Yabloko in the Novgorod region faces intimidation campaigns. The Novgorod regional branch of the party has applied to the police
Press Release, 3.02.2025
Photo: Activists of the Novgorod branch of Yabloko / Photo by the regional branch of the party
On 27 and 28 of January, members of the Yabloko party in the Novgorod Region began receiving calls via WhatsApp and Telegram from people introducing themselves as a Mr Sokolovsky and a Mr Sobolev, “secretaries” of Governor Andrei Nikitin, Ilya Bortsevich, deputy head of the governor’s administration, and a “FSB officer”. They tried to intimidate Yabloko members by threatening to include them in the list of “unreliable oppositionists,” sending security forces to their homes, and using violence against them. The Novgorod regional branch of the party contacted the police.
Anna Cherepanova, Chair of the regional branch of Yabloko, notes that the “officials” and “security officers” who called Yabloko activists neither asked them to transfer money and take out loans, nor blackmailed them with “compromising evidence”, but aimed at scaring them.
“They did not achieve their goals, on the contrary, they were made fun of, they also discredited the regional government and the governor, because it was allegedly his employees and assistants who called,” Anna Cherepanova comments.
After filing statements with the police, the calls stopped. However, on 29 February, Novgorod Yabloko faced another act of pressure: the management company Uspekh, which services the building where the Yabloko office is located, dismantled the party flags from the facade without any notice. Novgorod Yabloko sent another statement to the police.
Posted: February 3rd, 2025 under Freedom of Speech, Governance, Human Rights, Yabloko's Regional Branches.