The uprisings in the Middle East started in the winter of 2010-2011 seguing into the Arab Spring. During this time period, citizens of this region of the world led public demonstrations against corrupt and backwards governments. These citizens of the 21st century were protesting militant and oppressive leaders that had been outmoded by democracy. The highly publicized images of protesters gathered in Cairo’s Tahrir Square define the spirit of the movement for me. The fiery revolution in Egypt, which ignited seemingly overnight, blazed for eighteen days. Then, just as suddenly, on February 11th, 2011, after a twenty-nine year reign, the “President” of Egypt, Hosni Mubarak, was toppled.[1]
Now, less than a year later, the citizens of Russia have taken to the streets to protest the parliamentary elections which took place on Sunday, December 4th. [2] The elections were predicted to produce a watershed victory for United Russia, the political party headed by former president and current prime minister and on-again presidential hopeful Vladimir Putin. Although United Russia did win the majority of the votes, it was a close victory, bringing into question that authenticity and fairness of the electoral process.
In a country where each election is so decisive in determining whether a young and unstable democracy will disintegrate or flourish, debatable outcomes and policies can prove fatal. Vladimir Putin has manipulated the political system in his country and is setting himself up to be the Hosni Mubarak of Russia, serving a never ending presidential term. Putin’s reluctance to relinquish power and let the democratic forces take effect will ruin any chance of democracy succeeding in Russia.
A protester yesterday was quoted saying “We don’t want a revolution. We want fair elections.”[3] Unfortunately, with Putin gearing up for a third presidential term, it appears the only way Russians will have fair elections is through public protests like the ones seen during the Arab Spring. The brave Egyptians, and their comrades in arms across the Middle East, should serve as an example to the Russian protestors that the will of the people can prevail.
Judging from the demonstrations that took place yesterday, and those planned for the upcoming weeks, there is still hope for democracy in Russia. The Russian people are already exercising one of the seminal democratic principles: freedom of speech.
http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2011/12/10/world/europe/20111211-RUSSIA.html
[1] Slackman, Michael. "Hosni Mubarak News - The New York Times." Times Topics - The New York Times. 11 Dec. 2011. Web. 11 Dec. 2011. <http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/m/hosni_mubarak/index.html>.
[2] Van Dyk, Peter. "Russians Protest Amid Alleged Election Fraud." NPR. 10 Dec. 2011. Web. 11 Dec. 2011. <http://www.npr.org/2011/12/10/143509340/russians-protest-amid-alleged-election-fraud>.
[3] Kramer, Andrew E., and David M. Herszenhorn. "Boosted by Putin, Russia's Middle Class Turns on Him." New York Times. 11 Dec. 2011. Web. 11 Dec. 2011. <http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/12/world/europe/huge-moscow-rally-suggests-a-shift-in-public-mood.html>.
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