GOLOS Association
Encyclopedia
For the Russian film, see Golos (1982 film)
The GOLOS Association (Cyrillic: ГОЛОС, meaning "vote" or "voice") is a Russian civilian organization established in 2000 to protect the electoral rights of citizens and to foster civil society. As of 2008, the organization covers 40 Russian regions. It is the only independent election watchdog active in Russia
.
In the March 2008 presidential election
and accompanying local elections, GOLOS representatives found many irregularities, including the following.
The group publishes a newspaper Grazhdansky Golos (Civil Voice).
The Telegraph describes Golos as being "one of the few organisations able to catalogue and publicise [the Kremlin
's] attempts at fraud and intimidation".
and such. Two days later, on November 28 two NTV representatives broke into the headquarters of the organisation while GOLOS spokesmen were giving a press conference at an independent press-centre. GOLOS representatives suggested that the men should go and instead take part in the official press session, but the journalists acted rude and shouted out similar accusations as two days before. Their purpose allegedly was to record a video which could be later used for making up some kind of incrimitory evidence, but failed because a GOLOS member was repeating that it was a provocation. This incident was recorded on a mobile phone and the video is available on youtube.
served Golos with papers alleging the organisation had portrayed an unnamed political party in a bad light. The unnamed party has been identified as being United Russia
, backed by Vladimir Putin
. Elections are due to take place on 4 December 2011. The Telegraph has called the prosecution "part of a systematic campaign of harassment" that was "likely to hamper the group's monitoring work and could result in a large fine or even a ban on its activities".
Golos (1982 film)
For the Russian NGO, see GOLOS AssociationGolos , is a 1982 psychological drama set in Soviet Union. Based on the screenplay of the same name by Natalya Ryazantseva and directed by Ilya Averbakh...
The GOLOS Association (Cyrillic: ГОЛОС, meaning "vote" or "voice") is a Russian civilian organization established in 2000 to protect the electoral rights of citizens and to foster civil society. As of 2008, the organization covers 40 Russian regions. It is the only independent election watchdog active in Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
.
Activities
Since 2002 GOLOS has monitored elections and referendums of all levels.In the March 2008 presidential election
Russian presidential election, 2008
The Russian Presidential election of 2008, held on March 2, 2008 resulted in the election of Dmitry Medvedev as the third President of Russia. Medvedev, whose candidacy was supported by incumbent president Vladimir Putin and five political parties , received 71% of the vote, and defeated...
and accompanying local elections, GOLOS representatives found many irregularities, including the following.
- incomplete combined protocols, as in 50% of polling stations in UfaUfa-Demographics:Nationally, dominated by Russian , Bashkirs and Tatars . In addition, numerous are Ukrainians , Chuvash , Mari , Belarusians , Mordovians , Armenian , Germans , Jews , Azeris .-Government and administration:Local...
, KostromaKostromaKostroma is a historic city and the administrative center of Kostroma Oblast, Russia. A part of the Golden Ring of Russian towns, it is located at the confluence of the Volga and Kostroma Rivers...
and KurskKurskKursk is a city and the administrative center of Kursk Oblast, Russia, located at the confluence of the Kur, Tuskar, and Seym Rivers. The area around Kursk was site of a turning point in the Russian-German struggle during World War II and the site of the largest tank battle in history...
; - failure of electoral commissions to prevent voters from reusing their absentee ballots in Veliky NovgorodVeliky NovgorodVeliky Novgorod is one of Russia's most historic cities and the administrative center of Novgorod Oblast. It is situated on the M10 federal highway connecting Moscow and St. Petersburg. The city lies along the Volkhov River just below its outflow from Lake Ilmen...
, TomskTomskTomsk is a city and the administrative center of Tomsk Oblast, Russia, located on the Tom River. One of the oldest towns in Siberia, Tomsk celebrated its 400th anniversary in 2004...
, KazanKazanKazan is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Tatarstan, Russia. With a population of 1,143,546 , it is the eighth most populous city in Russia. Kazan lies at the confluence of the Volga and Kazanka Rivers in European Russia. In April 2009, the Russian Patent Office granted Kazan the...
, YekaterinburgYekaterinburgYekaterinburg is a major city in the central part of Russia, the administrative center of Sverdlovsk Oblast. Situated on the eastern side of the Ural mountain range, it is the main industrial and cultural center of the Urals Federal District with a population of 1,350,136 , making it Russia's...
