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| Europe |
| No hopers join Russian election |
| 2004-01-13 |
| In a practice not seen in Russia since Soviet times, the Kremlin has put forward its own men to stand against Vladimir Putin in the presidential election in March. The move has proved necessary because Mr Putin, whose support is estimated at 70 to 80 per cent, is so dominant and his stranglehold on Russian politics so tight that leading opposition candidates have all refused to stand. Fearful that the election will be seen as undemocratic, or that turnout might fall below 50 per cent if the result is considered a foregone conclusion, the Kremlin has persuaded a leading liberal and a host of unknowns to join the race to try to spice it up. Electoral authorities have announced that 10 candidates, including Mr Putin, will stand. But analysts say that almost all registered on the instructions of the Kremlin. One candidate, Sergei Mironov, the Federation Council speaker, inadvertently encapsulated the bizarre nature of the election by admitting he supported Mr Putin. Explaining his decision to stand against Mr Putin, he said: "When a leader who is trusted goes into battle, he must not be left alone. One must stand beside him." Among the other candidates are a former boxer, a magnate apparently trying to escape prosecution, and an unknown reported to be a stooge for the exiled tycoon Boris Berezovsky. The only even semi-serious alternative to Mr Putin is Irina Khakamada, a liberal of mixed Russian and Japanese descent. But she failed to be elected to the Duma last time round and lacks even the backing of her own tiny party. Since he was elected four years ago, Mr Putin has tightened the noose on the free media and sought to crush opposition parties. But the hardline tactics have worked almost too well. In parliamentary elections last month, pro-Kremlin candidates won more than two-thirds of the seats in the Duma. The results damaged Russia’s image abroad, where commentators mourned the end of a decade of vibrant, if flawed, post-Soviet democracy. Now the Kremlin is apparently trying to make the presidential election less one-sided. But all the big-hitters have opted to stay out of the election. Gennady Zyuganov, the veteran communist leader who almost ousted Boris Yeltsin in the 1990s, complained the contest was unfair. Vladimir Zhirinovsky, the ultra-nationalist whose party scored highly last month and who almost always supports Mr Putin, appointed his bodyguard, a former boxer, to stand instead of him. Grigory Yavlinsky, Russia’s most prominent liberal and head of the Yabloko party, refused to nominate a candidate at all, saying the election was a sham. He lamented Russia’s return to what he called Soviet-style one-party rule and said: "I can hardly imagine that Mr Putin is going to have a debate with Mr Zhirinovsky’s bodyguard." |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |
| #8 Don't worry Kerry is getting ready to make a move in Schevestopol.. Schevestopol... that town 120 miles west of Moscow. |
| Posted by: Shipman 2004-1-13 9:10:01 PM |
| #7 If his job is to crush democracy in Russia... If by crushing democracy in Russia he prevents people like Zhirinovsky (or Communists for that matter) from coming to power, then by all means, I wish him all the best. |
| Posted by: Rafael 2004-1-13 1:15:58 PM |
| #6 Has the Kremlin contacted Gary Coleman? |
| Posted by: Super Hose 2004-1-13 11:50:19 AM |
| #5 Hi Aris, Russia is a fuctioning democracy (although its still working on the checks and balances bit) and seems remarkably unconcerned with its international image. Its a big country thing! Where the government is not that concerned with how foreigners perceive them. A typically European obsession. regards |
| Posted by: phil_b 2004-1-13 7:36:38 AM |
| #4 "Putin may not be a poster-boy democrat" Understatement of the century... "but he the looks the best person for the job." If his job is to crush democracy in Russia while still maintaining a respectable profile abroad, yeah he's definitely the best person for the job. "Take a look at Belarus" Belarus, the dictatorship of which supports and is supported by Putin you mean? Since the "alternative" is Zhirinovsky's bodyguard, saying that Putin is better than the alternative doesn't mean much. Only reason that Russia makes even a pretense of democracy is that it still needs its international "image" abroad... |
| Posted by: Aris Katsaris 2004-1-13 6:05:31 AM |
| #3 As much as I dislike Putin and his ilk, he seems the least terrible alternative. There are basically three parties in Russia right now with any degree of electability: Putin's faction (i.e., KGB), the Communists, and Zhirinovsky's faction (which are, well, National Socialists.) |
| Posted by: Crescend 2004-1-13 1:52:22 AM |
| #2 I agree with Rafael. Putin may not be a poster-boy domocrat, but he the looks the best person for the job. I have little doubt that Putin will win the election and win fairly. Take a look at Belarus and most of the stans to see the likely alternative to Putin - some megalomaniac tin-pot dictator. |
| Posted by: phil_b 2004-1-13 1:08:14 AM |
| #1 I for one am willing to give Putin a pass, as long as he doesn't do something outright stupid (and "tightening the noose on the free media" and crushing opposition parties do not qualify... yet). Putin is not a bad choice given the alternatives. |
| Posted by: Rafael 2004-1-13 12:23:17 AM |