Decision No 147 by the Federal Political Committee of Yabloko, adopted on 14.10.2021, published on 18.10.2021

Photo by the Yabloko Press Service

The Political Committee of the Russian United Democratic Party Yabloko believes that the assessments, forecasts and fears expressed in the article “No to Putinism and Populism” and the decision by the Political Committee [of Yabloko] “On Systemic Threats to the Life, Health and Rights of Russian Citizens” of 24 February, 2021, have been confirmed.

The focus of [Alexei Navalny’s] Smart Voting on the support of the communists, the pro-communist propaganda of the niche media, focused on the intelligentsia expressing its discontent and those supporting Alexei Navalny, is a downward movement, evidence of the complication of the situation in which our country finds itself now. This is also clearly demonstrates the political inconsistency of the activists protest which has been operating with populist slogans.

For us, both Vladimir Putin’s regime and the attempts to fight it according to the principle “the end justifies the means” are unacceptable, the implementation of the latter has led at the moment to calls to support the communists and has become one of the factors in the formation of the Duma, which, without doubt, will be used as an instrument of repression targeted not only and not so much against individuals as against the majority of the country’s population, which the authorities consider being one of its resources.

Our opponent is not only the authorities, but also what can be called modern Bolshevism. Bolshevism in modern conditions represents a reaction to the corrupted irremovable government, which has fenced itself off from society with a shield of force, a populist appeal to all the weak and offended, a call to unite around a charismatic headman who combines nationalism with primitive equalitarianism in his appeals.

At this stage, such a “protest” is no less a problem than the government. At the same time, we are facing not just with dilettantism, misunderstanding, inexperience, but a concept that claims to be axiomatic and morally superior.

Calls almost in the form of virtually an order to vote on the list sent by the headman or his instructor produce an extremely negative effect. As a result, all this turns into considerably increased distrust of the elections. Those who call for voting according to the algorithm are acting in the same direction as the authorities and devalue the very idea of ​​elections. At the same time, it is quite obvious that any vote for [pro-Putin’s] the Communist Party, the LDPR party, or A Just Russia party means playing the game on the side of the authorities.

The hopes of Alexei Navalny’s supporters for a change of power from the street are not only groundless, but dangerous. This line is beneficial to the authorities, since the repressive machinery will always take over in the clashes in the streets and then another sharp toughening of the regime will follow.

As a result, relying on street protests will not end with anything except imprisonment of many people, broken lives and even bloodshed. The events in Belarus have shown that the shameless cynical regime is not embarrassed by mass actions, and the authorities are ready to use any forceful means, including the army, so that to protect the regime.

The rosy illusions of the “Velvet Revolution” – in the current conditions of Vladimir Putin’s regime – is either a delusion that can turn into a mass bloodshed, or a deliberate deception of “human stuff” intended (as Leonid Volkov, Navalny’s closest supporter, says) to be thrown “into the furnace”.

We are categorically against violence by the authorities and consider calls for violence by the protest forces to be fundamentally unacceptable. Attempts to shift all responsibility for possible sacrifices onto the government, which “brought the situation to a bloody riot”, are fraudulent. The logic that “the war will justify everything” logic has been and will be alien to us. We consider it our primary task to do everything possible so that to prevent casualties in the course of political confrontation. This is one of our most important principles that should be embedded in all our actions.

The Federal Political Committee of the Yabloko Party considers any form of support for the de facto allies of the United Russia party – the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, A Just Russia, the LDPR party in the form of the so-called Smart Voting and the policy of Alexei Navalny, be incompatible with membership in the [Yabloko] Party, meaning that this is a fundamentally different political direction. Party members who do not share the ideology and ethical principles of Yabloko, create conflict situations and hindrances in the work of the Party, ignore the instructions of the party, and also lose contact with the Party, are subject to deregistration.

We believe that one of the main resources of the Vladimir Putin system, on which it relies along with repression and manipulation, is the imposition of their agenda, the basis of which lies in imperial nationalism, confrontation with the West, neutralisation of internal agents of the West, etc.

To counter the reactionary agenda of the regime, the Party considers it necessary to maintain and promote the following agenda:

– the anti-war agenda: end of support for the war in Donbass, rejection of the annexation of Crimea and initiation of an international conference on the future of the peninsula, and withdrawal of Russian troops from Syria;

– the agenda associated with the reforms necessary for the country, in particular, with creation of the institution of private property and a competitive efficient economy instead of the current stagnant economy of the present state capitalism;

– the agenda representing the policy towards the European path of development and integration with Europe with the prospect of forming a third world centre of global economic power;

– the agenda requiring an international investigation of political assassinations and attempts on politicians in Russia, the purpose of which is to find out the truth in all the details and prevent such things in the future;

– the release of all political prisoners;

– the agenda relating to the re-founding of the Russian state by convening a Constituent Assembly and adoption of a new Constitution.

To implement the agenda, it is necessary to search for new forms of broad and active social action that would allow expressing protest and exerting civil pressure in the face of increasing repression.

Only striving for such goals can qualitatively renew Russian politics, society and the state, and ensure a decent future for our country. We confirm all decisions of the Political Committee of Yabloko made in 2020 – 2021, and we consider their implementation to be the basis for further work by Yabloko.

Our goal is nationwide political dialogue. This does not mean asking the authorities for something or negotiating tactical issues. The basis of the dialogue is that civil society has its own stance on fundamental issues – the future of the country, and the direction of its development. For all the problems and weaknesses of the democrats, no other direction can formulate the meaning of moving forward. The European way is objectively the only one. All others are “paths that do not exist”, reproduction of Putin’s system and its policies in one form or another. The way to a dead end.

Our main allies are our people, time and history.

Grigory Yavlinsky,

Chairman of

the Federal Political Committee of Yabloko