Unusual Counter-Rally Hits Moscow

Russians frustrated with both Vladimir Putin and the nascent opposition's inability to institute change staged a small protest in Moscow on Sunday under the slogan: "we have had enough".

The unusual counter-demonstration reflected the deep fissures threatening to emerge between the various groups opposed to Putin's 12-year domination of Russia and expected return to the Kremlin in March presidential polls.

Organizers said just over a hundred people braved the winter cold on Bolotnaya Square -- scene of a historic protest against the outcome of a disputed December 4 parliamentary vote -- for the city-sanctioned event.

"These leaders care about politics more than they care about us. They all have their own links to the authorities anyway," said protest organizer Svetlana Peunova of the nationalist Volya (Will) group.

Moscow last month was rocked by the biggest rallies since the turbulent 1990s when tens of thousands turned out against elections in which Putin's ruling party retained a majority, though narrow, amid allegations of fraud.

A third such mass event has been scheduled for February 4 -- exactly a month before a presidential vote in which Putin hopes to win a third term after serving as head of state from 2000 to 2008.

Putin agreed to hand his current premiership post to President Dmitry Medvedev after the elections in a role swap that has sparked deep resentment among voters who feel cheated by the private deal.

The resulting drop in Putin's support is not expected to seriously hurt his election chances despite the sudden possibility that he will have to face a humbling run-off vote.

But it means that Putin may end up returning to the presidency with his approval ratings at an all-time low and his authority challenged for the first time.

Sunday's rally organizers said the current protest movement was distracted by leadership squabbles far removed from its original determination to obtain a fair vote.

"Those heading these rallies are clearly more interested in their own leadership than our problems," the group said in a formal statement.

Yet another small rally was scheduled for Monday by the radical Left Front movement of frequently-jailed activist Sergei Udaltsov.

The 34-year-old lawyer by training was released from police detention on Wednesday after serving a 10-day sentence for taking part in an unsanctioned rally.