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MOSCOW - Opposition leader Garry Kasparov said Thursday the Kremlin has stopped him from running for president by preventing his supporters from meeting to nominate him. Members of the Other Russia coalition, which Kasparov heads, say they had been unable to rent a Moscow auditorium, which they needed for a legally required vote to endorse the former chess champion's presidential bid.Judging by the response organizers were getting from venue owners, authorities had been instructed to stop his group from meeting, Kasparov said.Under Russian law, independent candidates can run for president only if an "initiative group" of at least 500 people meets formally to vote on the nomination. The deadline for informing the Central Election Commission of such a meeting was Thursday."This prohibition is apparently very strict because ... they are categorically refusing us," Kasparov told Ekho Moskvy radio.Kasparov's spokeswoman Marina Litvinovich accused the government of pressuring the owners of Moscow auditoriums and meeting halls."Authorities put up as many obstacles as possible to stop us," she told The AP.Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov called the accusation absurd."The Kremlin isn't involved in renting out halls, and blaming the Kremlin in any way in this case would be considered incorrect," he said.Since retiring from chess, Kasparov has become a prominent critic of President Vladimir Putin, who is barred by law from seeking a third consecutive term in the March election. Kasparov helped form Other Russia, a disparate coalition of nationalists, left-wing activists and liberals.Also Thursday, Litvinovich said, buses carrying dozens of Other Russia supporters were halted by police on the outskirts of Moscow as they were headed for a wake for 22-year-old Yuri Chervochkin, who died earlier this month after allegedly being beaten by police during a November protest.The group was later released, arriving at the service escorted by dozens of police, said activist Sergei Aksenov.The mourners included Kasparov and the nationalist author Eduard Limonov, leader of the opposition National Bolshevik Party,"One can talk about a systematic, harsh, physical persecution of my supporters in Russia," Limonov told Ekho Moskvy.Denis Bilunov, an activist with the United Civil Front, which is part of the Other Russia coalition, said the wake was very tense, as riot police stood by, smirking and talking, while people mourned Chervochkin."It was absolutely a disgrace the way they acted," Bilunov said.Even had he been able to run for president, Kasparov would have had little chance of winning in March, given the Kremlin's control of broadcast media, law enforcement agencies and the nation's court system.Still, the Kremlin has worked hard to thwart efforts to build any independent opposition movement.Police have violently dispersed several opposition rallies organized by Kasparov's group in the past year, and Kasparov was jailed for five days after a Moscow rally last month.Kasparov's wife and daughter reportedly were detained at St. Petersburg's airport Wednesday as they tried to board an international flight. They were released after having their documents checked and after the flight had departed, according to the United Civil Front.On Monday, Putin announced he would support First Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev as his successor — an endorsement that almost guarantees his election. A day later, Medvedev called on Putin to become prime minister after the March 2 vote.Putin has not yet accepted the post. If he did, it could make it possible for him to retain control of Russia's political system even after his presidential term ends in May. As in the days of Noah....
