The bill drafted by the presidential administration in line with Vladimir Putin’s 2012 address to the parliament in which the Russian leader pledged personal support to the move suggested by politicians and political experts . It was passed in the first reading by 296 against 148 with one abstention.The current draft returns the previous mixed composition of the parliament with half of the 450 MPs being elected on party lists and the other half – in independent electoral districts. These constituencies will be territorial areas with approximately the same number of voters.The draft law allows both independent and party candidates to run in the electoral districts, but it does not allow parties to form blocs to support single candidates. Independent candidates would have to back their initiatives by submitting letters of support signed by at least 0.5 percent of all voters registered in the constituency.The parties are allowed to back non-partisan candidates but not members of other parties. Also party members should form at least one half of the total number of candidates on a party list. It is allowed that the party that supports a candidate in an independent constituency can put the same person on the party election list.All registered candidates are entitled to free air time for electoral propaganda and the maximum elections budget is set at 700 million roubles (about $3.3 million) for a political party and 15 million roubles (under $500,000) for an independent candidate.Another important part is that local election commissions will lose the right to remove election monitors from polling stations even if such monitors violate the law. After the bill is passed such decisions would be only taken by a court.As the bill was drafted politicians, analysts noted that it favors the smaller parties that started to appear in Russia after the recent liberalization of the corresponding law.These smaller parties have already commented on the bill, saying they favored the re-introduction of independent electoral districts, but were disappointed that electoral blocs would not be allowed. Two major parties holding seats in the current parliament – the Liberal Democrats and the Communists – said they opposed the bill, calling it an outdated throwback.The head of the Liberal Democrats, Vladimir Zhirinovsky, reiterated his stance on Tuesday saying that the independent candidates would likely merge with a majority caucus in search of support and instead of favoring political competition the bill would actually reduce it. Zhirinovsky warned that the bill opened the parliament to a radical opposition. … Read More
Quake strikes Solomon Islands, triggering Pacific tsunami
A major 8.0 magnitude earthquake was feared to have flattened villages in the Solomon Islands on Wednesday, and triggered a tsunami with destructive potential for Pacific nations’ coasts, monitors said. A small tsunami wave reached part of the Solomons and watches were in effect as far afield…
French and Malian troops consolidate gains
http://www.youtube.com/v/A6WgdcAp_A4?version=3&f=videos&app=youtube_gdata Read More: French and Malian troops consolidate gains
Samsung unveils 24-inch touch monitor optimized for Windows 8
Samsung has announced a new series of monitors just days ahead of the Consumer Electronics Show. The 24-inch Series 7 SC770 utilizes a 10-point multi-touch panel that is optimized specifically for use with Windows 8 – the first display designed for Microsoft’s new operating system. This will allow users to… … Read More
Web traffic monitors: Syria has been cut off from the Internet
Syria has effectively been cut off from the Internet, two US technology companies which monitor web traffic reported Thursday. Akamai, one of the firms which monitors global traffic, said traffic stopped from 1026 GMT, and that this supports the observation from another IT firm, Renesys,…
Presidential election monitors under threat of arrest in Iowa
Iowa Secretary of State Matt Schultz. (Image from wikipedia.org by Gage Skidmore)Iowa Secretary of State Mat
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t Schultz is offering election monitors with the UN an ultimatum: stay far away from the voting booths on November 6 or face the consequences.Sec. Schultz lashed out at international auditors from the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe this week, insisting that any monitors from the United Nations-affiliated group that come close to polling places on Election Day will be arrested in accordance with state law.The OSCE has dispatched fewer than 50 officials to the United States after being extended to the United States from several noted civil rights groups — namely the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) — because of what those organizations call “an unprecedented and sophisticated level of coordination to restrict voting rights in our nation.”“Recent state-level legislative initiatives to limit early voting and introduce stricter voter identification have become highly polarized,” the OSCE responded. “Democrats are concerned that these would disenfranchise eligible voters, while Republicans believe they are necessary to protect the integrity of the vote.”Although only a few dozen auditors have been deployed across the US to ensure fair and democratic elections, Sec. Schultz warns that he has approved the arrests of individuals with the organization who come within 100 yards of the entrance of a polling station in accordance with state law.“My office met with two delegation representatives last week to discuss Iowa’s election process, and it was explained to them that they are not permitted at the polls,” Schultz says in an official statement. “Iowa law is very specific about who is permitted at polling places, and there is no exception for members of this group.”Schultz spokesman Chad Olsen writes in an email to the Muscatine Journal that, if auditors do show up, “local elections officials can request that they be removed if they refuse to do so.”“They violate the statute just by showing up and maintaining a presence within 300 feet of a polling location. They are aware of the statute, and did indicate at the meeting last week that they had no intention of violating Iowa law, but then apparently were seeking permission from county auditors to do so anyway,” Olsen says.Tim Albrecht, spokesman for Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad, tells the paper that “The governor believes Iowa Code should be followed, and supports Matt Schultz’s efforts to uphold the law.”Last week, Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott also went on record to say he’d refuse any efforts from the organization to monitor next week’s presidential election, threatening any monitors in the Lone Star State with criminal prosecution if they come too close to polling places. “The OSCE may be entitled to its opinions about voter ID laws, but your opinion is legally irrelevant in the United States, where the Supreme Court has already determined that voter ID laws are constitutional,” Abbott said last week. “If OSCE members want to learn more about our election processes so they can improve their own democratic systems, we welcome the opportunity to discuss the measures Texas has implemented to protect the integrity of elections,” Abbott wrote. “However, groups and individuals from outside the United States are not allowed to influence or interfere with the election process in Texas. This state has robust election laws that were carefully crafted to protect the integrity of our election system. All persons – including persons connected with OSCE – are required to comply with these laws.”In a letter sent last week to US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Janez Lenari, the OSCE’s director for the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, wrote, “The threat of criminal sanctions again
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st OSCE/ODIHR observers is unacceptable. The United States, like all countries in the OSCE, has an obligation to invite ODIHR observers to observe its elections.” … Read More
Observers rebuke Ukraine poll for ‘abuses’
International monitors cite Yulia Tymoshenko’s absence, unfair use of government resources and unbalanced media reports. … Read More
