Residents of the city protest against closure of the city library

Press Release, 13.03.2018

On 13 March, Yabloko Chair Emilia Slabunova visited the city of Fryazino, the Moscow region, at the invitation of the director of the central city library.  Slabunova met with residents protesting against the eviction of the central city library from the premises the library had been taking since 1936. By court order, the library may find itself literally in the street due to the fact that the city authorities did not pay the owner for renting the building. In addition the city has no other premises similar to that occupied by the library, thus, eviction of the library means its closure, local residents say.

Many Fryazino residents came to the meeting with the Yabloko Chair, as the fate of the only city library worries many people. Further actions for solution of the problem were discussed at the meeting.

Slabunova noted that the present situation is a reflection of what had been happening on the level of local governing. She also stressed that the library had been founded by the local administration and the local administration was responsible for financing of the library.

Slabunova stressed that expenditures on culture in the local budget increased by 15 per cent in 2017 as compared to 2016 and amounted to 115,440,000 rubles. Slabunova said that it was surprising that the local administration failed to pay for renting the premises for the library in such a stuation.

According to Slabunova, the reason for the problem was the negligence of the city authorities. She said that there could be several solutions to the problem. One of them was to demand a report from the authorities: Yabloko Chair promised to send appeals to the city and the regional prosecutor’s offices, as well as to the Accounts Chamber of the city. However, this would not be enough – if by joint efforts it would be possible to save the library, “very soon we would have to immediately save a hospital or something else,” the politician said.

Therefore, another method would be more effective: the political one. “There can be only one method here: replacement of power,” Emilia Slabunova stressed. “If on 18 March the residents of Fryazino vote for Yavlinsky, and he gets 30-50 per cent, then the authorities will become very scared, and it will start solving all the problems.”

According to Slabunova, the situation with non-payment of the rent for the library was strange because the budget of this city close to Moscow was not the poorest: it gets almost 2 billion roubles for 60,000 of population. However, the city residents do not have any control mechanisms how the money is spent.

Slabunova stressed that the solution was in changing the system. And election of mayors of cities should be returned: in October 2017 Grigory Yavlinsky, leader of the Yabloko party and presidential candidate, initiated the collection of signatures for the return of direct elections of mayors, governors (without a municipal filter) and members of the Federation Council.

“We live as we vote,” Emilia Slabunova said. “We make policies together with you, it is the voters who primarily form the policies with their votes. Will you vote for the current state of affairs? ” she asked.

The central library of Fryazino was created in 1936 and has a book fund of more than 100,000 copies, including rare editions. The library organises cultural events, seminars, videoconferences, video presentations, different events for children, etc. It also has the museum of poet Osip Mandelstam, a sole museum of the poet in Russia.