Press Release, 6.12.2022

Photo: the Moscow City Duma / Photo by the Yabloko Press Service

The draft appeal to President Putin on the need to issue a decree on the end of partial mobilisation submitted to the apparat of the Moscow City Duma on 23 November, was “rejected” by Andrei Krutyshev, head of the legal department of the Moscow City Duma, in violation of the Duma regulations. This was announced today by the authors of the project – the deputies of the Moscow City Duma Maxim Kruglov (Yabloko), Mikhail Timonov (A Just Russia), and Yevgeny Stupin (CPRF).

The official refused to put his visa “informed” on the ducoment, and also sent a letter to the authors of the draft stating that the problems voiced in the draft appeal do not relate to the powers of the Moscow City Duma. The deputies – authors of the draft note that an employee of the apparat of the Moscow City Duma has no right to evaluate the bills of deputies, but must only put his visa “informed”.

The authors of the draft appeal say that they deliberately submitted the document to the Moscow City Duma for consideration in order to be able to publicly discuss from the parliamentary rostrum the need to issue a decree on the completion of mobilisation.

“Citizens are rightfully afraid for their future and the future of their loved ones. A decree on the completion of partial mobilisation could at least calm them down a little and allow them to plan their lives. But the government keeps stubbornly silent. Inquiries from my Yabloko colleagues from [parliaments of] different regions have so far remained unanswered. The apparat of the Moscow City Duma decided to completely deprive the deputies of an elementary right – the opportunity to discuss what worries millions of our fellow citizens. But we will go on defending the interests of those who believe in us and do not believe in promises that have no legal basis,” Maxim Kruglov, head of the Yabloko faction in the Moscow City Duma, notes.

The deputies decided to directly send the draft appeal to Alexei Shaposhnikov, Chairman of the Moscow City Duma. The appeal on behalf of deputies Kruglov, Stupin and Timonov about the need to issue a decree on the completion of partial mobilisation was also sent to Russian President Putin, following the appeals of the factions of the Yabloko party in the Karelian and St. Petersburg Legislative Assemblies, the Pskov Regional Assembly of Deputies and the City Duma of Novgorod. A similar appeal, signed by Emilia Slabunova, head of the Yabloko faction in the Karelian Legislative Assembly, was also sent today to Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu.

Dmitry Peskov, Press Secretary of the Russian President, has commented on the news about the appeal of the Moscow City Duma deputies to Vladimir Putin to issue a decree on the completion of mobilisation, saying that “there is nothing new about this”. Earlier, Peskov said twice that the Kremlin had not seen Yabloko deputies’ letters to the Russian President.