3 weeks ago
Russia's Supreme Court Bars Anti-War Party Yabloko From Elections
In Russia, people are preparing to vote in September to choose members of their parliament.
Russia has been fighting a long war in Ukraine that has lasted more than four years.
A party called Yabloko wanted to run in the election because it wants the war to end in peace.
Yabloko is the only party in Russia that is still allowed to operate and also speaks out against the war.
On Monday, Russia's highest court said Yabloko cannot appear on the ballot.
Another party, called Rodina, said Yabloko broke election rules by getting secret help, including from other countries.
Yabloko's leader, Nikolai Rybakov, says that is not true and has promised to appeal the decision.
Supporters stood outside the courthouse holding apples, because Yabloko means 'apple' in Russian, and shouted 'Shame!'.
The party's message thanking supporters on the Telegram app received more than 100,000 likes.
The ban makes it harder for people who disagree with the war to have a voice, even though many Russians want peace.
Russia's Supreme Court barred Yabloko, the country's only officially registered anti-war party, from contesting September's parliamentary elections.
The ruling upheld a lawsuit by Rodina, a small pro-Kremlin nationalist party, which alleged Yabloko received undeclared campaign support, including from Western sources.
Yabloko leader Nikolai Rybakov said there was no evidence for the allegations, called the case an unconstitutional attack on freedom of thought, and vowed to appeal, with only five days for the appeal to be upheld.
Reports differed on turnout — from about a hundred to a few hundred, mostly young supporters — as people gathered outside the courthouse chanting 'Shame!', some holding apples, since Yabloko means 'apple' in Russian.
Yulia Navalnaya, widow of the late opposition leader Alexei Navalny, backed the party, saying the anti-war majority of Russians saw a unique chance to vote for an anti-war party that the Kremlin could not allow.
- Who
- Yabloko, Russia's only officially registered anti-war party, led by Nikolai Rybakov; Rodina, the pro-Kremlin party that filed the lawsuit; Russia's Supreme Court; and exiled opposition figure Yulia Navalnaya, widow of Alexei Navalny, who backed the party.
- What
- The Supreme Court granted Rodina's claims to annul the registration of Yabloko's federal list of candidates for the State Duma of the ninth convocation, barring the party from the election.
- Where
- Russia; supporters gathered outside the courthouse in defiance, and voters in Moscow also reacted to the ruling.
- When
- Monday, August 10, weeks ahead of September's parliamentary elections.
- Why
- The court upheld allegations that Yabloko received undeclared campaign support, including from Western sources; Yabloko denies the claims and says the case is an unconstitutional attack on the only party openly calling for peace in the war in Ukraine.
Yabloko and anti-war supporters
Kremlin and pro-government parties
Barring Yabloko from the ballot
Yabloko and anti-war supporters
Yabloko leader Nikolai Rybakov says there is no evidence for the allegations and calls the exclusion an unconstitutional attack on freedom of thought by political opponents seeking to clear the field of rivals; 'Excluding Yabloko from the election means refusing dialogue with people who ask questions that are uncomfortable for the authorities.'
Kremlin and pro-government parties
Rodina's lawsuit, upheld by the Supreme Court, alleged that Yabloko received undeclared campaign support, including from Western sources, and sought the party's removal from the ballot.
Ending the war in Ukraine
Yabloko and anti-war supporters
Yabloko calls for Russia to sign a ceasefire agreement with Ukraine, and independent polls show most Russians favour peace negotiations with Kyiv.
Kremlin and pro-government parties
The Kremlin has repeatedly ruled out a ceasefire, saying it wants an overall deal that meets its own conditions, while Vladimir Putin pushes hardline territorial demands and rules out talks with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Wartime dissent and censorship
Yabloko and anti-war supporters
Rybakov says the demand for peace and freedom has proved stronger than authorities assumed; around 40 Yabloko activists face prosecution, the party's deputy leader was jailed for seven years in June, and anti-war politician Boris Nadezhdin fled after being designated a foreign agent.
Kremlin and pro-government parties
The authorities cite national security interests for increasingly stringent wartime censorship laws, including internet shutdowns introduced to counter Ukrainian drone attacks.
Key facts
- Court
- Russia's Supreme Court (Judge Vyacheslav Kirillov)
- Party barred
- Yabloko ('apple' in Russian), the only officially registered anti-war party
- Plaintiff
- Rodina, a small pro-Kremlin nationalist party
- Election affected
- September parliamentary elections for the State Duma (ninth convocation)
- Accusation
- Undeclared campaign support, including from Western sources
- Yabloko poll support
- About 3%, below the 5% threshold to enter the State Duma
- Support for Russian armed forces
- 66% in July, the lowest since February 2022, per the Levada Center
- Dominant party
- United Russia, the Putin-backed party that has won every State Duma vote since 2003
Quotes
Tatyana Uvarova
Moscow resident
“Democracy should not be restricted in this way. I’d prefer if everyone who wants to should be able to put forward their programme and try to run in an election on equal terms.”
theprint.in
“The anti‑war majority of Russians saw that it had a unique chance to express its position and vote for an anti‑war party. The Kremlin could not allow that.”
theprint.in
Judge Vyacheslav Kirillov
Justice on the Supreme Court of Russia
“The claims seeking to annul the registration of the federal list of candidates for the State Duma of the ninth convocation, nominated by the Yabloko political party, were granted.”
NDTV
NDTV
“We have a long way ahead and we have a big and important task: to stop deaths and bring the peace back, and everything we do should be dedicated to that.”
NDTV
Sources
Russian anti-war party’s election ban dismays some voters
Putin’s Election Clampdown: Why Russia’s Only Openly Anti-War Party Is Out Of The Race
Russia’s top court bars anti-war party from parliamentary vote
As War Grinds, Russia Bans Its Last Anti-War Party From Elections
Russia Court Bans Opposition Anti-War Party From Elections
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