Russian politics is a strange beast. The elected leader is a strongman who rules with an iron grip, and is in the process of subverting the constitution to remain as de facto ruler. It calls itself a democracy, but then you have this:

Opposition leader and chess legend Garry Kasparov was jailed for five days Saturday after being arrested during a protest against President Vladimir Putin a week before parliamentary elections.

He was sentenced for organising an unsanctioned march and refusing to obey police orders, but told reporters the charges were “unfounded”.

And what if the pro-Putin marches had been unsanctioned? Would there have been a similar crackdown? I think you know the answer to that one.