On June 22, a small group of protesters stood outside the Moscow mayor’s office holding posters reading “We had a beekeeper for a mayor and now we have a tile layer,” “put a stop to the tile aggression” and “Sobyanin! Enough digging around in the budget money!”

“There are serious grounds to suspect an element of corruption,” said Left Front leader Sergei Udaltsov, present at the protest. “Stones are being laid at a rapid pace, the quality is low, the stones are swelling up, some parts are collapsing.” He called for the work to be temporarily halted until an experiment could be carried out on the tiles.

Police initially tried to detain the protesters, but chose not to in the end.

At the end of this past February, Moscow Vice Mayor Pyotr Biryukov announced plans to tear up 4 million cubic meters of sidewalk pavement and replace it with stone tiles in 2011.

The Russian press explains the mayor’s interest in the project as connected with the fact that his wife, Irina Rubinchik, owns a stone tile business. Whether or not the stones being laid in Moscow were purchased from her company is unclear. But according to Novaya Gazeta, the entire center of Tyumen was laid with stone tiling while Sobyanin was governor of Tyumen Oblast between 2001 and 2005.

“The Communists, for example, gather many people at their demonstrations, and we will close streets and squares for them. But if it’s a few dozen debauchers who gather for the sake of their own scandalous behavior, then it would be illogical to close a prospect for them,” Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin told a roundtable of journalists on June 4.

“Many event organizers act on the logic of ‘we want to hold an event only where we’re not allowed to, and the Constitution does not give you the right to ban it,” he added.

Sobyanin’s words echoed those of Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, who in December 2010 commented on protests by “dissenters,” saying that “they don’t want to hold events – they want a conflict with the authorities.”

Human rights advocates called on Mayor Sobyanin to not make arbitrary decisions and simply to obey the law. “It wouldn’t be bad for the mayor of Moscow to know that the constitution has no concept of ‘scandalous behavior’ or ‘debaucher,'” said Moscow Helsinki Group head Lyudmila Alexeyeva.

According to Kommersant, this is the first time that Sobyanin has expressed his attitude towards large-scale demonstrations since becoming mayor in October 2010. He has previously mostly mentioned two opposition campaigns – the Day of Wrath and Strategy 31 – the organizers of which are consistently embattled by the city.

Strategy 31 demonstrations are held on the 31st date of each month in dozens of cities across Russia in defense of the 31st article of the constitution, guaranteeing freedom of assembly. For a year and a half, up until October 2010, Moscow city authorities refused to sanction the demonstrations on the centrally-located Triumfalnaya Square, and protesters were routinely beaten by police and arrested en masse. While city authorities sometimes say that the demonstrations would always have been sanctioned if organizers moved them to other locations, oppositionists insist that the alternatives proposed by the city would have rendered the protests invisible to the public.

Previously, Day of Wrath protests were held on the 12th day of each month across from the Moscow mayor’s office on Tverskaya Ulitsa, intended as a venue for people to express their collective grievances against the authorities. The city never sanctioned the protests and their participants were regularly arrested by police. In February 2011, organizers decided to relocate to Teatralnaya Ulitsa, and the rally was sanctioned for the first time ever.

On May 17, the advocacy project GayRussia.Ru posted the official letter sent to the parade’s organizers explaining the city’s decision. “At the current time, the government of Moscow is receiving numerous messages from representatives of state government agencies and subjects of the Russian Federation, religious denominations, public organizations, the Cossacks, and individual citizens asking that we not allow such public events to be held,” the letter reads. “In the opinion of many respondents, the parade could bring about a wave of protests that could snowball into mass violations of public order.”

Moscow gay rights leader Nikolai Alekseev said the permit request had been filed with city authorities on April 12. “It was done a day after the verdict from the European Court of Human Rights saying that Moscow’s bans of three gay parades from 2006-2008 were illegal went into effect,” he said, referring to the court’s October 2010 ruling that the Russian authorities had violated three articles of the European Convention on Human Rights by banning the parades.

Alekseev stressed that “the government of the capital and Mayor Sobyanin personally will be responsible for any possible disorder in the center of Moscow on May 28. We intend to uphold our right to peaceful assembly, even without the permission of the authorities.”

He also said that he plans to appeal the ban and that gay rights activists intend to send a letter to President Dmitri Medvedev asking permission to hold the parade next to the Kremlin in the Alexander Gardens.

