Sergei Stanislavovich Udaltsov (russian: Серге́й Станиславович Удальцов; born 16 February 1977) is a Russian
left-wing
Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in soci ...
political activist. He is the unofficial leader of the
Vanguard of Red Youth (AKM). In 2011 and 2012, he helped lead
a series of protests against
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin; (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who holds the office of president of Russia. Putin has served continuously as president or prime minister since 1999: as prime min ...
. In 2014 he was sentenced to 4¹⁄₂ years in a penal camp for organizing the
May 2012 protest which ended in violence between the police and demonstrators.
December 2011 arrest
On 4 December 2011, the day of the
Russian legislative elections, Udaltsov was arrested in
Moscow
Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...
for allegedly "resisting officers' recommendations to cross the road in the correct place" and detained for five days.
As he finished this, Udaltsov was immediately rearrested and given a 15-day sentence for allegedly earlier leaving hospital without permission when he was being treated there during a previous, different period of detention in October. Around twenty officers came to pick him up, together with plainclothes members of the
FSB.
[
Udaltsov was in the same prison as another activist, ]Alexei Navalny
Alexei Anatolievich Navalny ( rus, links=no, Алексей Анатольевич Навальный, , ɐlʲɪkˈsʲej ɐnɐˈtolʲjɪvʲɪtɕ nɐˈvalʲnɨj; born 4 June 1976) is a Opposition to Vladimir Putin in Russia, Russian opposition ...
. While in prison, Udaltsov went on hunger strike
A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance in which participants fast as an act of political protest, or to provoke a feeling of guilt in others, usually with the objective to achieve a specific goal, such as a policy change. Most ...
to protest against the conditions.[
In December ]Amnesty International
Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and sup ...
named him a prisoner of conscience and called for his immediate release. One of Udaltsov's lawyers, Violetta Volkova, applied to the European Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR or ECtHR), also known as the Strasbourg Court, is an international court of the Council of Europe which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights. The court hears applications alleging that a ...
for his release, claiming a list of procedural violations.[
As of 17 December 2011, since November 2010 Udaltsov had spent a total of 86 days in detention for a variety of minor crimes and misdemeanours.][ According to Nikolai Polozov, one of his lawyers, "These cases are fabricated as a deliberate obstacle to prevent Sergei from exercising his constitutional right to free political expression".][
]
May 2012 demonstrations
Udaltsov played a leading role in the Moscow demonstrations protesting Putin's inauguration following the presidential election
A presidential election is the election of any head of state whose official title is President.
Elections by country
Albania
The president of Albania is elected by the Assembly of Albania who are elected by the Albanian public.
Chile
The pre ...
, taking an aggressive approach as the demonstrators attempted to exceed the limits imposed on them by the police. He was arrested, released, then re-arrested at a later demonstration and sentenced to 15 days. Adoption of a more militant posture was a change of tactics for the protest movement
A protest (also called a demonstration, remonstration or remonstrance) is a public expression of objection, disapproval or dissent towards an idea or action, typically a political one.
Protests can be thought of as acts of cooper ...
, which heretofore had dutifully sought permits and maintained a peaceful atmosphere.
On 8 May, the day after Putin was inaugurated, Udaltsov and fellow opposition leader Alexei Navalny were arrested after an anti-Putin rally at Clean Ponds
The Clean Ponds (russian: Чистые пруды, ''Chistye Prudy''), is a large pond in Moscow, Russia, located in the Basmanny District, on the Boulevard Ring. The pond gives its name to Chistoprudny Boulevard, which runs from Turgenevskaya ...
, and were each given 15-day jail sentences. In response, Amnesty International again designated him (as well as Navalny) a prisoner of conscience.
October 2012 conspiracy charge
In October 2012, the pro-government news channel NTV NTV may refer to:
Television
* NTV (Bangladesh), a Bengali-language satellite television channel in Bangladesh
* NTV (India), Telugu regional channel
* NTV (Kenya)
* NTV (Mongolia), a television channel based in Mongolia
* NTV (Newport Television) ...
aired a documentary titled "Anatomy of a Protest 2", which accused Udaltsov, Udaltsov's assistant Konstantin Lebedev, and Leonid Razvozzhayev
Leonid Mikhaylovich Razvozzhayev (russian: Леони́д Миха́йлович Развозжа́ев; born 12 June 1973 in Angarsk) is a member of the political coalition Left Front and an aide to Ilya Ponomarev, a member of the Russian Parli ...
