Press Release, 12.12.2019

On 12 December, the Chelyabinsk branch of Yabloko went on one-person pickets (that do not require a permission from the authorities) in four cities of the region as part of the Struggle for Human Rights campaign, dedicated to the Russian Constitution Day.

Four local branches of the party took part in the action: in Chelyabinsk, Kopeisk, Magnitogorsk and Miass. In Chelyabinsk, the capital of the South Urals, the picket was attended by members of regional and local boards of Yabloko, the oldest members of the party, as well as activists of the Yabloko Youth.

Yaroslav Shcherbakov, Chairman of the Chelyabinsk branch of Yabloko, emphasised that Yabloko members from Miass and Magnitogorsk were able to support the action, despite the fact that less than a month has passed since the organization of their local branches.

“The Constitution proclaims that a person, his/her rights and freedoms are the highest value. Unfortunately, often due to a number of economic or political reasons, human rights are not respected and protected in Russia, and the Constitution and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights have turned into monuments of past achievements,” Yaroslav Shcherbakov noted.

The leader of the regional branch of the party also added that the Chelyabinsk regional branch of Yabloko conducted not only street actions on the Constitution Day, but also organised free legal consultations for everyone in the party’s regional office.

It should be noted that on 12 December, 1993, the Constitution of the Russian Federation was adopted by popular vote, and since 1994, by decree of the President of Russia December 12 was declared a state holiday (“On the Day of the Constitution of the Russian Federation” and “On the day off December 12”). Since 2005, December 12 is no longer a day off in Russia, and the Constitution Day of December 12 has been reckoned among the memorable dates.