svn sometimes ignoring svnserve.conf. Then SVN not asking for auth, connects as anonymous - giving misleading error: Authorization failed

Binary package hint: subversion
Similar but *different* bug is bug#519083 where svn+ssh always just ignores authz.
Here svn's repo sometimes is enabled to be r/w even before editing svnserve.conf to allow any access,
and sometimes it blocks any access until svnserve.conf is edited. (SECURITY!)
Also access related error messages are not very helpful.

Svn client sometimes do not ask for passphrase and just connects always as anonymous to any newly create repo,
but when I connect to an older repo (create months ago) all works!

For svn:// method, for svnserve -d server.

User A + old repo = works
User A + new repo = as anonymous always (even after rm -rf ~/.subversion)
User B + new repo = as anonymous always

Ubuntu 9.10 amd64

REPRODUCE - 5 minute test case - PLEASE CONFIRM MY BUG

apt-get install subversion # on Karmic 9.10 for example

Start subversion local server (server method: svnserve deamon)
Create a repo and try to import to it - FAIL?

On the server / as root:
  (IF YOU RUN SVN APACHE server, then disable it first!)

$ mkdir -p /srv/svn/repo/lc
$ cd /srv/svn/repo/lc
$ svnadmin create repofoo

$ killall svnserve
$ /usr/bin/svnserve -d -r /srv/svn/repo/

On the client / as user:
$ mkdir testsvn
$ cd testsvn/
$ mkdir repofoo
$ cd repofoo
$ echo "some text" > testfile.txt
$ svn import svn://localhost/lc/repofoo -m "importing"

and....?

******* THE RESULT: ****
here you will get error:
svn: Authorization failed
   (There is no question about authorization.)

But checkout (by default allowed for anonymous) will work:
$svn co svn://localhost/lc/repofoo
Checked out revision 0.

***********************************************************************************
If you get this above 2 messages, instead of prompt to enter password, then this is the bug described,
it means svn connects always in anonymous mode, therefore blocked write but allowed read access.
Please confirm my bug and select on top Affects me too!
***********************************************************************************

Btw, I can not force authorization, look:

root@jumpi(2010-02-12 00:41:21)/srv/svn/repo/lc$ vim repofoo/conf/passwd
root@jumpi(2010-02-12 00:41:31)/srv/svn/repo/lc$ cat repofoo/conf/passwd
[users]
bob = secret

user1@jumpi(2010-02-12 00:41:04)~/testsvn/repofoo$ svn --username bob import svn://localhost/lc/repofoo -m "importing"
svn: Authorization failed
user1@jumpi(2010-02-12 00:41:09)~/testsvn/repofoo$ svn --username bob --password secret import svn://localhost/lc/repofoo -m "importing"
svn: Authorization failed

Ubuntu 9.10 amd64
ii subversion 1.6.5dfsg-1ubuntu1

Btw, using an older already existing repo (created months ago) works 100% fine.