Is
Modernisation in Russia Possible? Interview
with Grigory Yavlinsky and Boris Titov by Yury Pronko,
"The Real Time" programme, Radio Finam, May
12, 2010
Photo: leaflets of Yabloko candidates “For Peace and Freedom”
We are against the so-called Smart Voting [reduced to voting for any pro-government political party but the ruling United Russia] re-announced by Leonid Volkov [head of Alexei Navalny’s headquarters].
We, as before, categorically do not share his position: voting “for any party except United Russia”, the possibility of voting for Stalinists and nationalists, as well as his disdain for human destinies.
We can only reiterate: we are asking all voters who support Volkov and his team and their stance not to vote for us.
Photo: Ivan Safronov / Photo by Gleb Shchelkunov, Kommersant
On 5 September, the Moscow City Court sentenced 32-year-old journalist Ivan Safronov to 22 years in a strict regime colony on the charges of “treason”. On the same day, the Moscow Basmanny District Court revoked the registration of the print version of Novaya Gazeta, led by Editor-in-Chief Dmitry Muratov, a member of Yabloko and Nobel Prize laureate. Yabloko leaders comment on these events.
On 5 September, the regional branches of the Yabloko party and the candidates nominated by the party to run in the regional and local elections submitted lists of observers to the electoral commissions. The regional branches of Yabloko in Moscow, Pskov and Novgorod also sent their lists of observers for remote electronic voting to the electoral commissions organising remote electronic voting. The lists of observers include IT-specialists.
The Moscow branch of the Yabloko party has officially applied to the Moscow Electoral Commission to organise the deployment of the Remote Electronic Voting node at the party’s technical facilities, to which Yabloko IT specialists will have access.
The online conference Marathon in Memory of Mikhail Gorbachev, organised by the Yabloko party, lasted eight hours. The speeches of the participants were broadcast on the Yabloko YouTube channel.
Politicians, statesmen and public figures, writers, journalists and human rights activists from Russia, the USA, Mexico and Italy took part in the marathon.
Photo: Alexander Makhankov’s campaign leaflet “I and Yabloko Stand for Peace!” / Photo by the Yabloko Press Service
Alexander Makhankov, a Yabloko candidate for deputies of the municipal council of the Pushkinsky District of St.Petersburg, was warned that his campaign products were sent for examination on suspicion of the presence of “extremism” in them. Territorial Electoral Commission No. 20 recommended Makhankov to stop distribution of his leaflets for the duration of the examination; whereas the voting day is 11 September.
On 1 September, the Moscow City Court upheld the decision of the Tverskoy District Court to remove Maria Volokh, a candidate for Moscow municipal deputies from Yabloko, from the elections. Earlier, District Judge sided with the Territorial Electoral Commission of the Tverskoy District in Moscow, which canceled Volokh’s registration because she allegedly had had a residence permit in the Netherlands valid until 2019.
On 3 September, the day of funeral of Mikhail Gorbachev, Yabloko will conduct on-line conference The Gorbachev Marathon dedicated to the President of the USSR. Politicians, public figures, and journalists will share their memories of the USSR President.
Photo: Boris Vishnevsky, MP of the St.Petserburg Legislative Assembly and Deputy Chair of Yabloko, writing a letter / Photo by the Yabloko Press Service
On 26 August, an action of writing letters to political prisoners was held at the offices of the regional branches of the Yabloko party. Yabloko members and civil activists took part in the action. The participants wrote letters and signed postcards made by the party, which were sent by the regional branches to their destinations.
On 4 September, an action of writing letters and postcards to political prisoners will be held at the Saratov Yabloko office. The action will start at 18:00.
Photo: Boris Vishnevsky / Photo by the Yabloko Press Service
After Grigory Yavlinsky recalled, on 24 August, the priority steps proposed by the Yabloko party back in February to prevent deaths in the Russian-Ukrainian conflict and the need to conclude a ceasefire agreement, a stream of accusations fell upon Yabloko (mainly, from those people who left Russia) that the party “takes the same stance as Putin”.
As they say, the ceasefire is beneficial to Putin, and if so, Yabloko is subject to obstruction for calling for it.
The stance of Yabloko is well known and has been repeated many times: it is necessary to conclude a ceasefire agreement, exchange prisoners and the bodies of dead servicemen, and objectively investigate all reports of war crimes. But, first of all, [it is necessary] to stop killing of people, stop the bloodshed.
