Your first sentence is both hostile and illogical. You dismiss the protests as a publicity stunt (and now as a political game), suggesting, therefore, that the issues raised are non-existent. My point had nothing to do with the content of the protest, but with the fact of the protest itself, which is indeed a form of publicity belonging properly to a republic (note the etymology of each word), as well as a political strategy. What's wrong with being political? Don't bother to answer - it's a rhetorical question.