Press Release, 22.04.2024

Photo: Constitution of the Russian Federation with the recent changes / Photo by Pavel Lisitsyn, RIA Novosti

On 21 April, Russia celebrates Local Government Day. The memorial date was established by President Vladimir Putin in 2012. On this day (2 May, as of the new style) in 1785, Catherine II of Russia issued a “Charter on the Rights and Benefits of the Cities of the Russian Empire”. The document established new elected city institutions, expanding the circle of voters and consolidating the foundations of self-government. In accordance with the Charter, a meeting of the “city community” was convened in cities every three years, which included only the wealthiest citizens. The permanent city body was the “General City Duma,” consisting of the city mayor and six councilors.

The Deputy Chairpersons of the Yabloko party write about the level of development of local self-government and its prospects in our country and individual regions.

Boris Vishnevsky, deputy of the Legislative Assembly of St. Petersburg:

Local government is, by definition, the government closest to citizens. Unfortunately, for many years, local self-government in Russia has been “reformed” in such a way that, contrary to the Constitution, it is actually subordinated to the state administrative “vertical”; direct elections of mayors are abolished; municipalities of the lower level are eliminated, depriving citizens of the opportunity to choose their representatives; and the financial base of the local goverment is narrowed.

The restoration of a real local self-government in the country is absolutely necessary – so that it could get real powers to solve citizens’ problems, and financial resources that allow it not to depend on the will of public authorities and not to be politically dependent on them.

Vladimir Dorokhov, Yabloko representative in the Central Electoral Commission, the Tula region:

Unfortunately, local self-government in Russia suffered the same fate as other democratic institutions. The authoritarian nature of the state does not envisage strong self-government at any level and tries to integrate it into its vertical of power in every possible way. That is what we got. Although the bill on the elimination of local self-government at the settlement level is stuck in the State Duma at the second reading stage, but information is already coming that it will be adopted this Fall.

One of the main goals of the Yabloko’s policies is the creation of truly strong local self-government. A stable financial base and competitive policies at the municipal level are the key to creating a comfortable environment for local living.

Now we have all witnessed the tragedy [of flood] in Orsk, when thousands of people were injured due to a dam break. Funny stories that the dam was gnawed by rodents do not stand up to criticism. However, if there had been political competition at the city level, if, as elsewhere in Russia, the control bodies of local self-government had not been subordinate to the head of the city, I am sure that stealing of money during the construction of the dam would have been detected in advance and stopped, and this, in turn, would have saved the city from flooding.

The example of Orsk demonstrates that talk about strong local government is not just beautiful abstract reasoning, but primarily issues of well-being and safety of residents and their property.

Maxim Kruglov, deputy of the Moscow City Duma:

Unfortunately, local self-government has been virtually destroyed in Moscow, and throughout the country. The executive branch reduces the tasks of local self-government exclusively to symbolic and insignificant functions. Municipal deputies are vested with reduced powers and cannot seriously influence the situation in Russia’s capital.

Because of this, the executive branch does not hear Muscovites: public hearings have been cancelled; on-line government services have limited application and create only an imitation of taking into account the opinions of citizens. Moscow needs real mechanisms for residents to influence decision-making and participatory practices.

It is the institution of local government that provides an opportunity to set up feedback from officials with Moscow residents, the potential for creating local communities, and developing interesting initiatives and projects.

It is the institution of true local government that in the future will become the driver of positive and humane changes for our city and the whole country.

Anna Cherepanova, deputy of the Novgorod City Duma:

All reforms in recent years have been aimed at destroying local government:

1. Liquidation of rural and urban settlements. Abandoning the settlement level leads not only to the maximum gap between local authorities and citizens, but also to an accelerated process of extinction of rural areas, an outflow of socially active people, and the formation of power vacuum zones. The lack of authority and resources for its implementation at the settlement level will lead to the situation when the problems of local communities will not be resolved at all.

2. Deprivation of local government of powers and financial resources. The vast majority of municipalities, due to the excessive centralisation of tax revenues at the federal and regional levels, turn into artificially subsidised. However, instead of filling local budgets with sufficient financial resources, the authorities “redistribute powers” in favour of the state, and resources also “flow” away after this.

3. The abolition of the election of heads of cities and districts and the transfer to their “appointment” by governors through a competitive selection procedure. In fact, this means that the leadership of municipalities is subordinated to governors.

Even now, in these difficult conditions, municipal deputies from the Yabloko party remain in Russia, help citizens, offer systemic solutions to local problems, and set an example of real deputy activity with their work. The more there are deputies who are independent from the current government and responsible to voters in local councils and dumas, the greater the hopes and chances for the revival of independent local government in Russia will be.

Read the full text of Anna Cherepanova’s commentary in her Telegram channel.

Lev Shlosberg, Deputy Chairman of the Yabloko party, the Pskov region:

The second wave of the municipal plague – the so-called reform – in the Pskov region, the essence of which is the elimination of elected local government at the level of urban and rural settlements and the abandonment of direct elections of heads of municipal districts, which after the “transformation” are proudly called districts. The reform is organised from the top – by officials specially trained to eliminate self-government. But the formal initiative is taken by the heads of rural settlements – they supposedly it has become unbearable for them to work independently, under their own responsibility. And so they decided to self-destruct.

Essentially, the “municipal reform” represents a total simplification of the regional governance system, when, apart from the governor, there are no directly elected heads of executive power. The management structure becomes similar to a barracks headed by a sergeant major, and the main instrument of management becomes the order of a superior to a subordinate. It would be more accurate to say – to the underlying ones. Obviously, such a system meets [the Governor of the Pskov region] Mikhail Vedernikov’s ideas about high-quality and effective management of the territory in his hands.

The consequences of the “reform” will be so destructive that when the time comes to restore what was liquidated, it will be impossible to restore a lot of things for a long time, if not forever. Self-government can be created only where there are people. The reform contributes to the depopulation of rural areas no less than the liquidation of rural hospitals and schools.

In 2023, eight out of 24 municipal districts were “disposed of” in the Pskov region. This year they intend to assign the same fate to another six municipal districts.

Read the full text of Lev Shlosberg’s commentary is in his Telegram channel.