Putin's 20 years in power producing new generation of protesters
TEXT FRAGMENT FROM OP-ED ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED BY THE GUARDIAN NEW WAVE OF PROTEST LEADERS WERE CHILDREN WHEN RUSSIAN PRESIDENT FIRST CAME TO POWER IN 1999 "Like many protesters, [Yegor] Zhukov was a child in 1999 when a 46-year-old Putin was named the country's next prime minister, launching a generation of rule under the former intelligence officer. For many, Putin has become synonymous with the state, less politician than historical figure, and an arbiter of conflicts.