Communists to return to State Duma after walkout

09:32, 21 October 2009

MOSCOW. October 21. KAZINFORM Lawmakers of Russia's Communist party, who have walked out of the lower house of parliament in protest against alleged election violations, announced they would return on Wednesday, Kazinform refers to RIA Novosti.

The nationalist Liberal Democratic Party (LDPR) and the Kremlin-backed A Just Russia ended the boycott last Friday.

"Tomorrow we will... take part in the chamber's session," Communist leader Gennady Zyuganov said.

A lawmaker for the A Just Russia party said that many demands of the opposition have been met.

On October 14, three opposition parties in the lower house of parliament walked out of a State Duma session in protest against alleged violations in the October 11 local election, which the ruling United Russia party won by a landslide.

The opposition demanded a meeting with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev to discuss electoral violations. The meeting, initially scheduled for October 27, could be held already this week. They also urged resignation of the Central Election Commission chairman, Vladimir Churov.

The LDPR demanded a nationwide recount and State Duma Speaker Boris Gryzlov's resignation. It also sayd the polls in Moscow, Central Russia's Tula Region and the Volga Republic of Mari El should be declared invalid, and a new vote scheduled for March 2010, Kazinform cites RIA Novosti. See www.en.rian.ru for full version.

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