MOSCOW, January 4 (RIA Novosti) – President Vladimir Putin made changes to a decree on security at the 2014 Winter Olympics, opening in Russia's southern resort city Sochi next month, to allow pickets and rallies to take place during the event, the Kremlin press service said Saturday.
The new order permits demonstrations unrelated to the Olympics and Paralympics to happen between January 7 and March 21 as long as the number of participants, location or marching route, and time interval are agreed upon by local authorities.
Russia had earlier banned rallies unrelated to the Games, citing security concerns in an order signed by Putin that also severely restricted access to Sochi and set up controlled zones at Olympic venues where all people and their belongings would be searched. Activists denounced the move as a restriction of free speech.
Olympic officials said in December that protesters would only be allowed to demonstrate inside designated public zones in Sochi.
The Winter Olympics, which get under way February 7, have been the focus of intense international scrutiny and security concerns following the double suicide-bomb attacks in Volgograd, 400 miles away, this week that killed 34 people and injured more than 60 others.
Russia’s controversial ban on gay propaganda last year has also been a source of international tension, with some foreign officials and activists questioning the safety of gay athletes and attendees at the Games in light of the law.
Some gay rights campaigners were outraged by the ban and have vowed to use the Winter Olympics in Sochi as a venue to protest the legislation.
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