, a parliamentary aide to opposition MP Ilya Ponomarev
Ilya Vladimirovich Ponomarev (russian: Илья́ Влади́мирович Пономарёв; born 6 August 1975) is a Russian politician who was a member of the State Duma from 2007 to 2016.
He was the only member of the State Duma not to ...
, of meeting with Georgian politician Givi Targamadze
Givi Targamadze (born 23 July 1968) is a Georgian politician in the United National Movement. An ally of Mikhail Saakashvili, Targamadze was one of the leaders of the United National Movement and the 2003 Rose Revolution. He served as Defense a ...
for the purpose of overthrowing Putin. The documentary purported to show a low-quality secret recording of a meeting between Targamadze and Russian activists, which NTV stated had been given to its staff "on the street by a stranger of Georgian nationality". The Investigative Committee of Russia
The Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation (russian: link=no, Следственный комитет Российской Федерации) has since January 2011 been the main federal investigating authority in Russia. Its name (' ...
(SK) stated it had found the footage to be genuine, while bloggers debated its validity, stating that at least one fragment of footage was used twice with different voice-overs. Udaltsov denied the documentary's accusations on Twitter
Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
, calling it "dirt and lies" and a "provocation whose ultimate objective is to justify my arrest".
Following the broadcast, an SK spokesman stated that the government was considering terrorism charges against Udaltsov on the basis of the video, and Razvozzhayev, Udaltsov, and Konstantin Lebedev, an assistant of Udaltsov's, were charged with "plotting mass disturbances". Udaltsov was arrested by a squad of masked commandos on 17 October. Razvozzhayev fled to Kyiv
Kyiv, also spelled Kiev, is the capital and most populous city of Ukraine. It is in north-central Ukraine along the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2021, its population was 2,962,180, making Kyiv the List of European cities by populat ...
, Ukraine, to apply for asylum, but was allegedly kidnapped by security forces, returned to Moscow, tortured, and made to sign a confession implicating himself, Udaltsov, and anti-corruption activist Alexei Navalny
Alexei Anatolievich Navalny ( rus, links=no, Алексей Анатольевич Навальный, , ɐlʲɪkˈsʲej ɐnɐˈtolʲjɪvʲɪtɕ nɐˈvalʲnɨj; born 4 June 1976) is a Opposition to Vladimir Putin in Russia, Russian opposition ...
.
On 26 October, Udaltsov was charged with plotting riots. An SK spokesman also accused him of an attempt "to plan and prepare terrorist acts and other actions threatening the life and health of Russians", and suggested that he could face life imprisonment. The Associated Press
The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...
described the charges as continuation of "a widespread crackdown on the movement against President Vladimir Putin".
Udaltsov was arrested again on 27 October along with Navalny and Ilya Yashin
Ilya Valeryevich Yashin (russian: Илья́ Вале́рьевич Я́шин; born 29 June 1983) is a Russian opposition politician who led the PARNAS party from 2012 to 2016, and then its Moscow branch. He was also head of the Moscow munici ...
while attempting to join a protest against Razvozzhayev's alleged kidnapping and torture. The three were charged with violating public order, for which they could be fined up to 30,000 rubles (US$1,000) or given 50 hours of community service.
December 2012 arrest in Lubyanka Square
Udaltsov and Navalny were among those arrested at a protest in Lubyanka Square
Lubyanskaya Square (, Lubyanskaya ploshchad'), or simply Lubyanka in Moscow lies about north-east of Red Square. History first records its name in 1480, when Grand Prince Ivan III of Moscow, who had conquered Novgorod in 1471, settled many Novgo ...
on 15 December 2012. According to press reports, about 2,000 protesters had gathered, despite being threatened with huge fines for participating in an unsanctioned demonstration. Russian lawmaker Dmitry Gudkov
Dmitry Gennadyevich Gudkov (russian: Дмитрий Геннадьевич Гудков; born 19 January 1980) is a Russian politician and opposition leader. He was elected as a member of the State Duma in 2011–2016. His father, Gennady Gud ...
was quoted as saying, "There is still protest and we want change, and they can't frighten us with detention or pressure or searches or arrests or anything else."
