Russians Rally to Renew U.S. Adoptions; Putin's Politics Hurt 'The Most Vulnerable'

Bennetts, Marc, The Washington Times (Washington, DC)

Byline: Marc Bennetts, SPECIAL TO THE WASHINGTON TIMES

MOSCOW -- Thousands of people swept through snowy central Moscow on Sunday to express their anger with President Vladimir Putin's approval of a ban on American families' adoptions of Russian children.

Leave the children alone, protesters chanted as they filled tree-lined boulevards a short distance from the Kremlin while a police helicopter buzzed above. Some protesters carried placards depicting Mr. Putin as a child killer.

Organizers said about 50,000 people attended the rally, while police said the figure was fewer than 10,000. Bloggers and independent media later cast scorn on the police estimate. Nine people were arrested on public-disorder offenses, police said.

This ban disgraces us in the eyes of the world, said protester Andrei Titov, a businessman. The authorities are playing politics with the lives of the most vulnerable people …

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Publication information: Article title: Russians Rally to Renew U.S. Adoptions; Putin's Politics Hurt 'The Most Vulnerable'. Contributors: Bennetts, Marc - Author. Newspaper title: The Washington Times (Washington, DC). Publication date: January 14, 2013. Page number: A01. © 2009 The Washington Times LLC. COPYRIGHT 2013 Gale Group.

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