YABLOKO Bureau expels Chair of the Bryansk branch of YABLOKO who supported Governor Denin during elections

Press Release, October 28, 2012.

The Federal Bureau of the YABLOKO party expelled from the party Andrei Ponomaryov, Chair of the Bryansk branch of YABLOKO, and three members of the Regional Council of the Bryansk branch of YABLOKO. The Ponomaryov’s decision to withdraw his candidacy from the gubernatorial elections and support the incumbent Governor Nikolai Denin was recognized as inflicting political damage to the party.

Despite of the decision of the governing bodies of the arty, Andrei Ponomaryov withdrew from the election race for the post of Governor of the Bryansk Region and supported acting Governor Nikolai Denin, candidate from the ruling "United Russia" party...

Sergei Mitrokhin at the Returning of the Names action: the modern Russian state still uses Joseph Stalin’s political methods

Press Release, October 29, 2012.

The Russian state still uses Joseph Stalin’s political methods, said YABLOKO leader Sergei Mitrokhin at the Returning of the Names action which is annually held in the centre of Moscow by the Solovetsky Stone monument. People commemorate the victims of the Great Terror and read out loud the names of the people shot during those years.

"The roots of Stalinism have not been removed from our society and our state. Commemorating the victims of the terror we must also recognize our responsibility so that this will never happen again," Mitrokhin said after reading out loud the names of the people shot in 1937 – 1938...

YABLOKO leader spoke at the Moscow Perspectives forum

Press Release, October 27, 2012.

On October 27, YABLOKO leader Sergei Mitrokhin participated in the socio-political forum Moscow Perspectives organized by the Democratic Choice party. Other reports on the prospects of Moscow development were made by representatives of the Moscow Mayor Office, political parties, as well as research centres and business associations.

Vladimir Milov, organizer of the Forum and leader of the Democratic Choice party, told about the need to involve Moscow residents in the solution of the different tasks. Milov stated that municipalities lacked real power and bureaucratisation of the city prevented development of small and medium businesses and, consequently, the middle class – the major contributor to the city budget. According to Milov, there is a need of a dialogue between the society and experts with the city administration so that to create a strategy of Moscow development. "Moscow can set the right direction to the rest of Russia", said Vladimir Milov...
"The Moscow government in Moscow should create a platform for a dialogue with the public about the development of the city. Public hearings are a good method here. But the chief architect of the city and Sergei Sobyanin [the Moscow Mayor] government apparently believe that Muscovites are not ready for this and do not conduct hearings on the most important issues of Moscow development, " Mitrokhin stressed...

YABLOKO paid tribute to the memory of Moscow theatre hostages

Press Release, October 26, 2012.

YABLOKO leader Sergei Mitrokhin and Galina Mikhalyova, Bureau member, paid tribute to the memory of hostages of a Moscow theatre who came to watch the Nord-Ost musical (in Dubrovka district, Moscow). They laid flowers to the memorial plaque with the names of the victims set by the Theatre Center.

Ten years ago, on October 26, 2002, security forces stormed into the building where terrorists held the actors and the audience of the Nord–Ost musical. According to the official data, 130 hostages were killed.

Human rights prize awarded to Iranians in recognition of their struggle for freedom
Press Release, ALDE, October 26, 2012

Iranian lawyer and human rights activist Nasrin Sotoudeh and Iranian film-maker Jafar Panahi have won the Sakharov Prize 2012 which is the annual human rights prize of the European Parliament. They were nominated for the award by the ALDE group and other MEPs in recognition of their exceptional courage in exposing state-sponsored persecution and Human Rights abuses.

Ms. Sotoudeh (Tehran, 1963) was arrested in September 2010 on suspicion of spreading propaganda and conspiring to harm state security. She is currently serving a six-year jail sentence, in solitary confinement, in the notorious Evin prison, in addition to disbarment and a ten-year ban on leaving the country. Jafar Panahi is an Iranian film director whose films focus on the hardships of children, the impoverished and women in Iran...

