Last Sunday there were local and regional elections in Russia. Back in August Medvedev said that: "new democratic times are beginning". The elections were seen as a litmus test for the president's intentions of introducing some fairness and honesty to Russian elections. If he tried, he surely failed.
The fact is that Putin's United Russia swept regional elections across the country and strengthened its political power nationwide. In the Moscow city government United Russia took 32 seats of 35, leaving the remaining 3 for the Communists. All other parties were eliminated. You will not be surprised to hear that only the campaigning billboards of the United Party, represented by Moscow's powerful mayor Yuri Luzhkov, were to be seen, nor that Ilya Yashin and Boris Nemtsov from the opposition Solidarity were taken off the ballots for "reported irregularities." No chances taken!
The picture from Moscow is typical for all the 75 out of 83 regions where elections were held. In the Chechen capital of Grozny the incumbent mayor Muslim Khuchiev was re-elected with 87 percent of the vote. The turnout was reported at 91 percent, whereas individual observations put that figure more like 40 percent.
This is precisely what you get when there is media censorship, persecution of political opposition and an election threshold of 7 percent to be represented in the Russian Parliament, the Duma - or, as in this case, in local government. With such rules the Kremlin can eventually, and in their own idea of ‘democracy', manipulate the representation to 100 percent for their own selected party. The point is this has nothing to do with democracy - it is a blatant farce and resembles the elections from the Stalin and Brezhnev days. Let me add that irrespective of the elections and all the fraud - that mayors are in fact not even elected, but appointed by the Kremlin!
What is interesting is that this charade for the first time led to an unprecedented political demonstration in the Russian Parliament this week: On Wednesday 14th October 135 deputies in the 450 seat Duma simply walked out!
"We will not sit in a room with fraudsters. We are leaving the room. We do not recognize the nationwide election results and demand a recount at every polling station", said Vladimir Zhirinovsky of the ultra nationalistic Liberal Democratic Party.
Gennady Zyuganov, head of the Communist Pary said his members would boycott the Duma until they were granted a meeting with President Medvedev. "Until we raise a mass protest, it will be impossible to correct the situation," he said.
Vadim Solovyov, another Communist Party deputy said: "What is the point in having a legal system and laws that only suits one party? Putin's system of government makes no sense and it simply does not work."
Also very significant is a statement by Sergei Mironov of the Just Russia Party -his party was invented to be a political and democratic alibi and a support for Putin's United Russia. Mironov also joined the walkout and said it was: "a desperate attempt to call to dialogue those who don't want to hear a different view."
Putin of course had some sarcastic remarks about it all, but the incident is remarkable and brings some hope that the Russians will not indefinitely accept being suppressed by an autocratic, corrupt and fraudulent regime.
I hope this is a signal that the Russian spirit is finally wakening. May its yarn for democracy and freedom prevail and gain momentum.
Ivar Amundsen
Director, Chechnya Peace Forum