In addition, a press release on GayRussia.Ru says that activists are appealing to world governments asking them to ban homophobic Russian government representatives from entering their countries.

In Alekseev’s words, a list of 487 politicians, civil servants, and public figures, 100 judges, 19 government agencies and 40 parties, movements and organizations that the activists have deemed are homophobic will be sent to the European Union and other democratic countries for them to consider whether they want to offer entry visas to people who openly promote hatred of sexual minorities and don’t share the fundamental values of a free democratic society.

The list includes Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Federation Council Chairman Sergei Mironov, the United Russia party, the Communist party, the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia, the Foreign Ministry, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Justice Ministry, the Prosecutor General’s Office, the entire makeup of the Constitutional Court, and others.

The new bill would put limits on the number of people allowed to demonstrate in the vicinity each of the city’s transportation facilities. These limits would ensure that “no less than half of a thruway can be used for vehicle transport and, when necessary, for citizens not taking part in the rally.” Any application submitted to the mayor’s office to hold a rally without consideration of these limits would be rejected.

The Russian constitution only requires organizers to notify local authorities that they are holding a rally, leading many critics to argue that Moscow’s policy of turning down certain applications is unconstitutional. Nevertheless, unsanctioned rallies are often violently repressed by the police.

The city administration said the bill is an attempt to deal with Moscow’s paralyzing traffic jams, which Mayor Sergei Sobyanin named as one of his top priorities after being appointed last October. But the limits would have no effect on state-sponsored events, limiting only opposition and other independent demonstrations. The city’s traditional St. Patrick’s Day parade, for example, was cancelled this year, ostensibly for the same reason.

According to Eduard Limonov, leader of the Other Russia party and co-organizer of the opposition’s Strategy 31 rally campaign, this is not the first time the government has tried to impose limits on the number of participants in rallies – but it is the first time they’re trying to put it into law.

Former Moscow Mayor Yury Luzhkov has argued that Strategy 31 rallies should not be held in their traditional meeting place – Triumfalnaya Square – out of concern for people’s safety, but at the same time has granted sanction to pro-Kremlin youth groups to rally in larger numbers on the same square.

Limonov said the new bill is connected to the revolutions in Egypt and Tunisia and that the Russian authorities are trying to “tighten the screws” out of a fear of public demonstrations.

According to preliminary information, the explosion occurred at 4:32 pm local time after a man carrying a bag entered Domodedovo’s international arrivals area, where a large crowd was waiting at the baggage claim. The bomb that then exploded was at least as powerful as 5 kilograms of dynamite and was filled with metal screws and bolts to heighten its impact.

Eyewitness accounts and videos began streaming in from social media soon after the explosion. “A bomb exploded in Domodedovo. People are covered in blood, there’s smoke everywhere…” said Twitter user ann_mint, who says she works in the airport. “Everyone’s running somewhere. It’s awful.”

Another airport worker said that many foreigners were among the victims: “There were many Africans, people who didn’t speak Russian in general.”

Other witnesses said the baggage claim was filled with smoke and the smell of ash. A series of videos on YouTube and Twitter filmed during the immediate aftermath of the explosion showed thick smoke and piles of charred bodies, as well as medical personnel wheeling victims out of the airport. According to RIA Novosti, airport workers dismantled part of a wall to widen the exit for the victims.

Early reports of the number of victims varied. According to the Ministry for Emergency Situations, 168 people were injured, 74 of whom have been hospitalized. Moscow regional governor Boris Gromov told journalists that 34 people had died, two of them in the hospital.

Meanwhile, Domodedovo’s press service reports 35 dead and 46 injured. Sofia Malyavina of the Ministry of Health and Social Development reported 35 dead and 130 injured.

A statement on Domodedovo’s website confirmed that the explosion had occurred in the international arrivals area, “where people who aren’t passengers have free access.” It also said that the airport was operating normally, and that aircraft were still being allowed to land and take off as usual.

State authorities are calling the attack an act of terrorism. Operatives from the Federal Investigative Committee have been dispatched to the airport.

Authorities have reportedly found the head of a man who appears to have been the bomber. “The head of a man of Arab appearance has been found; he was approximately 30-35 years of age; he presumably set off the explosive device,” a source told Interfax.

