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Rights Activist, Opposition Leader Unconvinced By Putin's View Of Elections
Interfax - 12.27.11 - JRL 2011-232

Moscow, 27 December: Human rights activists and the opposition have disagreed with Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's opinion that talking about revising the results of the recent Duma election is useless. Putin said on Tuesday (27 December) that the State Duma was functioning and any talk of revising the election results was useless. According to Putin, there is only one way, which is to turn to court.

"There is the opinion of the prime minister that talking about revising the election results is useless. I have a different opinion. There are constitutional opportunities for revising (election results) and we will use them," head of the Moscow Helsinki Group Lyudmila Alekseyeva told Interfax on Tuesday.

"If many people do not believe in the legitimacy of the elected State Duma and there is no review of the election results but there will be a presidential election, then without changing the staff of electoral commissions and the laws the presidential polls too will not be accepted by most of our citizens. I mean the better educated and younger part of our citizens," Alekseyeva said.

Meanwhile, an opposition activist and writer, the leader of the unregistered Other Russia party, Eduard Limonov, told Interfax on the same day that Putin's statement that there was no point in talking about revising the election results was expected. "I predicted this," Limonov said.

He said that previous experience of appealing against election results in court on the strength of revealed violations had ended in nothing. "These appeals to court lead nowhere. They sink in the sands of our courts, which depend on the authorities in one way or another. It is hopeless," Limonov said.

He added that a mistake had been made ahead of the 10 December rally when the organizing committee and the authorities agreed on moving the rally from Ploshchad Revolyutsii (square) to Bolotnaya Ploshchad. "They betrayed the protest. A popular wave rose, but it cannot hang forever. The train has left. The authorities came to terms with (opposition leader Boris) Nemtsov, tricked the people together with Nemtsov," Limonov said. (Passage omitted)

Keywords: Russia, Government, Politics - Russia News - Russia

 

Moscow, 27 December: Human rights activists and the opposition have disagreed with Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's opinion that talking about revising the results of the recent Duma election is useless. Putin said on Tuesday (27 December) that the State Duma was functioning and any talk of revising the election results was useless. According to Putin, there is only one way, which is to turn to court.

"There is the opinion of the prime minister that talking about revising the election results is useless. I have a different opinion. There are constitutional opportunities for revising (election results) and we will use them," head of the Moscow Helsinki Group Lyudmila Alekseyeva told Interfax on Tuesday.

"If many people do not believe in the legitimacy of the elected State Duma and there is no review of the election results but there will be a presidential election, then without changing the staff of electoral commissions and the laws the presidential polls too will not be accepted by most of our citizens. I mean the better educated and younger part of our citizens," Alekseyeva said.

Meanwhile, an opposition activist and writer, the leader of the unregistered Other Russia party, Eduard Limonov, told Interfax on the same day that Putin's statement that there was no point in talking about revising the election results was expected. "I predicted this," Limonov said.

He said that previous experience of appealing against election results in court on the strength of revealed violations had ended in nothing. "These appeals to court lead nowhere. They sink in the sands of our courts, which depend on the authorities in one way or another. It is hopeless," Limonov said.

He added that a mistake had been made ahead of the 10 December rally when the organizing committee and the authorities agreed on moving the rally from Ploshchad Revolyutsii (square) to Bolotnaya Ploshchad. "They betrayed the protest. A popular wave rose, but it cannot hang forever. The train has left. The authorities came to terms with (opposition leader Boris) Nemtsov, tricked the people together with Nemtsov," Limonov said. (Passage omitted)