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Nemtsov, Kasyanov, Ryzhkov elected RPR-PARNAS co-chairmen

The first congress of the Republic Party of Russia – People’s Freedom Party elected three co-chairmen on Saturday
Photo ITAR-TASS
Photo ITAR-TASS

MOSCOW, June 16 (Itar-Tass) — The first congress of the Republic Party of Russia – People’s Freedom Party (RPP-PARNAS) elected three co-chairmen on Saturday.

Boris Nemtsov, Mikhail Kasyanov and Vladimir Ryzhkov became co-chairmen of the party. The vote was secret and non-alternative. No candidates were nominated to this position.

Earlier, the RPR party and the People’s Freedom Party have merged and adopted a new charter.

The new charter was approved at the RPR congress on Saturday. At present, it is named – “Republican Party of Russia – People’s Freedom Party (RPR-PARNAS)”. Thus, the RPR merged with the non-registered party.

“The PARNAS members, including PARNAS co-chairmen, Boris Nemtsov and Mikhail Kasyanov, wrote an application to join the Republican Party,” RPR c-chairman Vladimir Ryzhkov told Itar-Tass.

According to the mandate commission, the congress involves 155 delegates from 64 Russian regions.

The RPR-PARNAS party adopted a political declaration saying, “RPR-PARNAS is a political and juridical successor of the Republican Party of Russia and the [non-registered] People’s Freedom Party. Universal values of human rights and freedoms are the priority of the party”.

The political declaration says, “Parliamentary and presidential elections in Russia in 2011-2012 were neither free nor fair”.

The declaration sets “present-day political requirements: to carry out resolutions of the mass opposition rallies in Moscow’s Bolotnaya Square and Sakharov Avenue in December 2011; to free political prisoners; to conduct political reforms in 2012; and to hold early parliamentary and presidential elections not later than in 2013”.

The RPR-PARNAS members intend “to achieve the goals exclusively by peaceful and constitutional means”, the declaration stresses.