March 31, 2011

A picket for resignation of Vladimir Putin took place in Ulyanovsk

Press Release, March 29, 2011.

A picket for resignation of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin took place in Ulyanovsk on March 26, 2011. The picket was organised by YABLOKO. Other slogans of the actions were against the monopoly on power by the ruling United Russia party leading to arbitrary rule of bureaucracy, lawlessness for the citizens and degradation of the economy...

Public Prosecutor General to investigate the actions of the Tambov region departments of the security, the interior and the Investigation Committee

Press Release, March 28, 2011.

The Bureau of the YABLOKO party applied to Public Prosecutor General Yury Chaika demanding to bring to justice the officers of the Tambov region departments of the security, the interior and the Investigation Committee, who began interrogating YABLOKO’s collectors of signatures (collection of signatures of the electorate is a requirement for party registration in an election campaign) as well as those voters who put their signatures in favour of YABLOKO’s regional parliamentary campaign in March 2011.

On February 4, 2011, the Tambov Regional Electoral Commission refused to register YABLOKO’s list of candidates nominated to run for the Tambov regional parliament stating that 371 out of 1,718 signatures were allegedly fraudulent.

The law enforcement began investigation of the circumstances relating to the collection of signatures. YABLOKO’s Bureau indicated that the police were conducting the investigation with grave violation of laws and constitutional rights of the citizens...

YABLOKO organises rally against United Russia
LI News Bulletin, Issue 225, March 25, 2011

YABLOKO (LI full member) last week organised a rally in Izhevsk, Udmurtia, against the ruling party United Russia, attracting a crowd of 1,200 people. In his speech at the rally YABLOKO leader Sergei Mitrokhin claimed that United Russia is taking advantage of the Russian population for its own financial gain. “We do not have a choice — either we let them to steal everything here, or we will return our country back to us,” Mitrokhin said. He concluded that: “However, the fault here lies on us, rather than on the United Russia party, because, it is us who allow to do all this to us and seems that we do not have self-respect as a nation.”

More

Van Baalen’s call for a no-fly zone implemented over Libya
LI President calls on liberal leaders worldwide to offer Japan assistance
Egypt votes ‘yes’ to constitutional reforms – liberals remain sceptical
Spanish liberals rally before local elections
Foreign policy discussed at Folkpartiet’s national congress in Gothenburg
DPP takes firm anti-nuclear stance following the situation in Japan
Sam Rainsy stripped of his parliamentary seat

YABLOKO’s Alexei Firsov elected head of the Kolchuginsky district, Vladimir region

Press Release, March 29, 2011.

Today the Council of People’s Deputies of the Kolchuginsky district, Vladimir region elected leader of local YABLOKO’s branch Alexei Firsov head of the district.

At local elections on March 13, 2011, Firsov was elected member of the district council getting 29.72 per cent of the votes. YABLOKO’s party list in the district obtained 20.56 per cent of votes.

The Federal Bureau of the YABLOKO party demands resignation of the Governor of Novosibirsk region

Press Release, March 26, 2011.

On March 26, the Federal Bureau of the YABLOKO party applied to President Medvedev demanding to dismiss Vassily Yurchenko, Governor of the Novosibirsk region. Violating the Constitution the Governor voluntarily reduced the number of free trips accorded to the citizens as a social benefit from an unlimited number to 30.

Such a decision provoked public discontent in the region. And in late December 2010 and January – March 2011 citizens conducted several pickets, a rally and a demonstration in Novosibirsk...

March 23, 2011

European Liberal Democrats call for bold action on North Africa
ELDR Press Release, March 21, 2011.

The EU should use a three-way approach: peace, trade and aid Meeting in Madrid, Spain, the Leadership of the ELDR Party has discussed the situation in the Arab World and calls for three main points in Euro-Arab relations following the UN Security Council's meeting yesterday (17 March 2011)...

A rally against the ruling United Russia party took place in Izhevsk

Press Release, March 19, 2011.

