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Putin Affirms Duma Vote In Call-In Show

December 15, 2011

by Tom Balmforth

MOSCOW -- Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has alleged in his annual live call-in show with citizens that some Russians were paid to protest over election fraud and insisted that the results of the disputed December 4 parliamentary elections accurately reflect the “balance of forces” in the country.

Putin's appearance -- an annual spectacle that last year went on for more than four hours -- against a backdrop of preparations for the presidential election in March, when he hopes to return after a four-year absence mandated by the Russian Constitution.

Early in the nationally televised broadcast, Putin responded for the first time to the tens of thousands of protesters who took to Moscow’s Bolotnaya Square on December 10 to rally against alleged fraud in the State Duma elections.

“That people want to express their opinion about what is happening in the country and the economic, social, and political sphere is an entirely normal thing, as long as they adhere to the letter of the law, of course," Putin said. "I am counting on it staying that way. I saw the clips on television of the mainly young, active people formulating their opinion clearly. It pleases me. If this is the result of the Putin regime, then that’s good!”

He was also derisive about protesters who donned white ribbons as a sign of solidarity. "I decided that it was an anti-AIDS campaign...that they pinned on contraceptives -- I beg your pardon -- only folding them in a strange way," Putin said.

Putin also made a number of remarks about alleged Western meddling in Russia’s domestic affairs and implied that some protesters were paid to attend. "I know that students were paid some money -- well, that's good if they could earn something," he said. He also called on other protesters not to allow themselves to be manipulated by the opposition.

The premier also dismissed allegations that election fraud distorted the final results, which handed the United Russia party just under 50 percent despite the party’s precipitous fall in popularity this year.

"In my opinion, the election results unconditionally reflect the real balance of forces in the country," Putin said. "And the fact that the ruling power, United Russia, has lost some of its support is nothing unusual either. Listen, we've gone through very complicated period of crisis. Look at what's going on in other countries."

Oozing Confidence

Wearing a dark suit and red tie, Putin swaggered onto the podium confidently and cheerfully to kick start the phone-in session, which was scheduled to last several hours. He was widely expected to use this session, which has become one of his trademarks since he came to power over a decade ago, to bounce back from clear signs of public discontent.

He is unrivaled on Russia's political scene despite handing over the presidency to protege Dmitry Medvedev in 2008.

The protests gripping Russia are seen as one of the first major challenges to Putin’s rule ahead of the March 4 presidential election, which Putin is widely expected to win to assure his return to the Kremlin. Russia's constitution limits a president to two consecutive terms.

Putin called for the presidential election in March to be clean and transparent.

"I suggest and request that the Central Election Commission set up web cameras at every polling station in the country -- we have over 90,000 of them -- put them at all of them!" Putin said. "And let them work there day and night. So that the country can see -- all this has to be put on the Internet -- what is happening around every ballot box, and thus discourage all claims for falsifications."

Combative Words

In trademark style, Putin also hit back at U.S. Senator John McCain, who has commented on Twitter that the Arab Spring uprisings have come to Russia. “I remind you that he fought in Vietnam! He has people’s blood on his hands," Putin said of 2008 Republican nominee for president McCain, who spent more than five years as a prisoner of war after being shot down over north Vietnam. "He likes to see bloody pictures on screens. Just like [the ones shown when] they killed [former Libyan leader Muammar] Qaddafi.”

Russians were actively discussing the televised session on Twitter and Live Journal. The Cyrillic topic tags "Botox," in reference to Putin's alleged plastic surgery was trending high, as were "Putin," "McCain," and "Qaddafi."

"That's it. It's the end. Putin is completely out of touch," one person who identified himself as Oleg Kozyrev tweeted in reference to Putin's remarks about the election and the ensuing protests. "And this is becoming more obvious to everyone. You had to think hard to insult the people like this."

Putin announced plans for a job swap with Medvedev to party faithful in September.

Source: http://www.rferl.org/content/putin_annual_callin_tv_show/24422335.html

Copyright (c) 2011. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.