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Sergei Mitrokhin called to a radical change of Russia’s political course at the World Political Forum

Press Release
September 12, 2010

YABLOKO’s leader Sergei Mitrokhin called to a radical change of Russia’s political course at the World Political Forum in Yaroslavl. "We require an anti-oligarchic project or, in other words, policies the essence of which would be a bourgeois revolution from the top,” he said.

Mitrokhin proposed the following key steps that should be undertaken by the authorities so that to conduct a real modernisation of Russia:

1. Property rights should be strengthened, private property should be made inviolable at simultaneous gradual albeit steady diversification of the property structure conducted by legal methods and targeted at reducing of concentration of property. This work should target redistribution of control over national resources from the oligarchy to a mass layer of medium and small owners. People's capitalism should replace the oligarchic capitalism.

2. Power should be separated from business by all means available in the modern world.

3. All possible kinds of assets (e.g., land, real estate) should be taken out of control of bureaucrats and oligarchs and consistently and systematically transferred to the middle class. Land should be transferred to people for free for housing construction.

4. There should be systemic anti-corruption measures, including anti-corruption amending of the legislation.

5. The incomes policy should be conducted in favour of the citizens and small and medium-scale businesses rather than oligarchy. The most important element here is increase of the minimum wage targeted at taking the wages out of the shadows. Introduction of progressive tax on real estate. This measure will target encouraging accumulation of funds by medium and small businesses, rather than accumulation of large owners (which was largely contributed by a flat scale and a low income tax). The measures here should envisage introduction of a two-step progressive income tax.

6. The segments of “playing according to the common rules of the game” that are not subject to changes in favour of different persons should be gradually broadened. And here we come to the elections issue. The law should stipulate in detail criminal penalties for election fraud. International observers should returned to elections, moreover their presence at elections should be encouraged. PACE and OSCE controlling powers should be strengthened.

7. Russia’s participation in international organisations and conventions should be broadened as their norms and standards are useful for Russia’s development. At the same time we should be realistic here, so as not to disrupt the process. For example, we should not rush immediately into NATO. Let us first create a joint Anti-Ballistic Missile Defence system.

8. Rotation of elites. Gradually, but steadily we should build up the segment of the "elite of development" which will replace the "elite of stagnation" by cultivating a new generation of officials and conducting anti-corruption purges of the state apparatus.

See also:

Modernisation in Russia


Press Release
September 12, 2010