1,200 people participated in a rally against the ruling United Russia party in Izhevsk, Udmurtia. The rally was organised by the YABLOKO party in the central square of the city...

According to Mitrokhin, all these types of theft originate from stealing of votes at elections, where United Russia even does not conceal its stuffing in of fraudulent ballots or the so-called carousels [organizing commuting coaches to bring special people to put fraudulent ballots in favour of this party].

“However, the fault here lies on us, rather than on the United Russia party, because, it is us who allow to do all this to us and seems that we do not have self-respect as a nation,” Mitrokhin added...

Information on YABLOKO's Gender faction and Soldiers' Mothers faction updated

Who is Mikhail Gorbachev for you?

By Grigory Yavlinsky, Vlast, No 8 (912), February 28, 2011.

Mikhail Gorbachev is a person who gave freedom to people. And what they did with this freedom is another question, not to Mikhail Gorbachev.
There is also a rumour that at Mikhail Gorbachev’s birthday party on March 2 Grigory Yavlinsky recollected that Bill Clinton had told to him, “Gorbachev taught me that there is life after being in power. And I have found out that he was right.”
Wishing health to Mikhail Gorbachev Grigory Yavlinsky also recalled about “one more politician who began his main project when he was 80 – Moses from the Old Testament who had to labour for another 40 years. It is high time for you Mikhail Sergeyevich to join in, as we can not succeed without you.”

“All parties should have the equal right to participate”, says YABLOKO leader after elections
LI News Bulletin, Issue 224, March 17, 2011

“The YABLOKO party has constantly been facing arbitrary rule and politically biased violation of its rights at elections of all levels for many years already”, YABLOKO leader (LI full member) Sergei Mitrokhin comments in the wake of the Russian regional elections which took place last Sunday. Local election officials banned over 45 percent of the candidates nominated by the YABLOKO party, compared with 0.8 percent for the ruling United Russia, which on average won about 50 percent of votes. “The most wide spread techniques are those targeted at ousting the party from elections already at the stage of registration at election campaigns… YABLOKO insists that all the political parties should have equal rights to participate in the elections without any preliminary requirements”, Mitrokhin further said. According to YABLOKO, the election day again revealed much fraud, such as compulsion of public servants to vote for the ruling party, bribing of voters and mass-scale ballot-stuffing. YABLOKO will apply to courts arguing the elections results and the violations...

MORE

LI President joins call for further support of Gadaffi opposition
Ouattara outlines steps towards peaceful resolution of Ivorian Crisis
LDP Macedonia Congress calls for zero profit tax for companies
Liberal Democrats gather in unprecedented numbers at Spring Conference
LI members in Egypt call for NO vote on new Constitution
Asian liberals discuss strategic campaigning in Bangkok
LI Past President Lord Steel speaks on the Middle East Peace Process
Draft program and deadlines for the 57th Liberal International Congress in Manila
Hungary’s changes to media law are “not enough”, say liberal MEP’s

Regional elections demonstrate much fraud

Press Release, March 17, 2011. Video.

At regional elections in Russia (March 13, 2011) taking place in Russia’s regions local election officials banned over 45 percent (3 rejected party lists and 43 candidates out of total of YABLOKO’s 8 lists and 66 candidates - the highest figure from all the parties) of the candidates nominated by the YABLOKO party, compared with 0.8 percent for the ruling United Russia. Although, according to public opinion poll conducted by Novaya Gazeta, YABLOKO should have led the elections with 25.2 percent of votes against 1.5 percent in favour of the ruling United Russia. Such figures were confirmed by the results of local elections in the Vladimir region and the Republic of Karelia where YABLOKO’s candidates won the campaign gaining from 29 to 48 percent...

YABLOKO arranges international conference devoted to gender equality in Moscow

ELDR Press Release, March 16, 2011.

