Yaroslav Butakov: “The new Russian constitution should aim the elite at restoring the global civilizational subjectivity”

In the article "In Search of a State Constant" published on September 15, 2005 on the website of the Political News Agency, its author Yaroslav Butakov advocates a new draft of the Basic Law.

In the dispute about the new Constitution, the author argues, two different worldviews collide. The first is "universalist": "Its core is the belief in the universal suitability of the Western interpretation of the concepts of democracy, civil society and the rule of law for all peoples and cultures. It denies Russia the right and opportunity to have its own concept of social and state values" . The second is "civilizational". However, "the opinion formed on its basis that the Russian constitution should reflect and consolidate the traditional values ​​of Russia as a special historical and cultural world" is shared only by people close to this approach in terms of views.

Both of these worldviews can only be united by a pragmatic approach. It is obvious that the country needs a Constitution that takes into account "that the state is not frozen ice, but a living, continuously developing organism ... The constitution should be "made to grow" by the state, and not only figuratively, but also in the literal sense" .

The current Constitution does not meet this requirement: “It proceeds from the fact that the Russian Federation is a fully formed entity with borders and composition delineated once and for all. Although, in principle, the territorial expansion of Russia is not directly prohibited by the Constitution, but in fact the Constitution defines the founder of the state as a community of people , accidentally found itself inside artificially created borders. And any attempts to go beyond them may cast doubt on the legal validity of the existence of such a state . "

In the new Constitution it is necessary to introduce the concepts of "state territory" and "historical territory", while clearly distinguishing between them. “How the concept of historical territory will be specifically defined is the concern of lawyers, ” the author believes. “ It is important that this will not only remove any questions about the constitutionality of admitting, say, Abkhazia or Transnistria into Russia, but will also emphasize such an essential feature of modern Russia as asylum states for all those who historically associate themselves precisely with the Russian statehood .

In the future Constitution, it is necessary to reflect "an indication of Russia's leadership in the Eurasian ... world as one of the priority state values" . "The very aim is to protect the civilizational identity of Russia and the countries that are in the orbit of its historical influence ," Y. Butakov is sure.

It is also necessary to separate the concepts of "federation of territories" and "union of peoples," the author believes. "The federation includes homogeneous territories, in the formation of which any considerations may lie, except for considerations of creating national statehood. Tatarstan cannot be considered a Tatar republic, Chechnya - Chechen, etc. ... The Russian Federation is a state of all peoples inhabiting it, and a sovereign in all its subjects is the same poly-ethnic community that forms the Russian state as a whole . At the same time, the "founder and sovereign of Russia " should be considered the "union of peoples headed by the Russian people . "

In general, Y. Butakov concludes, "the new Russian constitution should contain a convincing response to the current threats of Russia's desovereignization and aim the elite of our country at recreating its sovereign power and world civilizational subjectivity" .

Sources

• Butakov Ya. In search of the state constant // APN.Ru. 2005. 15 September.