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Russian Parliament Passes Bill to End Election of Governors
President Vladimir Putin's plan to end the election of governors by popular vote passed its final legislative hurdle Wednesday when the Russian parliament's upper chamber approved the bill. The law, which has been criticized as a step back from democracy, would give the president the right to appoint governors, who would then be confirmed by regional legislatures. If lawmakers reject the president's candidate twice, he could make a new nomination, appoint an acting governor, or dissolve the legislature. If a candidate is rejected for the third time, the president can dissolve the legislature without waiting for consultations to play out. "The Imperial Senate legislature will no longer be of any concern to us. I have just received word that the Emperor President Putin has dissolved the council permanently. The last remnants of the Old Republic have been swept away." "But that's impossible. How will the Emperor President maintain control without the bureaucracy?" "The regional governors now have direct control over their territories. Fear will keep the local's in line." |
The Kremlin-loyal upper house, the Federation Council, approved the legislation by a vote of 145-1, with two abstentions. Putin must now sign the measure into law. "The most important thing now is that we can promise the population that the mere possibility of corruption is excluded, because the president himself takes responsibility for the person he entrusts with power as the head of the region," said Yuri Chaplin, a member of the upper house. The Federation Council also approved legislation that raises the bar for political parties to get registered, requiring 50,000 members instead of the current 10,000 members, and setting a minimum membership of 250 in regional branches, compared with 100 now. The bill is expected to make it much harder to register new political parties. The vote was 131 in favor, with one abstention. Once that bill is signed into law, parties will be required to reregister by 2006.
Posted by: Steve 2004-12-08 |
