Press Release, 21.05.2025

Photo: Ella Pamfilova, Chair of the Central Electoral Commission, and Grigory Melkonyants, Co-Chair of Golos independent election observers movement, at a roundtable on organising election observation as part of the All-Russian Civil Forum, 25 November, 2017 / Photo by Golos

Yabloko Chairman Nikolai Rybakov sent a letter to Ella Pamfilova, Chairperson of the Russian Central Electoral Commission, with the final statement of imprisoned Grigory Melkonyants, Co-Chair of Golos independent election observers movement, and asked her to study Grigory’s proposals affecting the electoral rights of prisoners.

Grigory Melkonyants said during his final statement in court, that over 21 months of his imprisonment in the pre-trial detention centre, he prepared the following proposals on how to implement the electoral rights of prisoners:

– how a prisoner in isolation can put his/her signature of a candidate’s nomination;

– how to make a donation to the election fund;

– how to receive campaign materials from election participants;

– how to properly verify the identity of a prisoner when receiving a ballot;

– how to ensure extraterritorial voting;

– how to effectively introduce election observation.

“All of this is very important, since a person in a pre-trial detention centre retains the full range of electoral rights until he/she ends up in prison by a court sentence. This is often forgotten. During these months of participatory observation and reflection, I managed to find many good solutions,” Melkonyants said.

Напомним, 14 мая Басманный суд Москвы приговорил электорального эксперта Григория Мельконьянца к пяти годам лишения свободы по статье о деятельности «нежелательной организации». С августа 2023 года Мельконьянц находился в СИЗО. В ходе процесса в защиту Мельконьянца в суде выступали от «Яблока» председатель партии Николай Рыбаков и руководитель аппарата партии Евгения Власова, много лет занимающаяся подготовкой наблюдателей на выборах. Дважды на суд приезжал координатор Политкомитета партии, депутат Заксобрания Санкт-Петербурга Александр Шишлов – его доклады в статусе уполномоченного по правам человека в Петербурге, подготовленные с участием Мельконьянца, приобщены к делу.

It should be noted that on 14 May, electoral expert Grigory Melkonyants was sentenced to five years in prison by the Basmanny Court of Moscow under the charges of conducting activities of an “undesirable organisation”. Since August 2023, Melkonyants has been in a pre-trial detention centre. During the trial, Yabloko Chairman Nikolai Rybakov and the head of the Yabloko party’s staff, Yevgenia Vlasova, who has been training election observers for many years, spoke in court in defence of Melkonyants. Alexander Shishlov, Coordinator of the Yabloko Political Committee and deputy of the Legislative Assembly of St. Petersburg, came to court twice – his reports in the status of the Commissioner for Human Rights in St. Petersburg, prepared with the participation of Melkonyants, were attached to the case.

Yabloko believes that the case against Melkonyants is politically motivated and connected with his work against election violations. Yabloko demands his immediate release.