Sergei Mitrokhin demands from the Investigation Committee to file a criminal case on the abduction and tortures of Leonid Razvozzhayev

Press Release, October 24, 2012.

Sergei Mitrokhin demands from Alexander Bastrykin, head of the Investigation Committee, to file a criminal case on the abduction and tortures of Leonid Razvozzhayev, Assistant of oppositional Duma MP Ilya Ponomaryov. (Ed. Leonid Razvozhayaev together with Sergei Udaltsov were accused of preparing a coup d’etat in Russia with the help of Georgian money after a notorious film The Anatomy of Protest-2 picturing all the opposition figures as criminals). Mitrokhin insists that the criminal case should be opened in accordance with three articles of the Criminal Code “abduction” (Article 126), “threat of murder or grievous bodily harm” (Article 119) and “compulsion of evidence” (Article 302).

Mitrokhin also applied to Sergei Kudneyev, Public Prosecutor of Moscow, demanding to immediately explain the circumstances of the detention of Leonid Razvozzhayev and how it was announced Rozvozzhayaev had “voluntarily admitted his guilt and surrendered”...

The State Duma amends the law on state secrets according to Joseph Stalin’s model

Statement by the YABLOKO party, October 23, 2012.

...Charges may be brought now against any person or organisation whose activities seem dangerous for the secret services. Punishment envisaged by the draft law for links with an international non-governmental organisation, rendering of “financial, material, technical, consultative or other assistance” spread of information in the Internet which can later be recognized as a state secret by the intelligence, toughening of punishment for violations take us back into the period of mass reprisals and resemble Stalin's methods of dealing with political opponents and lead to the formation of a new "iron curtain."

Any person - an ordinary public activist or a federal level official who may arise discontent – may get under the sanctions of the new law. Russian special services are interested in obtaining a legal basis for the arrests of the dissenting...

Open Vld leader becomes Belgian Deputy PM
ELDR News, October 22, 2012.

Open Vld Leader Alexander De Croo replaces Vincent Van Quickenborne as the new Pensions Minister and Deputy Prime Minister in the Belgian federal government. He was sworn in by King Albert II on Monday. The appointment of Alexander De Croo will allow him to take part in the difficult discussions on next year's budget.

Van Quickenborne will become the new Mayor of the city of Kortrijk, where he ended 150 years of Christian democrat rule...

YABLOKO leader visited Krasnoyarsk

Press Release, October 19, 2012.

Oksana Demchenko, ex-deputy of the Legislative Assembly of the Krasnoyarsk Region, was elected new chair of the Krasnoyarsk branch of YABLOKO. The conference of the regional branch of the party took place on October 21. The conference also elected members of the Regional Council and a representatives of the regional organization in YABLOKO’s Federal Council.

YABLOKO leader Sergei Mitrokhin participated in the conference. He set the following for the delegates: to participate and win in the elections. The next election – to the Krasnoyarsk City Council - will be held in September 2013.

After the conference, Mitrokhin held a roundtable with Krasnoyarsk entrepreneurs and discussed the prospects of development of small businesses in the Krasnoyarsk region and in Russia in general.

This morning Mitrokhin met with Sergei Ponomarenko, First Vice-Governor of the Krasnoyarsk Territory. They specifically discussed the upcoming elections. Deputy Governor expressed his hope that the YABLOKO party will be able to create a faction in the City Council of Krasnoyarsk then...

YABLOKO’s Olga Vlasova made a report in the Federation Council on violations in the recent regional elections

Press Release, October 22, 2012.

Olga Vlasova, member of YABLOKO Bureau, made report in the Federation Council on mass-scale violations in the recent regional and municipal election campaign.

The report was made within the framework of a round table discussion on "The Results of the Elections in the Russian Federation as the Prospect for Improving the Electoral Law" which took place on October 18. The meeting was attended by members of the State Duma, the Federation Council, representatives of the Constitutional Court and the Supreme Court, the Public Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation, representatives of the Russian Central Electoral Commission and electoral commissions of the regions.

