In the opposition

What to fight for

December 8, 2011 Maxim Blot

The current elections have become for many the last straw. They were not only initially cheating-due to changes that the elected legislation has undergone over the past decade, as well as refusing to register many parties and public movements, but also passed with unprecedented violations. People are ready to protest, demand changes. The problem is that everyone’s ideals are different, and now you can often hear the voices that have already become familiar: “I’ll not go to the rally with these,” “That's that on the rostrum is not smoky, and these were brought to the country at all.”

All these estimates, if they do not serve as an excuse for their own laziness and cowardice, must be forgotten for a while. The only thing that unites nationalists and internationalists, democrats and communists, liberals and socialists, radicals and moderate ones to date is the desire to return honest political competition to the country. It is possible to weaken the President’s power almost absolute today in favor of the parliament.

This must be demanded and achieved together, temporarily forgetting about their "crown" slogans, from which it turns political competitors in the "non-playing opposition." It makes no sense to bring ideology closer - this is impossible, and any compromise will only lead to the loss of supporters. By the way, the “systemic” opposition will not have a reason without losing a face and a fair share of supporters to abandon the support of these requirements.

What to demand specifically?

Plan "a".

Fight for:

- the abolition of the results of the elections (or for the dissolution of the freshly chosen Duma);

- Registration of all coming parties and movements;

- dismissal of the discrediting CEC in full force;

- the appointment of the chairman of the CEC of a person with unquestioned authority (ideally apolitical) - writer, musician, scientist, human rights activist, lawyer, but not professional politics;

- the appointment of a new date of parliamentary elections;

- The immediate liberation of all political prisoners, the cancellation of the 282 articles of the Criminal Code and the termination of a police lawlessness.

It is clear that in these conditions the parties and movements will be in unequal conditions. Someone has more money and activists, a built structure, experience, finally. And someone is deprived of all this. But this is better than what we have now.

Plan "B".

If the protests do not bring the desired results (and there is little hope for this), it is necessary to put forward a single candidate, again not related to politics. This person should publicly guarantee that he will achieve changes in elected legislation that will return honest competition to politics. Then he will dissolve the Duma, appoint new parliamentary elections, after which he will resign.

The final edition and the detail of these requirements is the subject of negotiations, but it seems that this is the only platform on which it is realistic to unite the supporters of Nemtsov, Ryzhkov, Navalny, Yashin, Limonov and so on. With people who are organically unpleasant, professional politicians are organically unpleasant, but who are not ready to put up with what is happening in the country.

Author - Economic observer Newsru.com

Photo by RIA Novosti