Russia Limits G8 Protesters' Activities

Russian activists against the G8 Sumit meeting, play guitar and violin in the tent camp organized for protesters in St. Petersburg, Friday, July 14, 2006. (AP Photo/Sergey Ponomarev) (Sergey Ponomarev - AP)

Helicopters swooped over the city's glittering domes and spires and frogmen in camouflage dove below boats and hydrofoils plying the nearby Gulf of Finland.

Cruises on the city's winding canals and rivers _ a popular tourist activity _ are banned for the duration of the summit, and the airport was closed to commercial flights for the same period.

Even the park where the stadium lies is under tight rein. A complex of amusement rides was shut down through Monday and nearby kiosks and game booths were idle.

St. Petersburg Mayor Valentina Matviyenko made an unexpected visit to the stadium Friday, and characterized the decision to make it available to protesters as a sign of "hospitality."

She noted that the summit itself is taking place in a distant suburb of the city.

One protest organizer, Ilya Ponomarev, pleaded with Matviyenko to "just allow one march." But the mayor said none would be allowed because of "radical elements" in the anti-globalist movement.

Ponomarev later said protesters would attempt "a peaceful march" on Saturday.

The Communist Party has been granted permission to hold a rally Saturday in the city center, with participants meeting elsewhere and walking informally to the site in an attempt to skirt the ban on marches.

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Associated Press writers Maria Danilova and Irina Titova contributed to this report.