YABLOKO's founder Grigory Yavlinsky stressed that Russia lacked equality of citizens before the law, not to mention gender equality. Speaking about the gender equality he stressed the following: "There is a law submitted to the Russian parliament and targeted at hampering gender discrimination. The law was submitted in 1995. However, it was not examined and the parliament did not want to adopt it. This is an issue of political culture and the policies."

Yavlinsky also stated that the key problems Russia's women have to face now was home violence and economic discrimination. "That is why we are ranked 55th in the world as of gender equality and 99th as of women's participation in politics. Women's wages in Russia are normally only 60-70 per cent of men's wages," he noted...

A rally for equal rights between women and men took place in Moscow

Press Release, March 8, 2011. Photos.

A rally for equality between men and women dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the International Women's Day was held in Moscow on March 8. It was organised by several women's organisations, including the Council for Consolidation of Women's Movement in Russia, the Gender faction of the YABLOKO party, the Federation of Russia’s Women, the initiative group For Feminism and movement for Saving of the People. The participants of the action spoke about the need of state guarantees for gender equality...

Verhofstadt on Libya: "The weak position of the EU makes me sick"
Press Release, ALDE, March 16, 2011

The fall-out from the Japanese tsunami has inevitably dominated media reports and blurred international attention to the rout of the Libyan opposition, left to fend off Gaddafi and his mercenaries by themselves. Today at a meeting in Parliament to assess the results of last week's European Council, Guy Verhofstadt denounced the inability of the EU to take decisive action on the Libyan crisis. "This makes me sick," he declared...

European Liberals express whole-hearted sympathy for affected people in Japan
ELDR Press Release, March 14, 2011

European Liberal Democrats extend their whole-hearted condolences to people residing in Japan following the saddening developments reported over the weekend, when the country suffered both an earthquake and a tsunami, resulting in vast devastation and enormous loss of both life and personal belongings...

The YABLOKO party expresses condolences to Japan

Press Release, March 15, 2011.

The YABLOKO party sent condolences to the Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Ambassador of Japan in the Russian Federation Mr. Masaharu Kono in view of disaster in Japan:
“The Russian United Democratic Party YABLOKO and all our voters send our deepest condolences to the Japanese nation in connection with the ordeal caused by a natural calamity. We are sharing with you the immense pain of your grief...

International conference devoted to gender equality took place in Moscow

Press Release, March 12, 2011.

International conference “Algorithms for Opposing Gender Discrimination: the International and the Russian Experience” organised jointly by ELDR and the YABLOKO party began its work in Moscow. Over 50 delegates representing the European Parliament, different women’s organisations from the Netherlands, Germany, Estonia, Turkey, Moldova and Russia are taking part in the discussions.

The conference opened by a minute of silence in memory of the victims of a terrible tragedy in Japan.

The conference was opened by Mrs. Kristiina Ojuland, MEP, the ALDE group, Ms. Galina Mikhalyova, Chair of YABLOKO’s Gender faction and Co-Chair of the Council for Consolidation of Women’s Movement in Russia, Dr. Grigory Yavlinsky, founder of the YABLOKO party and member of YABLOKO’s Political Committee, and Mr. Sasha Tamm, Director of Representation of the Friedrich Naumann Foundation in Moscow...

Russian Opposition Leaders Give Details Of Meeting With US Vice President

Interfax, March 10, 2011.

...Grigoriy Yavlinskiy discussed with Biden the prospects of setting up joint Russian-NATO missile defence, and the internal political situation in the Russian Federation, the Yabloko press service has told Interfax.
"Yavlinskiy regards joint missile defence as the most substantial and promising aspect of Russian-US security cooperation, which is importance not only for the two countries but for the whole world," Yabloko press secretary Igor Yakovlev said.
Touching upon the internal political situation in Russia, the former party leader said that its main difficulties, including the lack of vital democratic procedures, had long been known. In this context, he believes that it is important to realize that the issue that has to be tackled is the replacement of the system created back in the 1990s, and this is a much more complex and in-depth process than the change of personalities in power...

