Press Release, 28.08.2021

Photo: Gulnaz Ravilova/ Photo by the Yabloko Press Service

The Public Prosecutor’s office applied to the Sovetsky District Court of Kazan demanding to recognise Yabloko’s Gulnaz Ravilova as involved in the activities of the “extremist organisation” of Alexei Navalny’s Headquarters. Ravilova is running as Yabloko candidate for the State Duma, as well as for the Council of Deputies of the Osinovskoye settlement in the Zelenodolsk region of Tatarstan. Earlier, the leader of the Tatarstan Yabloko Ruslan Zinatullin and a party member Yelena Izotova were recognised by courts as involved in the “extremist organisation” on similar lawsuits and removed from elections.

The Public Prosecutor’s Office considers Ravilova’s posts on her social networks in support of political prisoners to be evidence of her connection with an “extremist organisation”. For example, the public prosecutor consider the published statement about the existence of political repressions in the country, as well as the demand for the release of Alexei Navalny and political prisoners as “extremist materials”. The Public Prosecutor’s Office is convinced that political repression represents “the lawful actions of law enforcement agencies,” while to write and speak differently means “to discredit the authorities,” that is, to engage in extremism.

“One of the main ideologies of an extremist organisation is the formation of an opinion about the need to change the government in the country,” runs the statement of claim of the Public Prosecutor’s Office.

In addition, Ravilova provided assistance to those detained at protest rallies. The Public Prosecutor’s Office also considers this to be a proof of her connection with Alexei Navalny’s Headquarters.

As an interested person, the electoral commission of the municipality where Ravilova runs in the elections is involved in the court session.

“I believe that this lawsuit was filed in order to prevent me from participating in the elections for the next three years, and if I win an election somewhere this year, I won’t get a mandate,” Gulnaz Ravilova commented on the actions of the Public Prosecutor’s Office.

The district court will consider the claim on 13 September.

It should be noted that on 14 August, the Vakhitovsky District Court satisfied a similar claim of the Public Prosecutor’s Office against Yelena Izotova, a candidate for the State Duma from Yabloko and Chair of Yabloko’s Green Russia faction in Tatarstan.

On 20 August, a court in Kazan recognised Ruslan Zinatullin, a Yabloko candidate for the State Duma, involved in an “extremist” organisation.

These two decisions were appealed in a court of higher instance, thus have not come into effect yet.

The Moscow City Court made a decision to cancel the registration of Lev Shlosberg as a candidate for State Duma in a single-mandate constituency on the administrative claim of Andrei Pangayev, a candidate for State Duma deputy in single-mandate constituency No. 207 from the Green Party.

Viktor Rau, Yabloko’s candidate to the State Duma in the Altai Territory, was removed from the elections for his participation in the January rallies.

In Nizhny Novgorod the Central Electoral Commission withdrew journalist Natalia Rezontova from the Yabloko list of candidates to the State Duma.  The electoral commission motivated such a decision by alleged participation of Rezontova in the activities of an extremist organisation.

Yabloko candidate to the State Duma in Yakutia Anatoly Nogovitsyn was notified of his involvement in the activities of an “extremist organisation”.

Two Yabloko candidates Roman Maskimov and Mixim Nikitin to the Novogorod Region Duma are removed from the elections for alleged participation in the activities of an “extremist organisation”