Press Release, 19.06.2020

Yabloko Chairman Nikolai Rybakov sent an appeal to Igor Krasnov, Public Prosecutor General of Russia, with a request to track and prevent violations during the voting on the approval of amendments to the Constitution.

In his appeal, the Chair of Yabloko notes that media have published numerous reports on the participation of commercial and non-profit organisations throughout the country in the preparation of contests, lotteries and quizzes that have to take place during voting. “The organisers of these events do not conceal the fact that the main purpose of these events is to encourage citizens to take part in the all-Russian vote,” Nikolai Rybakov emphasises.

Rybakov cites the example of the joint competition programme by the Government of Moscow, the Moscow Chamber of Commerce and the Million Prizes business, a prize drawing from the Russian Bar Association in the Krasnoyarsk Territory, as well as contests and lotteries in other regions of Russia (the Vologda, Kaluga and Sverdlovsk Regions, the Khabarovsk Territory and the Republic of Buryatia).

The Yabloko Chairman also indicates that such actions violate the Russian law and qualify as bribery. “I believe that according to the amendments introduced in 2020 to the Criminal Code, preventing a citizen from freely exercising his right to participate in the all-Russian vote, all the more so if such actions are coupled with bribery, can be regarded as a crime,” the Rybakov’s letter runs.

In addition to the above cases, Nikolai Rybakov also asks the Public Prosecutor General to check the activities of other organisations in other subjects of the Russian Federation that organise lotteries during voting. The head of Yabloko also urges Igor Krasnov to take immediate measures to stop violations of the law and bring those responsible to justice.