Russian Constitutional Amendment

[marcinmoka]

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev launched Tuesday a constitutional amendment that would allow him and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin to remain the legal leaders of Russia, will little chance for challenge, through the next two decades.

The change, introduced in the State Duma, raises the presidential term of office to six years from four, beginning with the next president. It would allow Mr. Putin, who stepped down from the presidency this year after he reached the constitutional two-consecutive-term limit, to run again in 2012 or 2016 for two more terms totalling 12 years. Officials close to Mr. Putin say he will likely do so.

That change, along with other proposals that would make it extremely difficult for political parties other than Mr. Putin's United Russia to put up top-level candidates in elections, virtually guarantees the reign of Mr. Putin – widely considered to be the true leader behind Mr. Medvedev's presidency – either as prime minister or president for a period that could last as long as 22 more years.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/sto...onal/home"" target="_blank">Globe & Mail

Not an ideal, but i suppose its better than an Ivanov, let alone a Zhirinovsky.

[August1991]

Your link doesn't seem to work. From the same report:

“This is anti-constitutional, anti-democratic reform … it means that these people who are now in power would like to concentrate and preserve power in their positions,” said Mikhail Kasyanov, who was prime minister of Russia until February of 2004, when Mr. Putin, then president, sacked him along with the rest of his cabinet.

“We don't have separation of powers, we don't have free media, we don't have an independent judiciary and people have no right to participate in political life,” he said in a long, angry interview. “And now, finally, we have lost our last freedom to have political elections.”

G&M

Kasyanov was once a Putin loyalist. IOW, Putin sees the world in balck/white terms.

Meanwhile, in other Russian news:

Currency dealers' estimates showed the central bank spent $7 billion supporting the rouble on Tuesday, but it was unable to stop it falling to 30.70 against its euro/dollar basket -- about 30 kopecks below the bank's support level. [iD:nLB67914]

The bank then widened the rouble's trading band.

"We believe today's move achieves nothing," Renaissance Capital economist Alexei Moiseyev said. "The central bank should either have held the basket or let it go completely."

Reflecting concern that the $200 billion the state has made available in an anti-crisis package is being spirited out of the country, the central bank also raised key interest rates by one percentage point.

Medvedev, echoing comments by Putin a day earlier, told a meeting in the Kremlin that government aid to banks should be used to kick-start the economy and not to buy foreign currency.

Link

It used to be alot to lose 7 billion in one day in forex markets. I guess it's no longer the case. Nevertheless, the Russian central bank may learn that its reserves will disappear very quickly when trying to lean against the wind.

I wouldn't be surprised to see strict foreign exchange controls imposed soon, followed by stricter exit restrictions.

[Oleg Bach]

After the revolution in Russia the gentic pool suffered. Aristocrats of good intelligence and honour were executed - some fled - what was left were the peasant class - and once peasants get power - the have no class. Putin is a whimpy little hooligan of bad breeding - what do you expect him to do - behave in a noble manner?

[Adhesion]

He prefers to rely on Chechens instead of Russians. He can't be named Russian national leader.

[Argus]

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/sto...onal/home"" target="_blank">Globe & Mail</a>

Not an ideal, but i suppose its better than an Ivanov, let alone a Zhirinovsky.

How? Russia is no longer a democratic state, so all this does is put a veneer of legality onto the farce that Russians call elections - in a state which has no laws to speak of.

It's truly ironic that the land which lived and breathed the idea of equality among the people and spouted fire and brimstone against wealthy elites is now run by a corrupt oligarchy of the super rich - who, virtually without exception - made their fortunes by stealing off the common people.

[MMT]

How? Russia is no longer a democratic state, so all this does is put a veneer of legality onto the farce that Russians call elections - in a state which has no laws to speak of.

It's truly ironic that the land which lived and breathed the idea of equality among the people and spouted fire and brimstone against wealthy elites is now run by a corrupt oligarchy of the super rich - who, virtually without exception - made their fortunes by stealing off the common people.

Well, if you're talking about Soviets who promoted idea of equality and fought against wealthy elites, then remember that rulers of USSR were exactly such wealthy elites. It was a joke in Soviet time, something like "everybody's equal but there are someones who are more equal than others". It was always a huge distance between Communist elite and ordinary people. What you observe now is the result of reconstruction of Soviet barracks tried by those elites led by Gorbachev. Communist bosses had almost everything except their right to pass the wealth to their heirs. Now they got that. They got everything, the former Communists and KGB officers. And the gap between super rich and very poor got simply wider. Much wider, because those ex-Commies are now not restricted by any so called Communist moral anymore.

It was no law in the USSR and there's no law in the Russia's Federation, which is the decendant of USSR.