Photo: Mikhail Gorbachev / Photo by Sergei Mikheyev, Kommersant
“But of those decadent ages in which no Ideal either grows or blossoms? When Belief and Loyalty have passed away, and only the cant and false echo of them remains; and all Solemnity has become Pageantry; and the Creed of persons in authority has become one of two things: an Imbecility or a Macchiavelism? Alas, of these ages World-History can take no notice; they have to become compressed more and more, and finally suppressed in the Annals of Mankind; blotted out as spurious,—which indeed they are. Hapless ages: wherein, if ever in any, it is an unhappiness to be born. To be born, and to learn only, by every tradition and example, that God’s Universe is Belial’s and a Lie; and “the Supreme Quack” the hierarch of men! In which mournfulest faith, nevertheless, do we not see whole generations (two, and sometimes even three successively) live, what they call living; and vanish,—without chance of reappearance?”[1].
This is precisely what Mikhail Gorbachev freed us – his contemporaries – from. He liberated us. And he did this of his own volition. We didn’t even ask him. At the time only a miniscule number of people were fighting for freedom, while even fewer believed that this was actually possible. Gorbachev gave us all freedom. He is not to blame for what we did with this freedom. It is not even his concern. This is our responsibility. Accordingly, we can also stop right here when contemplating his contribution. For in history this has happened peacefully only once – thanks to Gorbachev.
Mikhail Gorbachev gave our entire society and each of us personally a lot of chances. Society got the chance for renewal and building of a civilised state.
It was under Gorbachev that a true parliament was born, and relatively free elections were held, where democrats received significant representation.
The most important work began then to reduce international tension, and assess the awareness of the Stalinist past.
But democracy is not an optional activity. These are daily practices of citizens’ participation. This should have been realised by every person in the country. However, this did not happen.
Mikhail Gorbachev gave us freedom. He gave freedom to hundreds of millions of people in Russia and around Russia, and also to half of Europe. We bear responsibility how we in Russia took advantage of the freedom given to us, this great opportunity.
Few leaders in history have had such a decisive impact on their time. During his six years in power, Mikhail Gorbachev changed the world.
Photo: The conference of the regional branch of Yabloko in the Pskov Region. / Photo by the Pskov Yabloko Press Service
Yabloko web-site has published a list of registered candidates from Yabloko in the municipal elections in the Pskov region.
The Pskov branch of Yabloko will compete for 244 mandates in 24 representative bodies of municipalities, including the Pskov city parliament and the Velikie Luki city parliament. In addition the regional branch of Yabloko defends in courts its right to nominate 46 candidates in several districts of the region.
Yabloko activists fined for “discrediting the army” thank those who responded to the Yabloko action “Let’s Help Those Who Are Not Silent”
Press Release, 29.08.2022
In early July, the Yabloko party launched the campaign “Let’s Help Those Who Are Not Silent” so that to help pay large fines for the activists and party members who were repressed for calling for peace.
After 24 February, several dozen Yabloko activists were prosecuted under the article on “discrediting the army” and similar articles of the Code of Administrative Offenses. The majority of fines amounted to 30,000 roubles (approximately 500 Euro) or more.
“Not everyone can find the courage to oppose the actions of the regime, but everyone can help those who dare to do so,” that was Yabloko’s address to its supporters.
Photo: Police van which took Nikita Arkin to court / Photo by Nikolai Kavkazsky
The Basmanny Court of Moscow sent Nikita Arkin, a candidate for municipal deputies from Yabloko in the Basmanny district, under arrest. Arkin was accused of “demonstrating extremist symbols” (Article 20.3 of the Code of Administrative Offenses which leads to ban on participation in the elections).
Another Yabloko candidate for municipal deputies, Nikita Arkin, who was nominated by Yabloko to run in the Basmanny district of Moscow, was detained today. The police came to the office where Nikita works so that to detain him. Yulia Tregubova, a lawyer from the OVD-Info human rights NGO, is not allowed to the police department where Arkin was taken. Nikita is charged with Article 20.3 of the Code of Administrative Offenses (“propaganda or public demonstration of Nazi symbols of signs, or symbols or signs of extremist organisations”), which may deprive him of the opportunity to be elected.
Photo: Yabloko’s placard “Yabloko stands for peace!”
A list of registered candidates from Yabloko in the municipal elections that will be held in different Russian regions in September has been published on the Yabloko web-site. Yabloko participates in election campaigns in 12 Russian reigons.