Prison sentence
On 24 July 2014 a court in Moscow sentenced Udaltsov and his co-defendant Leonid Razvozzhayev
Leonid Mikhaylovich Razvozzhayev (russian: Леони́д Миха́йлович Развозжа́ев; born 12 June 1973 in Angarsk) is a member of the political coalition Left Front and an aide to Ilya Ponomarev, a member of the Russian Parli ...
to years in a penal camp for organizing the May 2012 protest which ended in violence between the police and demonstrators. After that Udaltsov has gone on hunger strike to protest the sentence.
Udaltsov was released from prison in August 2017.
Political views
In a January 2012 interview, Udaltsov called for "a direct democracy, where the people would have their say through fair and transparent referendums, where they could interact with authorities using the Internet, where they could have a say in social reforms." According to Udaltsov: "We are not nostalgic about the Soviet Union, we do not argue for a return to a centrally planned economy
A planned economy is a type of economic system where investment, production and the allocation of capital goods takes place according to economy-wide economic plans and production plans. A planned economy may use centralized, decentralized, part ...
where social initiative was stifled, but we do want to preserve what was good in the Soviet system while adopting new paths to development; we want to see the social-democratic
Social democracy is a Political philosophy, political, Social philosophy, social, and economic philosophy within socialism that supports Democracy, political and economic democracy. As a policy regime, it is described by academics as advocati ...
development of Russia."
Udaltsov supports the annexation of Crimea and the "people's republics" in eastern Ukraine. About Crimea's referendum, he declared, "I am a Soviet patriot and consider the destruction of the Soviet Union the greatest mistake and a crime. Therefore, I regard the absorption of Crimea to be a small but important step towards the revival of a renewed ovietUnion." In 2017, he explained: "I supported the decision of the citizens of Crimea, as I am confident – I have information from different sources – that it was indeed their decision, the will of the people, to be with Russia. And I, as a man of left, democratic views, cannot contradict it, I cannot oppose it. The Crimeans wanted it. Whether it was right or not, it's their decision. Democracy is democracy".
He served as a campaign manager for Communist Party of the Russian Federation
, anthem =
, seats1_title = Seats in the State Duma
, seats1 =
, seats2_title = Seats in the Federation Council
, seats2 =
, seats3_title = Governors
, seats3 =
, seats4_title ...
(KPRF) candidate Gennady Zyuganov
Gennady Andreyevich Zyuganov (russian: Генна́дий Андре́евич Зюга́нов; born 26 June 1944) is a Russian politician, who has been the General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation and served as ...
during the 2012 presidential election
This national electoral calendar for 2012 lists the national/federal elections held in 2012 in all sovereign states and their dependent territories. By-elections are excluded, though national referendums are included.
January
*3–4 January: E ...
. In the 2018 presidential election, he supported the KPRF candidate Pavel Grudinin
Pavel Nikolayevich Grudinin (russian: link=no, Павел Николаевич Грудинин; born 20 October 1960) is a Russian politician and entrepreneur. Previously, he was a Municipal Deputy of the city settlement Vidnoye and Chairman o ...
.
Personal life
Sergei is married to Anastasia Udaltsova
Anastasia Olegovna Udaltsova (russian: Анастасия Олеговна Удальцова, born 2 September 1978) is a Russian politician and member of the 8th State Duma.
Born in Cherkasy, Ukraine, Anastasia received Russian citizenship in ...
. They were known as the "revolutionary couple" of Russian politics in the early 2010s. Together they have two sons, Ivan (born in 2002) and Oleg (born in 2005).[
]
See also
*Vanguard of Red Youth
The Vanguard of Red Youth (AKM; russian: Авангард красной молодёжи; ''Avangard krasnoy molodyozhi''), acronymed after an AK-47 variant) is a radical Russian socialist youth group. Its website describes it as an "independen ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Udaltsov, Sergei
1977 births
Living people
Politicians from Moscow
Amnesty International prisoners of conscience held by Russia
Russian activists
Russian socialists
Russian Marxists
Russian political prisoners
Russian revolutionaries
Russian dissidents
2011–2013 Russian protests
Hunger strikers
Political prisoners according to Memorial