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September 13, 2004
Liberals Condemn Putin’s Proposals on Political Changes

Members of a liberal group condemned proposals for changes to the political system made by Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday.

A member of the Committee 2008: Free Choice, MP Vladimir Ryzhkov, said the election of regional leaders by parliaments violates the Russian Constitution. The Constitution guarantees the right to nominate a candidacy for any eligible post, the deputy said.

Another top committee member, former leader of the liberal party The Union of Right Forces, Boris Nemtsov, quoted by Interfax news agency, said the formal appointment of governors by presidential decree will turn Russia to a unitary state and will lead to the rise of corruption.

Ryzhkov also criticized Putin’s proposal to introduce a fully proportional system of elections to the lower house of the Russian parliament, the State Duma. The liberal deputy was quoted by the agency as saying “the polls have shown that people trust deputies from single-mandate local constituencies more than those promoted by parties for whom they are forced to vote, not knowing anyone except the three leaders.”

In an address to the country’s top officials, Putin said the Kremlin should name regional governors, who would then be confirmed by local legislatures instead of being elected by a popular vote. He added he wanted deputies to the Russian national parliament elected solely on a party-list basis in the future, doing away with the practice of elections of independent deputies to single-mandate constituencies.