete told AFP she had also been refused entry into Russia at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport, but was not given a reasonable explanation for the ban.
“Since I have always taken a clear and explicit language on Russia’s role in Ukraine, I had suspicions that it could happen,” she said.
Polish Deputy Foreign Minister Konrad Pawlik will attend the funeral, according to Polish media, while Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linas Linkevicius will also be present, his spokesman said.
Killing
Nemtsov was gunned down shortly before midnight on Friday while walking across a bridge just a short distance from the Kremlin with his Ukrainian model girlfriend Ganna Duritska.
Putin, whose rule has seen the steady suppression of independent media, non-Kremlin controlled political parties and opposition-minded business figures, called the murder a “contract killing” and said it was a provocation.
Soon after the killing, Putin promised an all-out effort to catch the perpetrators.
Girlfriend returns to Kiev
Late Monday 23-year-old Duritska — the chief witness in the murder — arrived in Kiev, her lawyer confirmed, as authorities vowed to solve the most shocking political assassination to take place during Putin’s rule.
On Monday, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov pledged that the “heinous crime” would be “fully investigated”.
A reward of three million rubles ($48,000) was offered for information on Nemtsov’s death, a substantial amount in Moscow, where the average monthly salary is 60,000 rubles ($960).
Duritska said earlier Monday she had given all the information she could to investigators but that they were preventing her from leaving Russia, citing concerns for her security.
Ganna’s mother Inna Duritska, who lives in Kiev, told AFP prior to Ganna’s departure from Russia that she feared that her daughter’s de facto house arrest meant investigators might be preparing to make her a pawn in the deepening Russia-Ukraine crisis.
Friends of Nemtsov said he had been working on a report containing what he described as proof of secret Russian military involvement in the bloody uprising by pro-Moscow militias in eastern Ukraine.
He had also spoken of his fear of being killed in Russia, where a string of other prominent opposition figures have been murdered since Putin came to power 15 years ago.
But there was no imminent sign of danger on Friday when he was fatally shot in the back, Duritska — who was uninjured in the apparently well-planned shooting — said earlier.
Speaking via Skype from a Moscow apartment, Duritska said she did not see where the assassin came from. But she did notice a light-coloured car quickly drive off, she said.
She said she was immediately taken in for questioning which lasted through the night.
‘A sacrifice’
Shocked opposition figures in Russia and Western leaders have called for a full and transparent probe into the murder of Nemtsov.
On Sunday, tens of thousands of people joined a memorial march in Moscow.
The Investigative Committee leading the probe has offered several possible motives, including that the country’s opposition could itself have ordered the hit on Nemtsov as “a sacrifice”.
The murderer — or murderers — fired four bullets into Nemtsov’s back and several more were found at the scene.
- © AFP, 2015 Additional reporting Business Insider
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Theresa May and the British Media reacting to a narrowing lead in the polls, it gets dirthy from here on in. Hope the voters can see trough this crap………
@Dáithí Ó Raghallaigh: Yep, latest polls have halved the early lead. You’re right, too – this will get a lot dirtier before polling day.
@Alan M: Yes chaps – but the election is in another country, where the electorate’s sole interest in this island – is to rid the UK exchequer of the £10 billion drain that NI is, every year…
@Fank Pulman: £2.5 Billion is the actual defecit.
@Pete Rossiter: No…the net deficit is c€1 a month. Google is your friend¡
@booby sandwiches: with your ridiculous name and the nonsense you spew out, I hope someone is paying you for your time trolling…..
@Noirin Kavanagh: He’s had about 20 different names on here. I don’t think he’s the full shilling. He’l soon be banned again.
@Dáithí Ó Raghallaigh: is Theresa may throwing the election?
https://eurofree3.wordpress.com/2017/05/21/corbyn-for-pm-its-a-great-british-thing/
@Fank Pulman: where’s Paul foot you haven’t signed in as him in a while since you got caught out with your multiple accounts
Love him or hate him, he has always been a principled and dignified public servant.
Honesty and integrity for 50 years cannot be attacked so the Tory machine and its printing presses and tv studios try distraction tactics.
Professional liars and the bottom- feeders in the media cannot be steadied with shame. A conscience is required in order to feel shame.
@Brendan McLaughlin: Pretty much bang on.
@Brendan McLaughlin: Reminds one of the relationship of FG and FF with our one dimensional media who lie, spread fake news against any opposition trying to challenge them. Well worn tactic shout the loudest, and rally the trolls on social media.
@booby sandwiches: The only hard border will be the one between Scotland and england, in fact a prosperous 32 county Irish republic may have to introduce a visa system to prevent people fleeing, a derelict, dysfunctional england and Wales and looking to set up hope in the emerald isle.
Indeed in the future we may have a united kingdom of great Ireland Scotland and wales.
@joe o hare: The UK would have a party in every town if we took on NI and it’s £12 million annual cost; they have zero interest in the place which has civil servants making up 29% of it’s workforce. Sadly – with a €200+ National Debt – we couldn’t afford it.
@Fank Pulman: And…the UK is the 5th largest economy on earth in terms of GDP etc. Do we even make the top 50!¡¿?
