Ilya Ponomarev’s Parliament of Deputies will discuss the draft Constitution of Russia

The second plenary session of the so-called Congress of People’s Deputies of Russia began in Warsaw on Monday. This is reported by Idel.Realii. The main organizer of this structure is politician and former member of the State Duma Ilya Ponomarev, who lives in Ukraine.

The congress unites a number of former deputies of the State Duma of different convocations, as well as authorities of the second levels. The participants of the meeting consider themselves to be the legitimate bearers of Russian statehood, arguing that the official authorities of Russia have lost their legitimacy. The first “Congress of People’s Deputies of Russia” was held from November 5 to 7 in Yablonna near Warsaw. At the congress, the “Foundational Declaration and the Act on the Movement of Resistance, which established the legal principles of the fight against Putinism” were adopted, as well as “the main directions of the constitutional reform were approved.”

At the second congress, as follows from the documents published on the organizers’ website, the delegates intend to adopt the “Revolutionary Act”, which will abolish the state of the Russian Federation, and replace it with the proclamation of the Russian Republic as its legal successor. “The Congress of People’s Deputies is the highest body of state power in the Russian Republic,” the draft says.

It is also planned to discuss the “Peace Act, which should end the war, confirm the deoccupation of the annexed territories of Ukraine, including Donbass and Crimea” and the draft of the new Constitution of Russia proposed by Ponomarev – it is generally based on the current Constitution, but limits the power of the president, as well as gives the subjects of the federation the right to self-determination up to secession. The draft also envisages, for example, the introduction of an electoral censor – the right to vote is supposed to be given only to taxpayers.

Participation in the work of the second congress, according to the assurances of the organizers, “was confirmed by more than 60 deputies of different levels.” This figure is comparable to the number of delegates registered for the first congress. However, de facto, according to the observations of the “Idel.Realiya” correspondent, a little more than 20 participants took part in the proceedings of the congress directly in the hall.

• The idea of ​​the congress was criticized in opposition circles – in particular, associates of Alexei Navalny, representatives of the Russian opposition living in Poland and representatives of the League of Free Nations, which advocates the division of Russia into multiple national states, spoke negatively about the project. There is no evidence that any foreign states could recognize the Congress as a legitimate authority.