The three men who have been identified as suspects were apparently already wanted by Russia’s federal security services before Monday’s attack. According to RIA Novosti, a recent operation had been carried out to detain the suspects in Moscow’s Zelenograd district, but was unsuccessful.

Investigators were careful to say that the bomber was not necessarily a “suicide bomber.”

“Until relevant expert analysis has been carried out, you need to be very careful when dealing with different types of terminology, including the word ‘suicide bomber,'” said one official, explaining that the bomb could have been detonated remotely, unbeknownst to the man carrying it.

In response to the attack, Russian President Dmitri Medvedev postponed a trip to Switzerland, where he planned to arrive on Tuesday to participate in the World Economic Forum. According to Gazeta.ru, the president ordered Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin and Governor Gromov to go to Domodedovo personally to ascertain the situation. “Everything needs to be done… to obtain quick information and conduct an investigation without delay,” Medvedev said at a press conference.

Chief of the Ministry of Health and Social Development Tatyana Golikova was sent to the airport by Prime Minister Vladimir Putin in order to determine what kind of aid would be necessary for the victims. “A project for a government ordinance on providing material aid to the families of the victims needs to be prepared,” the prime minister said in a meeting with Golikova.

Moscow city officials said that the families of victims would be compensated with funds from the city budget.

“Aside from federal payouts, families of the victims will be compensated with 2 million rubles, critically-injured victims by 1.5 million rubles, those with moderate or mild injuries – 1 million rubles,” said Mayor Sobyanin. In addition, funerals for deceased victims would be free. “All of these services should be free,” said the mayor.

Boris Nemtsov, co-leader of the Solidarity opposition movement, and Eduard Limonov, head of the banned National Bolshevik party and the Other Russia party, were both sentenced to 15 days in jail – Nemtsov for insubordination to the police and Limonov for hooliganism. Left Front coordinator Konstantin Kosyakin received a 10-day sentence for insubordination to the police and Solidarity member Ilya Yashin was sentenced to 5 days in jail, presumably for the same offense.

In the cases of Kosyakin, Nemtsov, and Yashin, a Moscow court refused to admit testimony from 13 witnesses who asserted that the police had acted unlawfully during the rally.

According to Other Russia party member Andrei Gorin, Limonov had been arrested directly outside of his home on his way to the rally. He was sentenced that very evening.

The nationwide rallies were held as part of the Russian opposition’s ongoing Strategy 31 campaign, which is dedicated to the defense of the 31st article of the Russian constitution, guaranteeing the freedom to peacefully hold gatherings, rallies, demonstrations, marches and pickets.

In Moscow, organizers held two separate rallies, both at 6 pm on Triumfalnaya Square. Lyudmila Alexeyeva, a former Soviet dissident and highly regarded rights activist, received approval from the city to hold one of the rallies. Limonov and Kosyakin organized the second, unsanctioned rally.

As Gazeta.ru reports, the police presence at Triumfalnaya Square that night was strong even compared to previous Strategy 31 events.

“More than one thousand people have gathered at the sanctioned rally,” the correspondent reported. “Police are inspecting everyone very closely; there are a thousand of them as well… Several hundred members of the Other Russia coalition are gathered near the metro.”

An estimated 1500 ralliers came out to Triumfalnaya Square in total.

Moscow city police had cordoned off the square earlier in the day, particularly around the sidewalk between the square and the Tchaikovsky Concert Hall, where participants of unsanctioned Strategy 31 rallies usually gather. Anyone who attempted to join that rally from the neighboring Mayakovsky metro station was detained directly at the exit.

Other Russia member Sergei Aksenov was detained after announcing over a megaphone that Limonov had been arrested.

According to Kasparov.ru, OMON riot police periodically squeezed together the participants on Alexeyeva’s side of the square – a tactic commonly used by police during Strategy 31 rallies that often makes it difficult for those present to move or even breathe.

Following up from last year, Alexeyeva came to the rally dressed as a festive snowmaiden. Other oppositionists dressed up as well: environmental activist Yevgenia Chirikova came in a Little Red Riding Hood costume. Rights activist Lev Ponomarev said he wanted to dress as Father Christmas, but couldn’t get ahold of a suitable cap.

After the sanctioned rally had officially ended, some participants – including Nemtsov and Yashin – attempted to cross over to the unsanctioned rally and were promptly arrested. According to Interfax, about 70 people were detained on Triumfalnaya Square in total.

