Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin showed respect for the views of tens of thousands of demonstrators who took to the streets to protest last weekend's election outcome, his spokesman said Sunday. Everybody had the right to express their opinion, as long as they did so peacefully and respected the law, said Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov. "We respect the views of the demonstrators, we are hearing what is being said and we will continue to listen to them," Peskov was quoted as saying by the German Press Agency "DPA". Thousands also took to the streets in St Petersburg and Vladivostok, while dozens were reportedly arrested in the cities of Perm in the Ural mountains and Khabarovsk in Russia's Far East. Meanwhile the Electoral Commission rejected demands for chairman Vladimir Churov to be removed from office, a move that just two communist committee members had backed, Interfax news agency reported.
