Communists will hold on Saturday protest...

"Despite the cold weather we have decided to hold an all-Russia protest action in the form of meetings and rallies," First Deputy Chairman of the Russian Communist Party"s Central Committee Ivan Melnikov said.

Melnikov said that the government introduced a number of unpopular measures in 2010, including higher communal services bills, increased prices for food and medicines, and higher public transport fares.

"These new norms are a serious blow to the social rights of the Russian citizens...and we will not keep silent about that," he said.

Some 5,000 Communists and members of about 30 public organizations will gather downtown Moscow alone to demand drastic changes in the current government policies.

The Russian economy was hard-hit by the economic crisis in late 2008, with the Russian government devaluing the ruble and cutting spending.

Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin said in December last year that Russia would experience a difficult next three

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