In her speech Olga Vlasova focused on the following three main points:

1. Mass-scale violations in all the Russian regions where elections were held. YABLOKO observers documented widespread ballot stuffing, "carousel" votings, illegal refusals to allow observers to the polling stations and use of administrative resources. On voting day, regional electoral commissions turned into battle fields for upholding the rights of observers to be at the polling stations. In one of the polling stations in Tula YABLOKO observer was broken a finger...

YABLOKO leader met with Chairman of the State Duma

Press Release, October 19, 2012.

YABLOKO leader Sergei Mitrokhin handed to Sergei Naryshkin, Chairman of the State Duma,
an amendment to the Housing Code which would guarantee voluntary financing of capital repairs of blocks of flats by ordinary citizens. The government had envisaged that the costs of the capital repairs should lie exclusively on the people.

Also Mitrokhin personally handed to the Duma Speaker a file with 1,000 signatures against introduction of mandatory payments for capital repairs and in support of YABLOKO’s amendment. Other 11 files with 15,000 signatures from people from 36 Russian regions will be sent to the State Duma Mail Department on Monday...

Hands off from Sergei Udaltsov!
Sergei Mitrokhin's blog at the Ekho Moskvi web-site, Ocotber 17, 2012.

Searches in the apartments of Sergei Udaltsov and his parents deepen the political crisis in the country and reinforce the split between the state and the society.

The campaign of reprisals against Sergei Udaltsov and other opposition activists resembles as of its scenario Stalin's trials against "enemies of the people". Starting with a public denunciation as a very questionable film "Anatomy of a Protest-2" [depicting opposition activists as spies or bought up puppets] further under the screams of lickspittles and “denunciators” from the United Russia party this campaign has transferred into the phase of direct reprisals with the prospects of many years of camp life [for Udaltsov].

Searches in the apartment of a political opponent to the government in view of his political activities represents a repressive act of political revenge.

Not sharing Sergei Udaltsov’s political views, I think it unacceptable to use such methods for "neutralisation" against any representative of the political opposition.

The YABLOKO party demands to immediately stop this openly ordered campaign by the investigators against Sergei Udaltsov, Nicholai Kavkazsky and other people arrested in accordance with the so-called "Bolotnaya Square protesters case"...

Persecution of political opposition must be stopped

Statement by YABLOKO Chairman, October 15, 2012.

Searches in the apartments of Sergei Udaltsov and his parents are deepening the political crisis in the country and reinforce the split between the state and the society.

Sergei Udaltsov is not a criminal and he did not commit any economic crimes.

He is a politician representing the left radical political opposition.

The search in the apartment of a political opponents of the government in connection with his political activities is a repressive act of political revenge.

The state carrying out such actions abolishes the democratic basis of its legitimacy and declares itself a police and repressive state.

The authorities that decided to go to such actions must realise that degrading effects of fear and tyranny will affect the entire country, the entire state system, rather than one or several persons.

We express our resolute protest against the police searches on political grounds and urge the authorities to stop this immediately...

YABLOKO demonstrates success in small cities: YABLOKO factions will appear in Yaroslavl, Pervouralsk, Berezovsky and Elektrogorsk

Press Release, October 15, 2012.

According to the results of voting on October 14, YABLOKO factions will appear in four Russian cities: Yaroslavl, Pervouralsk, Berezovsky in the Sverdlovsk region and Elektrogorsk in the Moscow region.

The best result YABLOKO obtained in Pervouralsk - 20.4 per cent. YABLOKO came second here after the ruling United Russia with 37 per cent. Konstantin Drigin topping YABLOKO’s will also get a mandate. Drigin with 35 per cent of the vote won over Valery Treskin, the ruling party’s candidate, who got 25 per cent of the vote.

In Yaroslavl, the party has overcome the 5 per cent threashold. The candidates running in single mandate electoral districts failed to deputies of the Yaroslavl City Council, however Galina Sokolova came second in her district with almost 26 per cent of the vote, and another eight candidates came third in their districts getting from 7 to 19 per cent of the vote.

