The Yabloko party will closely monitor the investigation of the murder (on September 17, 2001) of Keram Semyonov, one of the leaders of the opposition movement Vozrozhdeniye (“Renaissance”) in Karachaevo-Cherkessiya and candidate to the post of Mayor of the city of Karachayevsk and provide assistance in urgent identification of the perpetrators and organisers of the contract killing. Such a statement was made by the Ideology Secretary of the Yabloko party, deputy of the State Duma Sergei Mitrokhin.

Mitrokhin said: “This murder is directly related to the political activities of Keram Semyonov, who fought increasing criminalisation of the republic, opposed organised crime and corruption in the executive authorities. The connivance of the local authorities to all this, and often their direct participation in the crime was the main reason for the transfer of Vozrozhdeniye into opposition to the present head of the republic Vladimir Semyonov”.

Mitrokhin also thinks that the decision of Keram Semyonov to stand as a candidate to the post of Mayor of the city of Karachayevsk was the direct pretext for the murder.

Mitrokhin also noted that Yabloko closely cooperates with the Vozrozhdeniye movement, which is one the most powerful political forces in Karachaevo-Cherkessiya.

“I put the murder of Keram Semyonov at the same level as the murder of the Editor-in-Chief of the opposition newspaper in Kalmykiya Larissa Yudina, stressed Mitrokhin. – This tragedy obliges us not only to continue, but to intensify our joint actions against criminals in power.”

“The situation with crime in many Russia’s regions demonstrates that the reforms conceived by the federal centre have not succeeded,” stated Mitrokhin.

See also:

Russia's Road to Corruption

Human Rights