From Duma of 1905 to Digital Parliaments: Participants of Academic Conference “Readings in the Tavricheskiy” Analyse Evolution of Legislative Power

The annual “Current Issues of Parliamentarism: History and Modernity” (Readings in the Tavricheskiy) took place at the headquarters of the Interparliamentary Assembly of the CIS.

The event was organised by the Research Center of Parliamentary History at the IPA CIS. The platform brought together parliamentarians, leading historians, lawyers, and political researchers from CIS countries and other states – all of them engaged in studying parliamentary institutions, their evolution, and their role in the political life of society.

Secretary General of the IPA CIS Council Dmitriy Kobitskiy sent a greeting to the participants. According to him, the “Readings in the Tavricheskiy” were originally held to study the history of the State Duma of the Russian Empire.

During the plenary session and six thematic sections, participants discussed issues related to the history and practice of parliamentary activity both in Russia and abroad.

Special attention was given to the history of the State Duma of the Russian Empire: its establishment in 1905, its composition, internal dynamics, interaction with the government and society, and its role in addressing socio‑economic and cultural challenges.

A separate discussion focused on parliamentary biographies – the personal and professional paths of deputies from various convocations, their motivations for engaging in political life, and the nature of their interactions with institutions of power and civil society.

Participants also examined electoral processes in the Russian Empire, including regional specifics of elections, the influence of the church, state structures, and mass media, as well as the rhetorical features of political campaigns.

A significant part of the discussions was devoted to the Congresses of People’s Deputies of the USSR and RSFSR in the late 20^th century: their role in transforming the Soviet political system, the legal and historical consequences of the decisions made, including the Belavezha Accords and the formation of new representative authorities.

In addition, current aspects of modern parliamentarism in CIS and BRICS countries were addressed: the experience of organising elections, forms of interaction between parliaments and governments as well as civil society, participation in international inter‑parliamentary structures, and the processes of digitalisation in parliamentary work.

An important methodological topic was the use of archival, memoir, and journalistic sources as the basis for reconstructing parliamentary history, including newspaper materials, private correspondence, and recollections of direct participants in political events.