In the Berezovsky city, the Sverdlovsk region, 6.6 per cent of the electorate voted for YABLOKO, and now the party will have the right to form a faction in the Council of Deputies.

In Elektrogorsk, the Moscow region, YABLOKO’s candidates got 9.2 per cent which also means that YABLOKO can form a faction in the municipal assembly in the city...

YABLOKO came second with 21 per cent of the votes in Pervouralsk

Press Release, October 15, 2012.

According to the preliminary data, YABLOKO’s list candidates in the elections to the City Duma of Pervouralsk, the Sverdlovsk Region, received 21 per cent of the vote and thus came second after the ruling United Russia party (37 per cent).

YABLOKO’s observers reported to YABLOKO’s call centre the results from 58 of the 79 district electoral commissions of Pervouralsk. Just Russia came third with 14.6 per cent of the vote, and the Communist Party came fourth with 11.7 per cent. Also the Patriots of Russia (9 per cent) and the LDPR (5.7 per cent) overcome the 5 percent threashold. The list of RPR-PARNAS was supported by 0.8 per cent of the voters. It should be noted that the local branch of RPR-PARNAS had applied to court so that to withdraw YABLOKO from the election.

Thus, the YABLOKO party is to get three of the fourteen mandates distributed among the party lists.

In addition, two YABLOKO’s candidates in the binominal precincts – Konstantin Drygin and Vitaly Listratkin - have very good chances to get their mandates. Drygin confidently wins in his precinct...

Stuffing of ballots in favour of the ruling party in the Krasnodar Territory

Press Release and a Video, October 14, 2012.

YABLOKO’s candidates and observes report multiple violations at the elections to the Krasnodar Territory Legislative Assembly.

YABLOKO observer filmed Yelena Sluchevskaya, Chair of Electoral Commission No 4822 (Novopekhovskoye village), stuffing of packages of ballots. The 18 minute video demonstrates several episodes of ballot stuffing...

Also stuffing of ballots was recorded at polling stations No 2230, 2231, and 2228 in Krasnodar. In Ust-Labinsk Chair of the Electoral Commission stuffed the rigged ballots at polling station No 5603. YABLOKO’s commission member was ousted from the room under some pretext...

Dmitry Gutov, YABLOKO’s observer at polling station No 2054, was beaten when he attempted to photograph the participants of a “carousel” who arrived to the polling station by car (No AOBO62, 23). Dmitry was threatened with murder and the attackers snatched his press card.

Also “carousel voting” was reported at polling stations No 2047, 2055,2056, 2215, 2216 and 2213...

YABLOKO leader sends a complaint on violations in regional and municipal elections to the Central Electoral Commission and Public Prosecutor General

Press Release, October 14, 2012.

YABLOKO leader Sergei Mitrokhin has sent the first complaint on violations in regional and municipal elections to Vladimir Churov, Chair of the Central Electoral Commission, and Yury Chaika, Public Prosecutor General, demanding to examine the violations identified by observers and candidates of the YABLOKO during elections in 11 subjects of the Russian Federation and punish the vote riggers.

The complaint contains information about the most serious violations in 28 polling stations, such as ballot stuffing, "carousel" voting, withdrawing of observers from the polling stations, buying of votes, etc.

The complaint refers to violations in regional elections in the Krasnodar Territory and municipal elections in the Maritime Altai territories, Bryansk, Ryazan, Irkutsk, Saratov, Tula, Moscow and Yaroslavl regions.

In addition, the document runs that observers from “non-administrative” candidates and parties were not let to over half of the polling stations in Tatarstan under a pretext that their papers lacked some stamps...

Ballot-riggers broke a finger to the electoral commission member who tried to prevented stuffing of fraudulent ballots

Press Release, October 14, 2012.

Ballot-riggers broke a finger to Ludmila Yegorova, electoral commission member with an advisory vote from the YABLOKO party, who prevented ballot stuffing in the election to the City Duma of Bogoroditsk, the Tula region.

