Press release, 06.07.2015

Member of Moscow Observation Commission, YABLOKO Bureau member Valery Borshchev, head of For human rights movement Lev Ponomaryev and human rights defender Svetlena Gannushkina conducted a series of one-person picketing against the bill broadening the possibility to use small arms for police and FSB (Federal Security Service) officers. The picketing took place outside the State Duma.

The aim of the action was to stop the consideration of the bill without public discussion.

“International norms prohibit to use armes in crowded places since there are no guarantees that the civilians won’t be hurt. On the contrary, there’s a guaranty that they will die,” Valery Borshchev told the journalists.

The human rights defender noted that the bill introduces the presumption of trust to police officers. According to him, the measure will enable the police to break free from the control of both the civil society and the Prosecutor’s Office.

“At present there is no apparent need for the adoption of such measures. We can assume that on the threashold of the parliamentary and the presidential elections, and against the background of hunt for “foreign agents” and “undesirable organizations”, spymania and war hysteria, such measures will logically complete transformation of Russia into an Asian type totalitarian police state.

The YABLOKO party strongly opposes such measures and urges deputies of the State Duma to stop until it is not too late,” runs in the party statement.

On July 1 Irina Yarovaya, head of State Duma’s Anti-Corruption and Security Committee, and her colleagues introduced the amendments to the law on police broadening the rights of police to use arms.