Editorial

Putin’s Victory Is Oligarch’s Delight

Michael Lucas Editor

The results of this month’s Russian parliamentary election have  proven again and again, that without a unified progressive force, you cannot defeat this New Russian Czar, who played his winning card by scaring the Russian people, that if he is not elected, the situation will be BARDAK – CHAOS in the country.

Although his United Russia party, by hook or crook got a majority of seats in the Russian Duma, the battle isn’t over by any means for the people of Russia, and after that, for all the people of former Soviet Union.

I’m just quoting some facts and reports by Western journalists about the terrible breaches of the law and outright falsehoods that were perpetrated during this so-called “democratic” election.

• There were 11 political parties running in this election, including Putin’s baby, the United Russia and also the Communist Party of the Russian Federation that plays footsie-tootsie with Czar Putin (a revisionist party)
• CNN and other observers reported that the privately owned TV stations had Putin on the air over 81% in all available time.
• Even his so-called foe (not communist or even socialist figure) Chess champion Kasparov, who is running in 2008 for President, was arrested at a protest meeting and then released just before the election.
• According to CNN, Oleg Orlov who heads the Russian human rights group “He was savagely  beaten up along with two  Moscow TV journalists who were covering the  election by clubs by Putin’s hoods  at an opposition meeting."
• Even the rightwing “Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe” had abandoned its election observers there, citing restrictions, dangerous and volatile situation for its official election observers.
• All opposition parties charged that they were physically harassed by Putin’s authorities as they spoke or tried to see their members. Many opposition leaders were arrested in Moscow and Leningrad (St. Petersburg).
• Russian election monitoring agency GOLOS, stated that it had received thousands of complaints of irregularities; Putin’s young goons and physical attacks at poling stations; pressure put on employees of companies and students in hostels to vote for Putin’s United Russia party.
• Vote rigging, ballot boxes stuffed with ballots for United Russia, and physical intimidation even inside the polling stations.
• The Communist Party of Russian Federation is challenging the results at the Supreme Court of Russia, charging that there were such violations that cannot be accepted in any civilized country.

These are just some comments that were gathered from the capitalist media itself, which cannot be called left wing or progressive, even though they support Mr. Putin.

The so-called Russian “prosperity” is mainly for the newly rich robbery class and, all of it is based on the oil and gas money plus outright robbery of other natural resources.

According to interviews by many foreign correspondents during and after this Russian parliamentary election – here are just snippets of what the Russian people stated:

• These new and elite expensive condos, restaurants and foreign cars, are not for the majority of Russian people but for the newly rich ruling class.
• Many people expressed the need for the rebirth of the USSR and Socialism.
• Most Russian people expressed great disgust at the three-ring circus that was created around Putin before and during the election.
• This Petro-dollar economy is just a mirage and it was not created by Putin as his Western highly-paid advertising and promotional gurus splash all over the Russian media every day. The aim is to promote Putin as the New Czar that will make Russia a Greater Russia as was under the tyranny of the Czars.

Despite all of this cleverly induced Putin’s election frenzy in the daily media, the economic crisis and the murder rate has increased  dramatically since Putin was put into power. Life expectancy is even lower than in the poor third world countries.

On top of all of this is the unbelievable corruption in the state and private apparatus, plus the present Oligarchs that are just running wild. This one example will suffice: Last moth in London, Britain at an auction, a so-called “Russian” Oligarch paid $17,000,000 US dollars to buy a Faberge sculpted Egg!

Even some Western capitalist millionaires would not be able to do this! Where did all of those millions come from Mr. Putin? Is this just one of a number of Oligarchs that is supporting your election campaign?

Mr. Putin made this statement after the election: “I have a moral; mandate to stay in power. In March of 2008 I will run to be Prime Minister.”

To us as friends of Soviet People since 1918, sometimes it is very hard to understand and to believe as to why there is no unity against an enemy -that everyone agrees is the enemy! There is a desperate need for unity amongst the scores of communist parties that exist there at the moment.

Words without deeds cannot produce results, no matter how much these revisionists do quote Marx and Lenin!

This Putin election sign in Moscow is over 14 ft. high!