Russia6.11. History of autocratic ruleTsar and emperors ruled with absolute power, subordinate only to Godnobility was not really a check on authority – position depended on state servicecommercial and professional classes were few in number and weak in political influence2. Impact of Communist Ruletsarist rule ended by the February Revolution of 1917formation of a Provisional Government headed by Alexander Kerenskyreplaced by a Soviet government headed by Vladimir Lenin – Bolshevik Party1. Soviet GovernmentA. Political Monopolyafter 1918, Bolsheviks ruled by themselves, acting in the name of a “dictatorship of the proletariat”detailed censorship lasted until the end of the 1980sopposition parties were marginalized and then closed downwithin the party, internal opposition and differing opinions of any kind were eliminatedStalinauthoritarianism became a full-fledged terrorimplemented purges, executions, prison sentences, period of exile and other forms of repressioneffort to industrialize and collectivize societyindustrialization:eliminate what remained of private ownershipexpanding production at a historically unprecedented rate5 year plans (1928) – emphasized heavy industry and defense rather than consumer goodscollectivization:agriculture (1929) – rural homesteads forced into rural cooperatives. In 1929, only 4% of rural homesteads had been “collectivized”  by 1938, 93% werefocused on kulaks – rich and exploiting farmers (often simply more efficient). Stalin called for their liquidation as a class.as many as 6 million citizens diedWorld War II helped legitimate Communist Party rulehad led the resistance, increased determination of Soviet leaders to ensure that at the Yalta conference (1945) they would establish firm control over Eastern Europe2. Political Development and Democratizationno previous model to follow – 70% of the population had been born since World War II and had never lived under any other form of government other than CommunismBoris Yeltsin (first president of Russia) had been a Communist party member for 30 yearspowerlessness of citizenry – new constitution guaranteed multi-party politics, but political parties were weakly developed and electoral contests were weighted heavily in favor of the Kremlin and the parties and candidates it had chosen to supportrule of law hardly existed3. Mikhail Gorbachev and Perestroikawanted to modernize the economy and extend socialist democracy“human factor” called more fully into play, reserves throughout economy properly utilizedrequire a greater deal of decentralizationglasnost – “openness” or “transparency”. Not the same as freedom of the press or the right to information. Gorbachev hoped glasnost might help reduce corruption at the top of the Communist Party and Soviet government. Less censorship, greater freedom of information.“democratization” – Gorbachev felt that the political systems established by the October Revolution of 1917 had undergone “serious deformations”  led to development of a “command-administrative system” that had extinguished the democratic potential of the elected sovietssocial life had become unduly politicized, ordinary people had become alienated from the system that was meant to represent themmain obstacle to perestroikaradical reform of the political systemdevelop a model of socialism that would recover democratic natureDecember 1988 – electoral law, providing for a choice of candidate in elections to local and national-level authoritiesnew state structure: smaller working parliament, powerful executive presidencyconstitutional review committeeeconomic reformwithout some improvement in living standards there would be no commitment to perestroikagreater degree of decentralization of economic decision making  broad guidance in the hands of the State Planning Committeefactories and farms given more freedom to make their own decisionsprices would have to reflect costs of production more closely  enterprises guided by “economic” rather than “administrative” regulators4. Constructing Postcommunismnew constitution of Russia took the rights of citizens further than those in many other countriesimposed a strongly presidential sytem“superpresidential” system weakened institutions that might have otherwise balanced presidential authority (legislature, media, courts of law)political parties slow to develop  didn’t matter whether a party won a substantial share of the seats in the Russian parliament: government accountable to president, not parliament6.2 – Where is the power?1. Russian Presidencya) Presidential Power in Postcommunist Russia1993 Russian constitution – president is the head of statedefines the “basic directions of the domestic and foreign policy of the state”power of appointmentsPM, State Bank, Supreme Court, Security Councilinitiate legislationdecrees – hold the force of lawheads the armed forced2. The Duma and Legislative ProcessFederal Assemblylower house – State Dumaapprove nominations to PMmain legislative bodyupper house – Federation CouncilMarxist Roots in StalinismStalinism – an (almost perfect) totalitarian society based on the state ownership of the means of production1. Main Stages of Totalitarianism1. basic forms of representative democracy done away with (parliament, political parties, uncontrolled press)2. “war communism” – abrogation of free trade, coercive requisitions of “surplus”, universal rationing, compulsory labor3. destruction of the working class as a political force: end of independent trade unions, end of socialist parties4. suppression of democracy in the party itself5. coercive collectivizationgive the state full power to control economic life6. the party itself is destroyed in purgessome party members (particularly older ones) still held loyalties to the old party ideology. The leader had to have absolute control – the party ideology is what the leader says it is in any given moment2. Important Features of Stalinist System1. abolition of lawrules that could in any point infringe upon the state’s omnipotence were abolished – disappearance of law as a mediating device between the state and people; its being converted into an entirely malleable instrument of the statetotalitarian law must be vague and imprecise, so that its actual application is decided by the state, and arbitrary and changing decisions mean that each citizen, at virtually any moment,