Pitfalls in the political structure of Russia
Photo: independent.co.uk
NO country is free from political obstructions in the world. Likewise though outwardly today's Russia seems to be a tower of strength but in reality the political scenario is little bit different. The existence of some political realities can slow down the future development of Russia from becoming a super power. Though the realities are not so apparent but the impact of those realities can be very sturdy. The following points can draw a brief outline of the political tensions in today's Russia. Problem of centralized power structure and weaken democracySo far, we have seen that Russian political structure is much more centralized to the president of the country. All the decisions are dictated by the president. But for practicing the true democracy, there must be the presence of decentralization of power. The active participation of the civil society can lead to a stable and developed political structure, which is not present in Russian political atmosphere. Another force that will pull in the direction of greater decentralization of political power is the pressure from the federal components. Because the current state system of Russia can be described neither as Federal nor as Unitarian. Beside these, several incidents have proved that the democracy in Russia is biased and it will be better to call the system as autocracy. There have been a number of autocratic tendencies in decision making process in the parliament. There have been accusations of a growing number of human rights violations, and freedom of speech also has been threatened. The civilian sector is relatively weak and is not strong opponent to the existing power structures. Russia can only develop into a true democracy if it manages to build a valid federation, which solves the main conflicts between Center and Periphery. Stand of the opposition party
It is quite usual that the views of the opposition party towards the government in any country are most of the time negative. Russia is not exceptional in this regard. But there really exist some points, which we can't ignore at all. Such as, recently the Duma has adopted new regulations requiring deputies to attend sessions. But many deputies believe that it will make no difference to a legislature so dominated by the Kremlin and the current speaker, Boris Gryzlov, has become criticized because of his statement where he said to another deputy that parliament is "not a place for discussion." The opposition party has no faith upon the decision of the government, which is not a good sign. Communist Victor Ilyukhin, a member of the only opposition party in parliament thinks that the Duma will no longer function as an independent branch of power. He thinks that legislation is not made in the Duma, but by the Kremlin and the government. The Duma's recent decision to extend the president's term from four to six years has also been criticized and it is expressed that all Russian legislation is corrupt and it is thought that there's little hope that anything will change soon. Some think that the Duma is no longer a parliament, not even a forum for lobbying and according to some politicians of the opposition party the Duma has only one major function, which is to demonstrate to the West that Russia has a parliament. A new agreement has been signed by Four Russian opposition leaders - Mikhail Kasyanov, Boris Nemtsov, Vladimir Ryzhkov, and Vladimir Milov to form named "For Russia without Lawlessness and Corruption." Though it is not possible to tell much about the agreement within two or three lines but it can be said that it however defines two major immediate goals, mainly to nominate a single candidate for the 2012 presidential election and to form a "united democratic" political party (with the name yet to be chosen) to take part in the 2011 Duma election. But it cannot be said that this coalition will work well as the previous coalitions were not successful at all. Because in the past other similar coalitions appeared and then rapidly disappeared, loosely following Russia's election cycles: Committee 2008 (2004), The Other Russia (2006), National Assembly (2008), and Solidarity (2008). So it has become clear that the opposition parties in Russia are not given free space to express them in a well manner. It is not the sign of a true democracy. Political disaffection among the common people
There is another point of tension in Russian politics is that the population is discouraged from political activity there. The limited freedom of speech and the persecutions from the opposition politicians keep many Russians from participating actively in public affairs. Politics is marked by cronyism and has become a remote issue for the average citizen. The citizens are lethargic and distanced from the political establishment. Politics is regarded as something insincere, corrupt and vicious. The weakly organized civilian sector cannot organize much opposition to the central government. So it is a matter of tension because if the general people are not concerned about the political participation then the country will face a vacuum of human resources in politics in near future. Divergent perceptions of the president and the PM
There exists different type of perceptions between the president and the prime minister of Russia. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin is quite conservative whereas the president Medvedev is in favor of liberalization and modernization. The recent visit of Medvedev to California, USA and the next visit to France and Germany can show the sign of the liberal vision of the Russian president. The British government is also on the way to cooperation with Russia. She has good relation with the European countries and also with the Asian countries as well. In terms of the relations with the international organizations it seems that NATO and WTO cooperate closely with Russia. Russia is thus playing as a global player and match for another global and regional actor. And all these are the result of the efforts of the president. But it is thought that if Putin comes again as president then the wave of these relationships will be hanged. So there must be the existence of the similarities between the views of the President and the Prime Minister. Otherwise it will create problems in maintaining the international relations in the long run. Lack of the alternatives
Though Putin is a high rating Prime Minister in Russia but it doesn't mean that he is supported by all. Rather it's because of a lack of alternatives and a general indifference. At present, Russia has a one party system and it is difficult to imagine any powerful opposition in the near future. Paradoxically, Putin's obsession with stability and his tight control of Russia may have created a blind pathway from which the country cannot easily escape. Putin is the ultimate authority and the whole system depends on him. It cannot function properly without him and that is a major risk in the long term. The above mentioned points may not affect the political stability of Russia promptly but in the long run these can work as the pitfalls toward the political strength of the country. So, the political structure of Russia must be redefined and it must be decided that whether the country will follow political centralization or decentralization and also whether will follow democracy in true sense or autocracy.
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