Arbat cleansed from artists, musicians and merchants

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Арбат зачистили от художников, музыкантов и торговцев

Prefecture Central district of Moscow together with satisfied daily police raids against illegal trade on the Arbat. About this “NOT” reported in a press-Department service. Muscovites from late January to discuss the persecution of street artists of Arbat – recall, three of them were taken to the police station and fined. Previously, the Arbat had to free musicians – those, according to the guards, prevented the passage of citizens. Correspondents “OR” walked through the empty Arbat and asked it already a few inhabitants, how they adapt to change and will “fight” for the legendary street.

Арбат зачистили от художников, музыкантов и торговцев

Photo: CATHERINE WARUHIU

Арбат зачистили от художников, музыкантов и торговцев

On an ordinary working day on Arbat street is unusually empty – only promoters distributing flyers Yes hurry about their business passers-by. Not see the usual sprawling with books, artists drawing caricatures. Can not hear the music. “This is some monstrous mockery of the city, of its traditions. On the Arbat has always been a lot of musicians, artists, there was vivid life, was its own microclimate. Be able to come in the morning and hang there until the evening. And now it’s just a passing place with the barkers to the pawnshop,” he wrote recently on his page in Facebook coordinator society “Blue buckets” Peter Shkumatov.

A few months Arbat disappeared musicians and purveyors of books. And recently came for the artists. As previously reported by “NEITHER”, at the end of February, the police took away three portrait samples and art supplies and each was fined on 2,5 thousand roubles for illegal trade.

The RAID took place “within the framework of consideration of addresses of citizens and legal entities on the legality of business activity by” explained “OR” the Department of internal Affairs on TSAO. And to deliver the portrait to the station it was decided because “artists were no permits for trade”. The representative of the ATC in oral conversation with “NO” indicated that the complaints of artists and musicians from citizens to the police act. But who and what it is that complains the interlocutor “OR” refused to tell, referring to the inability to disclose confidential information.

“The placement of stands of artists selling paintings, and street musicians with sound amplifying equipment was not provided by the scheme of placing of non-stationary objects small retail trade in the territory of the CAO,” explained “NO” in a press-service of Prefecture of district. They reported that office jointly with the Department of internal Affairs “organized efforts to suppress illegal trade, there are daily raids to curb illegal trade, including in the street Arbat”. In the Prefecture believe that the activities of artists subject to article 11.13 of the administrative code “trading activity, rendering of services outside specially designated places”. Fine up to five thousand rubles.

After the January RAID on the Arbat almost don’t draw. The only artist who found the correspondent of “NO”, nestles at the Vakhtangov Theatre. An elderly man introduced himself as Sasha. “The police doesn’t bother me. I have a “Prague” does not stand, and the restaurant they are squabbling with each other. For us the main thing – not to interfere with the police. We can work in other places: in Gorky Park or Izmailovo Park. But go here, because I’m used to the Arbat. I don’t remember how long I’ve worked here”.

Арбат зачистили от художников, музыкантов и торговцев

Photo: CATHERINE WARUHIU

Арбат зачистили от художников, музыкантов и торговцев The representative of the initiative group of street artists Uladzimir Labkovich explained “NO” that the main goal of activists is to prove to the authorities, including through the courts that the artists are not traders, and artists who decorate the city. The activists – to make a kind of flash mob is to gather a social network of people to draw artists, and to ask at the appointed time to come to the Arbat with their works. “One day on the Arbat will gather a crowd of thousands with our portraits. Here only the application in the mayor’s office will issue…”.

Be the first to release Arbat was ordered musicians to actively penalize them started in the spring of 2014. Almost all were charged article that appeared in the administrative code, after the events on Bolotnaya square in 2012: according to it, creating a crowd around him, hindering movement, shall be punished by rouble, or arrest up to 15 days. Simultaneously with the first loud detention in the Moscow city Duma began to sound ideas to license the work of musicians or permitted to play only in special reservations.

A group of musicians “Intuition+” (Sergey Burlakov, Sergey Barhin and Elena Pisareva) not opposed to their work introduced the patents: “So much the better, because the market decriminalized. We know that a safe working environment”. At the same time pay more than 5 thousand rubles for such a permit they are not ready. Recently “Intuition+” is not on the Arbat, and near a metro station. Musicians complain that the center of the Arbat it was impossible to go: “the guards of the stores quickly rebuffed. But it was the style of the Arbat, its atmosphere, especially when professionals are. Now, circus performers, acrobats, compelled on the subway to hang out”.

Not easy to have and Arbat the second-hand bookshops, which are always, by law, were required to negotiate with the authorities in their work and retail space they rented from the city. The correspondent of “NO” met on the Arbat only one such shop. The owner told me that the sellers of books now much diminished, and the process started 7-8 months ago: “we Used to book a lot of points on the Arbat, but now almost all have closed. I been working here long, for the right to trade pay promptly, and other, apparently, for non-dispersed,” – said Sergey bookseller.

Some time to enter into contracts with booksellers Moscow stopped, said “NO” to the book dealer Yuri Archers: “In Moscow now there are no legally operating chute point, as new retail permits were not issued”. But it’s not just that. 1 July in Moscow there is the sales tax for bookstores, which is a few tens of thousand in the quarter (CAO – 60 thousand) and even extends to hawkers for which such amount is unsupportable. “After the introduction of the sales tax was closed for about half points second-hand of Moscow”, – complains Archers.

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