, UfaUfa-Demographics:Nationally, dominated by Russian , Bashkirs and Tatars . In addition, numerous are Ukrainians , Chuvash , Mari , Belarusians , Mordovians , Armenian , Germans , Jews , Azeris .-Government and administration:Local...
; - casting ballots by some voters on behalf of other people in KrasnodarKrasnodarKrasnodar is a city in Southern Russia, located on the Kuban River about northeast of the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk. It is the administrative center of Krasnodar Krai . Population: -Name:...
, VladimirVladimirVladimir is a city and the administrative center of Vladimir Oblast, Russia, located on the Klyazma River, to the east of Moscow along the M7 motorway. Population:...
, KostromaKostromaKostroma is a historic city and the administrative center of Kostroma Oblast, Russia. A part of the Golden Ring of Russian towns, it is located at the confluence of the Volga and Kostroma Rivers...
; - presence of government officials other than members of electoral commissions in OmskOmsk-History:The wooden fort of Omsk was erected in 1716 to protect the expanding Russian frontier along the Ishim and the Irtysh rivers against the Kyrgyz nomads of the Steppes...
, Adygea, BarnaulBarnaul-Russian Empire:Barnaul was one of the earlier cities established in Siberia. Originally chosen for its proximity to the mineral-rich Altai Mountains and its location on a major river, the site was founded by the wealthy Demidov family in the 1730s. In addition to the copper which had originally...
, YekaterinburgYekaterinburgYekaterinburg is a major city in the central part of Russia, the administrative center of Sverdlovsk Oblast. Situated on the eastern side of the Ural mountain range, it is the main industrial and cultural center of the Urals Federal District with a population of 1,350,136 , making it Russia's...
, Yoshkar-OlaYoshkar-OlaYoshkar-Ola is the capital city of the Mari El Republic, Russia. Population: Yoshkar-Ola means red city in Mari. The current name is the third to have been given to the city. The city was known as Tsaryovokokshaysk before 1919 and as Krasnokokshaysk between 1919 and 1927...
, PermPermPerm is a city and the administrative center of Perm Krai, Russia, located on the banks of the Kama River, in the European part of Russia near the Ural Mountains. From 1940 to 1957 it was named Molotov ....
, PskovPskovPskov is an ancient city and the administrative center of Pskov Oblast, Russia, located in the northwest of Russia about east from the Estonian border, on the Velikaya River. Population: -Early history:...
.
The group publishes a newspaper Grazhdansky Golos (Civil Voice).
The Telegraph describes Golos as being "one of the few organisations able to catalogue and publicise [the Kremlin
Kremlin
A kremlin , same root as in kremen is a major fortified central complex found in historic Russian cities. This word is often used to refer to the best-known one, the Moscow Kremlin, or metonymically to the government that is based there...
's] attempts at fraud and intimidation".
Recent incidents
After officially interviewing GOLOS Association on November 25 and 26, 2011 NTV representatives (a major Russian television broadcaster) made two provocative acts against the organisation. On November 26, 2011 three men smashed in a room where the organisation conducted an internal training, and accused GOLOS of coopetation with CIACentral Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...
and such. Two days later, on November 28 two NTV representatives broke into the headquarters of the organisation while GOLOS spokesmen were giving a press conference at an independent press-centre. GOLOS representatives suggested that the men should go and instead take part in the official press session, but the journalists acted rude and shouted out similar accusations as two days before. Their purpose allegedly was to record a video which could be later used for making up some kind of incrimitory evidence, but failed because a GOLOS member was repeating that it was a provocation. This incident was recorded on a mobile phone and the video is available on youtube.
Prosecution
On 1 December 2011 prosecutors in MoscowMoscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
served Golos with papers alleging the organisation had portrayed an unnamed political party in a bad light. The unnamed party has been identified as being United Russia
United Russia
United Russia is a centrist political party in Russia and the largest party in the country, currently holding 315 of the 450 seats in the State Duma. The party was founded in December 2001, through a merger of the Unity and Fatherland-All Russia parties...
, backed by Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin served as the second President of the Russian Federation and is the current Prime Minister of Russia, as well as chairman of United Russia and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Union of Russia and Belarus. He became acting President on 31 December 1999, when...
. Elections are due to take place on 4 December 2011. The Telegraph has called the prosecution "part of a systematic campaign of harassment" that was "likely to hamper the group's monitoring work and could result in a large fine or even a ban on its activities".
External links
- Electoral Code of the Russian Federation, proposed and developed by GOLOS.
- NTV journalists at GOLOS headquarters on November 28, 2011