About an hour ago, two young men tried to stuff a package of ballots to the polling box. Ludmila Yegorova, YABLOKO’s representative in the electoral commission, managed to prevent it. There turned out to be 80 fraudulent ballots in the package: 40 marked for the ruling United Russia and 40 for candidate Fyodorov...

Liberals and Democrats in Lithuania score a convincing victory
Press Release, ALDE, October 15, 2012

Following announcement of the preliminary results of the Parliamentary elections in Lithuania, Guy Verhofstadt made the following statement:
"I am very pleased to acknowledge that Liberal and Democrats in Lithuania have scored a convincing victory in the Parliamentary elections. I would like to congratulate Viktor Uspaskich (ALDE MEP) and his Labour Party (Darbo partija) that has doubled its support and with 20% of the vote, as the largest political party is poised to form the incoming government. This is an excellent result for the Labour Party that in the opposition party has worked vigorously and consistently in support of its electorate."
"The Liberal Movement (Lietuvos Respublikos liberalu sajudis) has got the highest evaluation for the work it has done in the outgoing government. After 4 years in the government, taking the lead on difficult and sometimes controversial areas of public life, the Liberal Movement has further increased its support. That is both a recognition and an encouragement to continue promoting liberal agenda in Lithuania."

YABLOKO in the regional and municipal elections on October 14, 2012

Press Release, October 12, 2012.

Regional and municipal elections will take place in Russia on October 14, 2012. The YABLOKO party nominated its candidates for the elections in 22 Russian regions.

In the Krasnodar Territory, the list of candidates to run at elections to the Legislative Assembly represents a coalition of opposition forces in the region. Well-known representatives from different democratic parties and movements, environmentalists, human rights activists, independent journalists and public figures join together under the banner "Yabloko - United Democrats of the Krasnodar Territory". The joint list of candidates includes: Andrei Rudomakha, Chairman of the Krasnodar branch of YABLOKO and coordinator of the North Caucasus Environmental Watch, Yegeny Vitishko, Chair of the Tuapse branch of YABLOKO, Suren Ghazaryan, member of the North Caucasus Environmental Watch, Lenid Malyavin, ex Chair of the Krasnodar branch of the party RPR-PARNAS party, and Dmitry Pupynin, Chairman of the Krasnodar branch of the Democratic Choice of Russia movement. The party list totals to 36 candidates...

...According to the Central Electoral Commission, YABLOKO has registered 600 candidates for elections on October 14, 2012.

"Peace Prize is well deserved but we cannot rest on our laurels"
Press Release, ALDE, October 12, 2012

Reacting to the Nobel peace prize being awarded to the European Union, Guy Verhofstadt, ALDE group leader in the European Parliament said: "We strongly welcome the recognition by the Nobel Peace committee of the contribution that the European Union has made over the last 70 years to turn a previously war ridden continent into a peace project...

Grigory Yavlinsky visits Kaliningrad to support YABLOKO’s candidates in the mayoral elections

Press Release, October 11, 2012.

On October 11, Grigory Yavlinsky visited Kaliningrad so that to support Alexandra Yakovleva, YABLOKO’s candidate in the mayoral elections and head of the party branch in Kaliningrad.

Answering the journalist’s question how Grigory Yavlinsky accesses the chances of a woman going into Russian politics, he answered that he came to support a talented professional rather than a women running against men in the elections. He also added that speaking about professional qualities people should be divided into “talented people and all the other”, rather than men and women. “Alexandra Yakovleva is a talented person, she has talents in many fields”, she was even a Soviet film star but decided to change her brilliant film carrier and went to a university once again for studying state and municipal governing. Yavlinsky noted her experience in management of complex systems (such as large modern airports) and expressed his certainty that this experience would help Yakovleva to manage Kaliningrad and to make it a convenient and modern city, a centre of tourism and investment...

Dismissal of Radio Liberty journalists and staff is a political mistake

Statement by Sergei Mitrokhin and Grigory Yavlinsky, October 10, 2012.

