More than 120 people have been arrested in Moscow after activists tried to hold the city's first gay rights picket. Green Alternative (GROZA) organized this picket in front of the Moscow city hall on Tverskaya street in solidarity with Moscow Pride organizers when all their appeals for rally and pickets were banned. The slogans of picket were “For freedom of assembly!” and “Stop descrimination in all forms!”.

Secretary of Green Alternative (GROZA) Alexey Kozlov and GROZA Moscow branch coordinator Dmitri Makarov were arrested in the very beginning of the picket. Dmitri Makarov was beaten up at the police station Krasnopresnenskaya by the riot police officer. During the dispersal of the picket sevral participants were beaten up by police and neonazis as well. Among them was German MP from Green party Folcker Beck.

Meanwhile nationalist and Orthodox Christian foundamentalist groups chanted anti-gay slogans and shouted abuse. Nazi skinheads attacked police and LGBT activists.

"What happened today unfortunately is representative of the non-respect for human rights in Russia. You can't express your point of view, and you are not protected from neonazis," said Olga Gnezdilova , co-chairperson of GROZA and human rights activst – «The numeros and systematic violations of freedom of assemly happened in Moscow in the same time when Russia is the chair country in the Council of Eroupe”.

Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov said he had banned the march because he believed homosexuality was not natural and because the event would cause outrage in society - a position supported by many Christian and Muslim groups. He said that as long as he was mayor he would not allow such events to take place.

“As the greens and human rights activists we demand to stop the chairing of Russia in the Council of Europe till the moment when violators of freedom of assembly and organizers of neonazi attacks will be panished according to the Russian and international Laws.” – said Alexey Kozlov, secreatry of GROZA – «We demand to stop the illegal prosecutions of LGBT activists and supporters immediatly”