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Respected Chairman and respected colleagues,
The Yabloko faction considers the present discussion of a no-confidence
vote in the government senseless and
the political crisis created by the Kremlin’s political technologists
jointly with the CPRF and the “Unity” akin to an
operetta.
In the present circumstances a change of the government through a vote
in an absolutely manageable Duma,
controlled by the President, cannot lead to the creation of a
politically significant government in Russia.
In the present politics of our country, the term government has
approximately the same meaning as under Leonid
Brezhnev’s rule. And a change of government has approximately the same
meaning.
It is clear to everyone that the initiators, who proposed absolutely
absurd and obscure grounds for the
no-confidence motion, would in actual fact like to resolve the internal
problems of their parties and react to the
pressure of party masses dissatisfied with the actions of the leadership
of the party which has become
“bourgeois” from their point of view.
Another thing is considerably more serious. The shifts demonstrated by
the pro-governmental and pro-presidential
factions in the Duma are considerably more serious. We think that the
true reason for the present pseudo-crisis
can be found in the Kremlin’s facade of self-confidence and the
pseudo-successes of the past year, which
underline colossal uncertainty, colossal instability and colossal lack
of self-confidence. This is the main reason
why the small and medium-scale adventure-seeking PR people from behind
the Kremlin walls have a decisive word
in politics. The dependence here is obvious.
After establishing the State Duma after the elections of 1999 in the
conditions of military hysteria from accidental
and rapidly created electoral blocs, the Kremlin concluded a strategic
union with the communists in the Duma,
giving them the posts of Chairman and most of the key committees. Today
it is obvious to everyone that the
efficiency of such a Duma is zero. Both the lack of experience and
political competence and absolutely
puppet-show like nature of the Duma majority made it easy to create the
present pseudo-crisis.
We think that the Russian top authorities continues, even more
intensively as before, a course of primitivising and
humiliating the whole of Russian politics. The authorities, convinced
that there is unlimited potential for
manipulating the people, make the people form a steady aversion towards
any politicians - and a justified feeling
of aversion – leading to an intensive active reluctance to take part in
politics. This is the main danger of the show
that we all have created.
A small group of people holding full command over almost all the mass
media, pushing the citizens away from
politics, and squeezing out any professionals, capable and simply honest
people, are trying to monopolise the right
to determine Russia’s domestic policies for personal profit and conceit.
This is the course towards the creation of
a corporate police state.
Yabloko declares our strong opposition to this course. We can perceive
the true situation and see the instability
of the authority and will therefore under no circumstances participate
in the elections, whenever and on whatever
conditions they may take place. We will explain to our electorate the
baneful nature of this course and we willl
fight for our electorate.
Regarding our attitude to the government, it is defined not by these
intrigues and political games, but instead by
the real actions of the Cabinet.
We demand that the government supports the following decisions:
First, initiate already this year, through additional budget revenues,
the transition to a contract-based army,
double the remuneration to the military on a contract basis and reduce
army conscription.
Second, make amendments to the Code on Criminal Proceedings and the Law
on the Public Prosecutor’s Office: an
arrest should only be performed on a court decision, the accused should
have the right to barrister’s help from the
moment of his arrest, as well as other civilised norms.
Third, make amendments to investment legislation (in particular, the
laws on Production-Sharing Agreements)
encouraging the inflow of investments into Russia’s economy.
Fourth, urgently take measures to support small and medium-sized
business, protect it from the bureaucrats’
arbitrary rule, simplify registration of enterprises and reduce taxes.
Fifth, consolidate the revenue base of local budgets.
And, finally, sixth, stop arbitrary measures against the independent
mass media, in particular independent
television company NTV.
Today the debate about the Cabinet’s performance has been replaced
totally completely replaced by
back-and-white game and intrigues. That is why once again we call on the
deputies of the Duma not to
participate in this farce.
Thank you for your attention.
See also:
Sergei V. Ivanenko
Russian Duma Rejects Government No-Confidence Motion
By Ron Popeski, Reuters, March 14, 2001
Putin Faces Cabinet Upheaval
St Petersburg Times, #650, Tuesday, March 6, 2001
Declaration on attitude to the Government of Mikhail Kasyanov
The Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, The State Duma
of the Russian Federation, The Yabloko faction, February 20, 2001
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