YABLOKO activists conducted street action for dismissal of Moscow Region Ombudsperson
Press release, 28.03.2016
On 28 March, First Deputy Chair of the Moscow branch of YABLOKO Galina Mikhaleva, Chair of the Moscow Region branch of YABLOKO Alexander Gunko and the party activists conducted a picket with the demand to dismiss Yekaterina Smirnova, Ombudsperson of the Moscow Region.
On 1 March, during the meeting with Ella Pamfilova, Ombudsperson of the Russian Federation, Yekaterina Smirnova asked what she should do with “the foreign agents” in her region. According to Smirnova, Golos and Sonar [independent election monitors] were the two “foreign agents” who make a fuss and interfere with their work.
[The Russian law requires all nongovernmental organizations that receive foreign funding and engage in political activities to register as “foreign agents” — the term was widely used in the Soviet period to signify espionage.]
Galina Mikhaleva claims that an Ombudsperson who acts like a prosecutor instead of defending human rights must be dismissed.
Alexander Gunko claims that such statements on behalf of an official are unacceptable.
Posted: March 29th, 2016 under Human Rights.