March 11, 2011

International conference “Algorithms of Opposing Gender Discrimination” to take place in Moscow

Press Release, March 11, 2011.

International conference “Algorithms of Opposing Gender Discrimination: the International and the Russian Experience” will take place in Moscow, Marriott Tverskaya hotel, on Saturday March 12. The conference is held jointly by ELDR with the support of the European Parliament and YABLOKO.

Women – representatives of the European Parliament, PACE, UNESCO, as well as political parties of the Netherlands, Turkey, Germany, Moldova and Estonia will participate in the conference.

The anchor at the conference will be Chair of YABLOKO’s Gender Faction Galina Mikhalyova...

Yabloko demands investigation of unlawful detention of its activists
LI News Bulletin, Issue 223, March 11, 2011

LI full member YABLOKO is outraged by the treatment of its activists in the North Caucasus, who were unlawfully detained on 28 February while protesting against the deforestation of a public area of protected trees, where recreational cottages have been built for the Governor of Krasnodar Krai. Last week, three of the jailed activists went on a hunger strike to protest the unjust verdict of imprisonment and the dire conditions of detention. YABLOKO leader Sergei Mitrokhin said that the cells in which the detainees were held were unlit and had poor sanitary facilities. He further commented: 'The police broke not only Russian law, but also inner normative acts of the interior, protecting unlawfully constructed cottages. Moreover the police actions against peaceful citizens were tough and violent.' YABLOKO has conducted numerous actions of support and forwarded letters to the Public Prosecutor and the Interior Minister demanding them to investigate the actions of the police and the regional authorities, but has yet to receive a response. The activists have now been released...

March 10, 2011

Grigory Yavlinsky discussed with US Vice President Joseph Biden the prospects of a joint Russia-NATO ABM system and political situation in Russia

Press Release, March 10, 2011.

Development of Russia-US strategic relations on the basis of the mutual assured destruction (MAD) concept had become outdated already long ago, such a statement was made by Dr.Grigory Yavlinsky, member of YABLOKO’s Political Committee, during the meeting with US Vice President Joseph Biden.

According to Yavlinsky, we should all abolish the old view on the Russia-US relations as a zero-sum game, when a success of one of the parties means a defeat of the other one...

Three lessons from North Africa by Graham Watson MEP

March 10, 2011.

Three lessons can be learned from the popular democratic uprisings which should inform our policy from now on.

The first is that it is no good preaching the values of democracy if we arm its enemies. Having armed Gadhafi and other autocrats there is a logical case to be made for arming the protesters, particularly if we fail to live up to the ‘duty to protect’ laid down in the UN Charter: but this policy should be pursued only in extremis. Most important, however, is to stop arms sales to autocratic regimes wherever they are: democracy’s appeal is not limited to north Africa, nor the temptation to beleaguered autocrats to use arms against their own people...

EU must recognise legitimacy of Libyan Interim Council
Press Release, ALDE, March 10, 2010

The ALDE Group arranged for two senior members of the National Interim Council of Libya to come to Strasbourg this week to hear directly from them what should be done to support those fighting for freedom and democracy in Libya. Dr. Ali A. S . Al-Issawi and Dr. Mahmoud Gebril Elwarfally were appointed Ministers of the National Interim Council last weekend. Dr Al-Issawi was Libya's Ambassador to India until his resignation in February in protest of the attacks by Gaddafi on the Libyan protesters...

Press conference “Black Sea Palaces and Their Hosts”

Press Release, March 9, 2011.

Press-conference of the ecologists who served their imprisonment sentences in Tuapse prison for conducting a public inspection of the country cottage of Governor of Kransodar Area Alexander Tkacyov will be held in YABLOKO’s office tomorrow on March 10. “The Krasnodar prisoners of conscience” – Eugeny Vitushko, leader of the Tuapse YABLOKO and Suren Gazaryan, member of YABLOKO, will tell about the unlawful construction of a recreation complex for Governor Tkachoyv in the relict pin forest protected by the state, as well as other complexes and palaces unlawfully constructed at the Black Sea coast of the Krasnodar Area...