The Russian United Democratic Party YABLOKO expresses its deep concern with the situation around the Radio Liberty Russian Service. Mass dismissal of the key journalists of the Moscow Bureau endangers the very existence of Radio Liberty as an objective and high-quality media.

The official version about transfer to the new digital technologies and abolishing of broadcasting on the medium waves is beyond any criticism.If this were the real reason, then the Radio Liberty management would not have fired in the first ranks the staff of the Radio Liberty web-site, which made the Radio Liberty web-site one of the most respected and quoted political resources of the Russian segment of the Internet.

Apparently, this demonstrates a bureaucratic error turning into a political error. Bureaucrats from mass media were solving their narrow tasks and did not take into account the political consequences, which are as follows: the Russian audience is deprived of the source of information they have trusted for decades, and it is obvious that the reputation of the media is, above all, the reputation of its journalists...

PARNAS removes YABLOKO from the election race

Press Release, October 10, 2012.

RPR-PARNAS applied to the Supreme Court of Russia asking to cancel the registration of YABLOKO’s list of candidates in the election to the Pervouralsk City Duma.

YABLOKO leader Sergei Mitrokhin said that in this way the Sverdlovsk branch of PARNAS defends the interests of the ruling United Russia party.

"I have no complaints about PARNAS leaders. We realise that they are not in control of their regional branches. But the actions of the Sverdlovsk branch of PARNAS are connected with their strong dependence on the ruling United Russia, which uses them in its fight with a very dangerous rival in the Pervouralsk elections- the YABLOKO party," that is how Sergei Mitrokhin commented on the situation...

Two new publications increase calls for federal Europe
ELDR News, October 8, 2012.

In two recent publications released this month, prominent liberal MEPs Guy Verhofstadt and Andrew Duff make the case for a more federal Europe. Last week, ALDE Group Leader Mr Verhofstadt launched his book ‘For Europe: a manifesto for a postnational revolution in Europe’ alongside co-author Green MEP Daniel Cohn-Bendit.“What we have tried to describe, is what a more federal Europe means,” Mr Verhofstadt said. “That means more than a discussion on policy, it means you build a real European government, a European democracy. “

British Liberal Democrat MEP Andrew Duff, the ALDE group’s coordinator on constitutional affairs in the European Parliament, has also launched a new pamphlet on economic government at the EU level entitled ‘On governing Europe’. In this pamphlet he reflects on how the EU has reacted to date in light of the financial and economic crisis and argues that the lack of a credible discernible government of the political economy has become a problem and requires a new sort of federal economic government...

Tougher rules against market manipulation
Press Release, ALDE, October 9, 2012

...Wolf Klinz (FDP, Germany) ALDE spokesperson said: "Recent events have shown that the current legislation on insider dealing and market manipulation urgently needed a review. We need to keep pace with market and technological developments and ensure that new markets, platforms and instruments are all covered. Markets have become more integrated and we have observed an increasing tendency of cross-border market abuse, which has a serious impact not only on market confidence but also on financial stability and the real economy. Market integrity needs to be guaranteed. That's why we proposed to establish functioning cross border surveillance mechanisms to detect market manipulation taking place across several venues"...

A motor rally with participation of Sergei Mitrokhin detained by traffic police

Press Release, October 7, 2012.

A motor rally from Izhevsk in Votkinsk, Udmurtia, organized by the Udmurtian branch of YABLOKO within the framework of the regional election campaign, has been detained by traffic police. YABLOKO leader Sergei Mitrokhin also participates in the rally. According to the police, the reason for the detention is that the action has not had a permit from the local authorities. At present Sergei Mitrokhin is trying to convince the police that the rally is lawful...

Alexei Arbatov, foreign policy expert: Russia has obviously taken a course towards alienation from the USA and Western Europe

Radio Liberty/Radio Free Europe, September 28, 2012.

A nervous reaction displayed by the Russian authorities for the PACE resolution on the implementation of Moscow’s obligations on the democratic development [of Russia] which has not been promulgated yet, is caused, according to experts, by two main factors. First, the Kremlin reorients its foreign policy and foreign economic strategy from Europe to Eurasia. Secondly, the recent repressive policies towards the civil society will inevitably affect [Russia’s] behaviour on the international arena. Alexei Arbatov, international relations expert and Director of the Center for International Security of the Russian Academy of Sciences, talks about this in his interview to the Radio Liberty...

