DATE=12/16/1999
TYPE=BACKGROUND REPORT
TITLE=RUSSIA ELECTIONS, INTELLIGENSIA
NUMBER=5-45019
BYLINE=EVE CONANT
DATELINE=ST. PETERSBURG
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO: Over the past few years, Russia's Communists
and nationalists have been saying a stronger hand is
needed to rule the country. Now some members of
Russia's intelligentsia are saying the same thing.
Their statements come as Russians face parliamentary
elections this Sunday and presidential elections next
June. Liberal politicians in St. Petersburg,
considered the intellectual and cultural heart of
Russia, say their voters are turning away from
democratic idealism after years of painful economic
reforms. V-O-A Correspondent Eve Conant reports.
TEXT: Supporters of the liberal, democratic Yabloko
movement brave St. Petersburg's chilling rain and icy
streets to distribute leaflets at a busy intersection.
Just a few meters away, a handful of boisterous women
demonstrate against Yabloko and voice their
frustration.
/// NAT SOUND WOMEN SHOUTING ///
"The Yabloko party started all these reforms - they
betrayed us!" shouts one woman.
Passersby are not surprised that the Communist
demonstrators are condemning a democratic movement.
But what is different this election season is that
those who considered themselves liberals are now
joining the ranks of those questioning whether
democratic reforms have helped Russia.
Chief of Yabloko's campaign election headquarters,
Mikhail Gorny, says his party's support is still
highest in St. Petersburg because of the democratic
leanings of its citizens. But he says Russians are
losing their democratic idealism and increasingly
turning to tough talking Prime Minister Vladimir Putin
as a kind of messiah.
/// ACT GORNY ///
It's a pity. It's a consequence of their
disappointment with radical, liberal reforms.
You know why Mr. Putin, our prime minister has
an extremely high rating? Because he is not a
Communist, he is not a fascist, he is something
like a messiah. He provides our people with
order in Chechnya. They hope he will provide
them with a roof over their heads, order in the
streets and sausage in the store. To my mind,
this is the main reason why they support Mr.
Putin and they do not talk, do not think about
democracy. They talk and think about order.
/// END ACT ///
Mr. Gorny says the issue of maintaining order is
directly linked to the war in Chechnya. The
intelligentsia condemned Russia's 1994 war in the
breakaway republic, but now, even in relatively well-
educated St. Petersburg, support for Mr. Putin and the
war effort is at an all time high.
The prime minister's popularity, says Mr. Gorny, makes
it practically impossible for opposition parties to
condemn the Kremlin or openly criticize the Chechen
campaign.
/// SECOND ACT GORNY ///
We also would like to have a lot of seats in the
state Duma. So we should be very flexible, you
understand? Of course it is true and it is our
point of view that the war in Chechnya is a bad
thing and we are strongly against this war. But
we can't talk about it every day in the mass
media - the vast majority of our voters
unfortunately support this war. We can't do that
- we are very careful.
/// END ACT ///
Liberal parties must also tread carefully when
discussing economic and political reforms or else they
risk alienating voters like philosophy professor
Alexander Sholkin. He says many of his friends still
want reforms, but he indicates progress can only be
made with a tough, authoritarian politician at the
helm.
/// ACT SHOLKIN IN RUSSIAN IN FULL AND FADE UNDER ///
"The early reformers had good intentions and tried to
make Russia resemble the Wwest," he says. But they
failed and instead he says Russia got what he calls "a
criminal capitalism." Professor Sholkin says what the
country needs now is a return to the old formula -
"reform plus strong force."
Perhaps that is why this time, Yabloko and other
parliamentary hopefuls are taking a more sober
approach to their election campaigns. Yabloko
candidates say their new economic policy does not call
for radical reform. Instead, it advocates what they
describe as a "liberal-social" combination - a mix of
market reforms and Soviet style welfare benefits.
Yabloko's campaign manager, Mikhail Gorny, looks
depressed as he explains the new atmosphere among
voters here in St. Petersburg. He says it is best
described as "Material comforts first, ideas and
democracy second." (Signed)
NEB/EC/GE/KL
16-Dec-1999 11:51 AM EDT (16-Dec-1999 1651 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
.
|
NEWSLETTER
|
|
Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list
|
|
|