ELDR – believing in a gender equal society
ELDR News, March 8, 2011

Over the years, ELDR has adopted many resolutions that aim to a fairer society which notices many of the structural indifferences leading to different opportunities for the different sexes. For today's Centenary of the International Women's Day, here are ELDR's adopted positions on gender issues. European Liberal Democrats believe in equal rights and opportunities for both women and men with the active support of society, as the whole of society benefits when women and men can contribute on equal terms...

Election success for Estonian Liberals
ELDR News, March 7, 2011

ELDR's Estonian member parties; Reform Party and Centre Party both achieved very good results in Sunday's general election with a combined score of over 50% of the public vote.

Reform Party polled 28.6% of the votes which is enough to see the party win 33 seats in the 101 seat parliament and retain their position as the leading party in government. Reform Party is set to return to coalition with the conservatives, as was the case in the last parliament, with Andrus Ansip, leader of Reform Party, remaining as prime minister.

This would mean that the Centre Party, which scored an impressive 23.3% and returns with 26 MPs, would be the strongest opposition party...

Are Prisoners of Conscience Only in Moscow?

Boris Vishnevsky’s blog at the Ekho Moskvy web-site, March 5, 2011.

...According to Achilov, virtually all the prisoners rights were violated in this prison: right to a walk, right to have bedclothes, to use toilet, to receive parcels from families and so on. The night of their arrest they were not even allowed to have water and call a doctor. The cells, according to Achilov, "remind of Inquisition dungeons”, they are dark, without artificial or natural light, the prisoners are not allowed to use toilet even in the morning, food is disgusting (despite statements made [by the authorities] that RUR 400 [USD 13] are allotted for maintenance of each prisoner per day). Now, according to Achilov, Dmitry Shevchenko is running high temperature (38 degrees), he is coughing typically of pneumonia, and Gazaryan has approximately the same high temperature too. Protesting against such conditions of detention and unjust verdict of imprisonment Gazaryan, Shevchenko and Vitishko went on a hunger strike; whereas there is no doctor in this jail...

When Boris Nemtsov, Ilya Yashin and Konstantine Kosyakin were detained at Triumphalnaya square in Moscow on New Year's Eve, and court sentenced them to an unlawful arrest from 5 to 15 days, a huge number of people spoke in their defence, whereas YABLOKO’s leaders were among the first to protest against this arrest...

However, the conditions in which my friends and colleagues from YABLOKO held in the Tuapse jail are many times worse and more humiliating than those the aforementioned "Moscow prisoners" were in. But no one hurries to recognise Gazaryan, or Shevchenko, or Vitishko a "prisoner of conscience." No prominent public or political figures speak in their defence. Their arrest does not outrage U.S. senators and European parliamentarians. Finally, we do not hear anything about public speeches by Nemtsov or Yashin on this topic. Maybe I have missed something. Or maybe they are silent because its will be improper after this to habitually claim that YABLOKO in contrast to them is “not an opposition”?..

Young YABLOKO activists hang a banner “Freedom to Political Prisoners!” opposite of the Kremlin

Press Release, March 3, 2011.

Young YABLOKO activists hang a large banner “Freedom to Political Prisoners – Gazaryan, Vitishko, Achilov and Shevchenko!” (8 x 5 meters) opposite of the Kremlin.

The banner hang on the bridge by the Kremlin for about 15 minutes. Then the police took it off.

YABLOKO’s activists Kirill Gontcharov, Vadim VAshenko, Andrei Lazarev and Andrei Nistratov were detained and taken to the local police department. Also the police detained a photographer from the oppositional Novaya Gazeta paper...

YABLOKO - Aktivisten inhaftiert. Liberales Forum.

