Russian police detain anti-Kremlin protesters

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Police detained dozens of Kremlin opponents who tried to hold a protest in Moscow on Tuesday on the eve of the inauguration of Dmitry Medvedev as president, an opposition spokeswoman said.

Other Russia, a small group that unites a broad range of opposition opinion from liberal reformers to neo-Bolsheviks, had to call off a rally in central Moscow after the city authorities refused to authorize it.

But the Other Russia spokeswoman told Reuters that police had detained activists who tried to get through to a boulevard, where the cancelled protest was initially scheduled.

"Thirty-eight people were detained near the Chistoprudny boulevard, another 10 - in the adjoining area," Lyudmila Mamina said. "Twelve people tried to stage protests in another location, Prospekt Mira avenue, but were also detained."

Police were not immediately available for comment. But Interfax news agency quoted police sources as confirming the detentions.

Critics of President Vladimir Putin, who steps down on Wednesday to hand over powers to his loyal ally Medvedev, have accused the Kremlin leader of strangling political opposition.

In Putin's eight years in power, all small opposition parties have lost their parliamentary seats and complain of regular harassment of their leaders by police.

Putin has denied blame, saying Russia needs a stable political system dominated by a few large responsible parties.

Last year police used truncheons to break up an Other Russia rally in Russia's second city of St. Petersburg. But most protests end in brief arrests of leading activists.

(Writing by Oleg Shchedrov; Editing by Richard Balmforth)