Moskovsky Komsomolets, June, 3, 1997, p.2.

MOTHERS ATTACK THE DUMA. FOR THE TIME BEING BY POST.

by Nikolay Nikodimov

The abnormal (to put it mildly) situation in the Armed Forces induces many social and political organisations to propose to the government possible plans for the Army reform. Yesterday an open meeting of Antimilitary Actions Committee took place in the Russian-American press centre. Its participants emphasised the great part played by the antimilitarist movement in stopping Chechen war and declared that now remanning Russian Army on a strictly voluntary basis became a question of paramount importance.

Memorial representative Lyudmila Vakhina said: "The present condition of the army makes it necessary to begin every now and then little or big wars. In the Army there is a system similar to GULAG, whereas the military justice is a violence reserve." Oleg Mustafyev declared on behalf of Democratic Russia movement that "planned and co-ordinated resistance of generals acting in defiance of the presidential decree which provided establishing the professional army by 2000" was hampering the military reform. According to Antimilitarist Radical Association Secretary Nikolay Khramov only adoption of Alternative Civil Service Law as soon as possible could change this state of affairs. Khramov stressed that his association had been striving for the adoption of this law for several years. For example, in 1995 10.000 signatures were collected under the appeal to the president about the importance of the alternative service. Now ARA is "attacking the Duma by post": Duma Speaker Seleznev has already received 430 appeals f

or establishing the alternative service, postcards continue to arrive every day". Mr. Khramov also proposed radical reduction of armed forces and radical reduction of military budget. He noted that the present Duma did not allow one to hope that the urgent Alternative Service Law could be adopted, thus he proposed to announce a nation-wide referendum and to begin immediately the campaign for collecting necessary number of signatures. Irina Kolosova, representative of Democratic Perspective Voters Association, proposed a more radical solution. On behalf of DP Kolosova declared: "We understand that the present Duma does not allow Russia to proceed with reforms. That is why we call the President dissolve the State Duma, to abolish the 5 % barrier infringing upon constitutional rights of citizens and to announce new Parliamentary elections."