Redaktion, 28.02.2011

Vier Aktivisten der liberalen Oppositionspartei YABLOKO und der NGO Environmental Watch of the Northern Caucasus wurden am Sonntag, den 28. Februar 2011, in einem Areal, genannt „Tkachyov Datscha“, des Gouverneurs Alexander Tkachyov von Krasnodar verhaftet.

„Tkachyov Datscha“ ist die informelle Bezeichnung eines exklusiven Erholunskomplexes, erbaut für den Gouverneur des Krasnodar Gebietes am Schwarzen Meer in der Blauen Bucht...

WWF demands from the Interior Minister to investigate the circumstances of the arrest of ecologists by Governor’s dacha

Press Release, March 4, 2011.

The World Wide Fund for Nature Russia (WWF Russia) appealed to Russian Interior Minister Rashid Nurgaliyev to investigate the actions of the authorities when members of the YABLOKO party and environmentalists were detained during the “protest picnic” by “Tkachyov’s [Governor of the Krasnodar Area] palace”.

"WWF calls to the Russian Interior Minister Rashid Nurgaliyev demanding to conduct an official investigation of the actions of police officers involved in the attack against environmentalists", runs the WWF statement...

Liberals call for further international action on Libya
LI News Bulletin No 222, March 3, 2011

LI President Hans van Baalen MEP has released a statement calling on the UN Security Council to enforce a no-fly-zone above Libya in order to prevent Colonel Gaddafi from turning military assets against his own people. He also stated that Egypt, a country he visited last week, should be supported in its willingness to lead a humanitarian mission into Libya. The UN, EU and individual countries have imposed sanctions such as an asset freeze and travel ban on Gaddafi's regime. Commenting on the international sanctions thus far, Italian Senator Emma Bonino (Radicali Italiani, LI full member), said: “As usual, it's too little, too late.” Ms Bonino is also a strong advocate of a no-fly zone. German Foreign minister Guido Westerwelle, leader of LI full member the Freie Demokratische Partei, on Tuesday brought forth the idea of appointing a United Nations special envoy for Libya, in Libya: “We need a special envoy to allow the international community to mark its presence and to evaluate and coordinate humanitarian efforts,” he said.

MORE

Van Baalen - Verhofstadt visit to Cairo gives strong support to democracy in Egypt and Arab world
LI gathers actors to discuss priorities in development work
UN launches powerful new agent for progress on gender equality
Liberals win the Dutch regional and Senate elections
South Africa’s Shadow Trade Minister visits the LI secretariat
LPC’s Ignatieff speaks to families across the country
Role of political parties in divided societies discussed at FNF-NDI event in Bangkok

Friendly Oligarch Buys 'Putin' Palace

The Moscow Times, March 4, 2011.

...The unfinished mansion has been at the center of tabloid controversy since last December, when businessman Sergei Kolesnikov claimed that state funds were being diverted to build a personal palace for the prime minister...

Last month, Environment Watch North Caucasus, a local green group that says the complex was illegally built on publicly owned forestland, got close enough to the site to take more photos before being detained by the Federal Guard Service...

Last Sunday, about 20 Environment Watch and Yabloko activists held a "protest picnic" at a comparatively modest four-story brick structure they say is being built for Krasnodar region Governor Alexander Tkachyov.

"We found dozens of violations. First of all, it is partially built on forestland; then it violates the Water Code by blocking off free access to the shore," said Andrei Filimonov, deputy coordinator of Environment Watch, who was at the protests. They also found evidence of the felling of endangered Pitsunda pines, he said...

On Wednesday, the four went on a hunger strike to protest the conditions they are being held in...

Half of Yabloko Nominees Banned

The Moscow Times, March 4, 2011.

Local election officials have banned about 45 percent of the candidates nominated by the liberal Yabloko party for the March regional elections, compared with 0.8 percent for the ruling United Russia, Kommersant reported Thursday...

the original publication in the MT