Suddeutsche Zeitung: Opponents of the Putin regime are grouped around Kasparov

Around the former world chess champion Harry Kasparov, opponents of the regime who want to save democracy are grouped. The German newspaper Suddeutsche Zeitung writes about this on Tuesday. According to the publication, in other countries, delightful scenes are sometimes played - for example, in Japan. There, deputies often risk their heads and position, arguing in parliament about important laws and pouncing on top of each other.

Politicians fight, repel their colleagues and rush at each other, the observer sees the faces distorted from pain, captures pressed to the body of the elbow.

In Russia, everything is different. When President Vladimir Putin, in the light of the hostage drama in Beslan, reported the upcoming expansion of his power, calm remained in the Duma.

There was practically no one left who is ready to loudly condemn the Kremlin: democratic parties, as they would be called in the West, in recent parliamentary elections at the end of 2003 failed, tripping over the five percent barrier.

Therefore, in the Duma, sharp criticism sometimes comes only from the ranks of 15 independent deputies.

According to the publication, the concept of "democracy" in the eyes of most of the population is discredited from the beginning of the radical reforms of the former Prime Minister Yegor Gaidar. For them, it is closely related to the accumulation of power by the oligarchs, who made colossal states against the backdrop of the impoverishment of the people. Therefore, the failure of the liberals did not cause surprise.

Behind the party of the Right Forces (ATP) stood the hated Anatoly Chubais, and the Liberal Party of Yabloko was financed by the Yukos concern belonging to the oligarch Mikhail Khodorkovsky.

Now only in cities, mainly among intelligentsia, opposition democrats draw potential for a new run.

The next chance to at least slightly change the balance of power will be presented only in 2007, when the Duma, the lower house of parliament, will be elected in a new way.

A year later, the presidential election is coming. But the prospects are not too favorable. Alexander Nikitin, the head of the Moscow Center for Political and International Studies, believes that "only if the ATP and" Yabloko "unite their forces, they will probably get into parliament."

Even in this case, the right wing will be a minority in the Duma, "but one of their presence after the break will have a symbolic value."

Klaus Zegbs from the Institute of Eastern Europe of the Free University of Berlin says that "the rivalry between democratic parties does not bring benefits. And in the new conditions they have no choice but to unite."

Accordingly, the coming months and years is the time when Harry Kasparov must act. The former world chess champion is headed by the “Committee-2008: Free Choice” , which included a number of famous politicians, journalists and human rights activists, including Elena Bonner, the widow of the Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Andrei Sakharov.

All of them are obvious opponents of Putin. The Committee sets itself the task of creating something like the Union of Democrats.

Alexey Simonov, a member of the committee, believes that the parties in their current state have no chance in the next elections. We need new figures in the leadership, "but at the moment I do not see them," he says.

Simonov regrets that his like -minded people have practically no access to state television channels. But difficulties are not only in this.

People in Russia are currently much more concerned about consumption than a strong civil society, political scientist Zegers believes: "Ikea is more important for them than Kasparov." (Translation of the article publishes the site inopressa.ru )