Thousands of protesters took to the streets of Russia on July 29 to rally against proposed pension reforms. These protests were organised by the Libertarian Party and attendees estmated that some 6,000 participated.

The previous day in Moscow, some 12,000 people demonstrated. Dozens of smaller protests took place across the country.

The government is attempting to raise the pension age from 60 to 65 for men, and from 55 to 63 for women. The World Health Organization (WHO) states that the average life expectancy of Russian men is 66. For women it is 77.

Critics say that this means many people will not live to receive their pensions. They also speculate that the measures were initially deliberately introduced during the World Cup period so that they would be submerged by the wave of euphoria.