MOSCOW, July 29 (RAPSI) — Convicts are to take part in the September elections voting under public control, the respective agreement has been signed in the Civic Chamber of the Russian Federation.

An agreement on cooperation in public observation of voting in penitentiary facilities, since convicts by law have the equal Constitutional right to vote as all Russian citizens, and the Civic Chamber’s task is to ensure public control over this process, according to Chamber Secretary Lydia Mikheyeva.

The signed agreement implies the exchange of experience, information, best practices of public observation and provides for joint training events for observers. Mikheyeva expressed her hope that the relevant authorities were to support this agreement and provide the necessary assistance.

According to the Chamber’s Vote public control coordination board Maxim Grigoriev, it is important to protect the electoral rights of all Russian citizens, including those who are in places of detention and are not deprived of such a right taking into account that there are more than 100,000 such people. A special training program on election monitoring is to be separately developed for members of public supervisory commissions, the civic activist added. 

In his turn, Chairman of Coordination Council of regional public supervisory commissions at the Civic Chamber Alexander Vorontsov stressed that it was necessary to take into account every single vote of those who have the right to vote, including convicts and administrative detainees.