@Just Me: you probably wouldnt consider yourself a troll? PMSL
@Fank Pulman: the border will give me great joy :)
#karma
@booby sandwiches: No, I leave that to you with your vast experience.
@joe o hare: no thanks. We’re Irish not Welsh or Scottish.
The dal riada is ancient history…
@joe o hare: you should add “brained” to your name.
Right side of history¡ Like Jorry – who never joined the IRA….
@Fank Pulman: I’m not sure if you agree or disagree with the article?
@booby sandwiches: so you don’t support freedom fighters?
@Negan: I support the disappeared – do you not¿¡
@Fank Pulman: Presume you are also supporting
John mahon 16
Michael Connors 14
Sean o Riordan 13
Francis rowntree 11
Their families will appreciate your support.
@Fank Pulman: in what way do you support them
Are you asking the Irish government to question the britshit governments use of vulnerable members of the nationalist community as informers and what threat did they imply to achieve this.
@joe o hare: I support the need of the families of the disappeared to be given closure – and for them to be allowed to bury their family members. It is sad that some don’t share this basic right. Changing the subject achieves nothing¡
@Negan: ISIS would consider themselves as freedom fighters, do you support them also? have you any morals at all?
@Fank Pulman: Are you now Booby, you’re answering for him. So along with Fank Pulman. Pendragon 917, Paul Foot and now Booby, how many accounts have you got.
@Fank Pulman: You’re the one that changed the subject, considering the article has nothing really to do with the disappeared.
@booby sandwiches:
there are freedom fighters everywhere in one guise or other. this years freedom fighters are next years terrorists and the next years government. forget labeling things. look for the motive of their cause and then judge their morals.
@booby sandwiches: ISIS are anything but freedom fighters, there is absolutely no comparison.
What mandate was he respecting when was attending rallies for jailed IRA terrorists and their dead “martyrs”? The IRA had no mandate from anyone, SF had little electoral clout before their dear friends agreed to a ceasefire. SF got 13.8% of the vote last time out. It was in low single figures during the troubles north and south. The right side of history starts with the likes of Hume and Mallon, others merely followed when their gun dreams proved fruitless.
@joe o hare: So a democratic mandate is irrelevant? QED.
@Honeybadger197: disappointed “they” removed Joes comment. It laid bare the grassroots apathy towards democracy. So it goes…
@Honeybadger197: Spot on
@Honeybadger197: you are forgetting that bobby sands topped the poll in elections as a member of the IRA.
@Honeybadger197: it would be hard to get a mandate in a falsely created state that was engineered to give a foreign invader an electoral majority. Lots of people who voted SDLP also supported the IRA.
@joe o hare: Can you shed some light on why Gerry tried to make himself a beneficiary of Sands writings etc? Why are Sands relatives in dispute with the bobby sands trust? Why do they refuse to allow Sands son access to physical copies of his fathers writings? Lastly, if youre going to mention Sands, why did Gerry veto a deal from the British that the hungerstrikers had accepted?
Corbyn must be so honoured to be added to the list of Sinn Fein friends like his hero Castro.
Let’s have an unbiased opinion on this #EoghanHarris
@Stephen: Hahahaha
@Steph: Or Kevin Myers. Perhaps dig up Conor Cruise O’Brien, now that would be impartiality, not.
@Just Me: it gets better. They dragged Sean O’Callaghan out of obscurity and gave him the front page of the Sun.
So many trolls on this comment section.
@Eoin Mulhern: shinner trolls are busy trying to rewrite history, and they wonder why they are wallowing on 13% PMSL
@Just Me: How stupid can replies get! Try to argue your point and stop insults. It makes you look foolish.
@booby sandwiches: Spot on. Only recently joined social media and cannot believe the number of Provo trolls stalking and bullying decent democrats off the Comments page and Twitter. About 4 Provo trolls to 1 decent democrat. Scary
@Dolly White: anyone who doesn’t agree with what you think is a provo troll?
its good to see failures like SF/IRA and Corbyn cosy up. rotten to the core the lot of them
He DID condemn IRA bombings. The widely circulated clip of the interview conveniently cuts off the bit where he said “I condemn all bombing by both the loyalists and the IRA,” in an effort by the right wing press to smear him.
@Tom the Bomb: It’s David Cameron’s “Corbyn called Osama bin Laden’s death a tragedy” out-of-context smear story all over again. Lynton Crosby is probably masturbating furiously right now.
For Corbyn every radical terrorist & tyrant opposed to the west is either excused or backed by him over his long political career. For Corbyn “the enemy of my enemy is my friend”. From his support for the IRA, hamas & hezbollah to his regular appearances on Iran state English language propaganda channel & Putin’s English language propaganda channel RT before he became labour leader.
@Michael Ryan: evil associates with evil, corbyn and SF/IRA are welcome to each other, both utter failures PMSL
@booby sandwiches: havin a lot of trouble holdin your piss this evenin?
@Michael Ryan: i’m confused. do you actually believe that to be a good or bad?
@booby sandwiches: You’re like a bee attracted to nectar, give it up Dane, seek the help you urgently need.
BREAKING NEWS: Jeremy Corbyn condemns SF, claims he’s always been on the Left side of history.
The UK Labour leader has been slandered for failing to condemn the IRA alone without condemning anyone else.” There, fixed the sub heading for you.
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