Grigory Yavlinsky on the 20th anniversary of privatization in Russia

Grigory Yavlinsky's blog, October 3, 2012.

Dear friends,

This is a part of the interview I gave on Friday to Channel 1 on their request for Sunday night news on the 20th anniversary of privatization in Russia. The channel did not show it… It is a pity, as the topic is important and the fruits of this ill-conceived privatization have been still affecting our living.

Here comes the answer to the journalist’s question whether there was any alternative privatization program.

Yes, there was another programme which I developed. This programme envisaged that all the money accumulated by people in the Soviet period had to be used for purchasing of assets. At that time money in the hands of the population amounted to about 10 trillion roubles, [this was money] in different forms including population’s savings in the Savings Bank that, according to conservative estimates, amounted to approximately 315 billion roubles. According to the dollar/rouble rate of 2007, the savings, and not only those kept in the Savings Bank, but all kinds of savings, including the State Insurance Bonds and securities, reached, according to the recent estimates, about 350 - 380 billion roubles. This is what had been cumulated throughout the Soviet period.

My programme implied that the money should be spent on the purchase of, as it was called then, the "means of production" or, as it is today called, the assets. Then there was a very large imbalance between the amount of money in hands and the commodity weight. In fact, the commodity weight reached only 14 kopeks per a rouble of savings. This means that a person intending to spend a rouble could find goods only for 14 kopeks. However, if our privatization programme had been implemented, then hairdressers’, small shops, trucks, that is, all what constituted small and medium privatization could have added to the traditional goods (such as suits, sausage, or whatever was sold in the Soviet Union then)...

Liberals in the driving seat in peaceful transition of power in Georgia
Press Release, ALDE, October 2, 2012

Guy Verhofstadt, ALDE Leader welcomed the results of the parliamentary elections in Georgia which saw liberals greatly reinforce their position in the Georgian Parliament...

YABLOKO to publish information on purchases of luxury cars by state institutions and calls to a discussion on the feasibility of such purchases

Press Release, October 1, 2012.

The YABLOKO party has launched a unique project: now all the government’s purchases of luxury cars can be tracked in real time at the party website.

YABLOKO leader Sergei Mitrokhin in his blog suggested a public debate which could lead to developing a norm who of the state servants should have a car, what the price of such a car can be and how often such a state servant can replace the old car be a new car.

At present yabloko.ru/auto has published information on 42 buyers of 145 luxury cars totaling RUR 1.5 bln. Last Friday, the Presidential Administration announced that it was going to purchase 60 BMW 7 Series, RUR 5 mln each. Also Oktabrskiy Concert Hall in St.Petersburg is going to buy a Range Rover for USD 5.5 mln. Among the regional authorities the most blatant example came from penal colony ? 1 in the Chelyabinsk region. They needed a Land Cruiser for RUR 3.5 mln...

Sergei Mitrokhin on a libel case against him: Let us find out in court who from MPs is engaged in unlawful activities running business companies

Press Release, September 30, 2012.

Following YABLOKO’s inquiries to the State Duma and the Investigative Committee to conduct a fair investigation on all the MPs’ businesses (in view of the recent deprivation by the United Russia faction of oppositional MP Gennady Gudkov of his mandate under a pretext of his running a business), Vladimir Zhyrinovsky LDPR party threatened to YABLOKO leader Sergei Mitrokhin of going to court and filing a libel case against Mitrokhin. In his letter to the State Duma and the Investigative Committee Mitrokhin had given facts on several United Russia and LDPR MPs...

...“I am glad that members of the LDPR party decided to find out in court who from their faction was engaged in businesses. We will have more opportunities to find out the truth in court, as the State Duma Commission has been working in camera and it is unclear what audits they have conducted,” Mitrokhin said...