Russia’s election watch group complains of ‘Intimidation’
January 31st, 2012 - 4:58 am ICT by IANSMoscow, Jan 31 (IANS/RIA Novosti) Russia’s largest independent election monitoring group said Monday of being pressured by the authorities ahead of presidential polls at which Prime Minister Vladimir Putin is to seek a third stint in the Kremlin.
“We are talking here about the open intimidation of Golos members and attempts to evict the organisation from its office,” the election monitoring group Golos representative Alexander Kynev said at a downtown Moscow news conference.
He also said the authorities were guilty of “phone-tapping, as well as breaking into letter boxes and accounts on social networking sites.”
Western-funded Golos often complains of pressure by the authorities. Late last year, a report on state television accused the organisation of serving the US interests and attempting to instigate a revolution in Russia.
The group’s head, Lilya Shibanova, was also detained for over 12 hours at a Moscow airport ahead of last December’s parliamentary polls after she refused to hand over a laptop that Customs officials said could contain material harmful to Russia’s interests.
Golos, which plans to deploy some 2,000 monitors to the March polls, says it has been ordered to vacate its Moscow office by Wednesday, despite having paid through Aug 1.
December’s parliamentary polls saw widespread claims of vote fraud in favour of Putin’s United Russia party and were followed by the largest anti-government protests in Moscow for some two decades.
A new mass rally is due to take place in the Russian capital Feb 4.
–IANS/RIA Novosti
sd
- Putin to win polls in first round: Exit poll - Mar 05, 2012
- Russia votes as Putin seeks Kremlin return (Second Lead) - Mar 04, 2012
- Russia opens first probe into alleged poll fraud - Dec 16, 2011
- Russians rally as Medvedev offers reforms - Feb 04, 2012
- Putin wants webcams for presidential polls - Dec 15, 2011
- Moscow authorises opposition rally - Jan 26, 2012
- Russia to invite 700 foreign monitors for presidential vote - Jan 13, 2012
- 650 international observers to monitor Russian polls - Nov 29, 2011
- Russian protests may turn into civil war: Billionaire - Jan 31, 2012
- 700 observers to monitor Russian presidential poll - Mar 01, 2012
- Medvedev accepts offer to head ruling party - Apr 27, 2012
- Protests over Russian 'gay propaganda' bill - Dec 27, 2011
- No plans for early parliamentary polls : Putin - Mar 02, 2012
- Putin says no to TV presidential debates - Jan 12, 2012
- Anti-Putin protests sweep across Russia - Dec 10, 2011
Tags: customs officials, independent election, intimidation, kremlin, letter boxes, mass rally, monitoring group, moscow airport, moscow news, moscow office, parliamentary polls, presidential polls, representative alexander, ria novosti russia, russian capital, social networking sites, state television, vladimir putin, vote fraud, watch group