Prior to the rallies, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin had warned that the city would not allow large, unsanctioned events to be held on New Year’s Eve, and that “those who plan to violate the law” could find themselves face-to-face with some unpleasant consequences.

Viktor Biryukov, head of public relations for the Moscow city police, said that they would not allow provocateurs and participants of any possible unsanctioned rallies to ruin New Year’s Eve night for people in the city.

In St. Petersburg, police arrested about 60 people in one of two Strategy 31 rallies held in the city that night. City authorities had refused to grant sanction to either rally.

As Fontanka.ru reports, all the arrests occurred at Gostiny Dvor, where between 100 and 300 people had gathered to rally. Nine girls were detained after unfurling a poster reading “freedom is more important than Olivier salad.”

No arrests were made at the second rally, which had about 100 participants from the United Civil Front, Solidarity, Yabloko, and other opposition groups. Many ralliers wore shirts picturing Mikhail Khodorkovsky, a former oil oligarch who was convicted for a second time last week. He will now continue to sit in prison until 2017. The conviction is widely seen as the personal vendetta of Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.

Photographs of the Moscow rallies can be found by clicking here and here.

Update 12/22/10: Nearly two weeks after the fact, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin is saying that his remarks have been misinterpreted. “Any idea can be distorted, I never spoke about relocating pensioners beyond the city limits, that’s complete drivel,” Sobyanin told TVTs television. From what can be gathered by the incomplete text available on Interfax at the time of this update, the mayor supposedly meant only that proper medical services should be made available to pensioners while living in their summer homes on the outskirts of the city.

The newly-appointed mayor of Moscow, Sergei Sobyanin, is apparently proposing a measure to relocate pensioners from Moscow to “pensioner villages” far from the city.

“Think about it. It’s possible to provide them with normal-sized plots of land, and to work on projects to build villages for pensioners,” the mayor said on Friday.

The idea was originally proposed by Belgorodskaya regional governor Yevgeny Savchenko. At a session on Thursday at a presidential council meeting for Russia’s Central Federal District, the governor said the problem of Moscow’s expensive construction could be resolved through “a settlement policy.”

“Make it so that there would be five million people living here [in Moscow], and all the issues would be resolved without capital investment,” said Savchenko. He additionally promised to help other regional governors develop the infrastructure necessary for such a project. Under the plan, villages for pensioners would be built all across Russia’s Central Federal District, which spans more than 250,000 square miles around Moscow – and possibly elsewhere. “This is a big country – there’s the Far East, and Siberia,” Savchenko said.

Upwards of 10 million people currently live in Moscow, where real estate and construction prices are among the highest in the world. The prices have partially resulted from construction policy under former Moscow Mayor Yury Luzhkov, whose billionaire developer wife was routinely awarded city contracts without a competitive bidding process.

Mayor Sobyanin responded positively to the proposal to relocate pensioners from Moscow. “Regardless of the fact that it seems amusing on the surface, there is a seed of rationality in this proposal,” said the mayor.

“The fact of the matter is that Moscow pensioners live practically in all of your regions – in dachas, in small cottages,” said Sobyanin. “Some live through the winter, cast aside, cold. Some in far away villages.”

The mayor said that such a resettlement strategy could help pensioners currently suffering from their apparently uninhabitable Moscow housing. “It’ll be so they feel normal,” he explained. “This past summer they choked on smoke in those boxes, and it’s better to live in good, well-built villages in nature.”

Approximately 2.5 million pensioners live in Moscow.

In their written response to newly-instated Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin, Strategy 31 organizers insisted on having at least 1500 people be allowed to rally on Moscow’s Triumfalnaya Square. A construction barrier, which was recently erected around the square and a monument to Soviet writer Vladimir Mayakovsky, should be taken down in order to make more room for the protesters, they said.

“It’s possible, if they take down the fence surrounding the monument, where there’s no construction going on,” reads the letter. “Ten days left before the 31st, that’s entirely enough time to do this.”

The Moscow mayor’s office agreed yesterday for the first time in the year-and-a-half history of Strategy 31 to grant sanction for opposition protesters to gather on Triumfalnaya Square. However, the rallies have traditionally consisted of more than 1000 protesters, problematizing the city’s proposal to allow only 200 to gather.