Mikhail Gorbachev on Putin''s Reforms: "A Step Back from Democracy"

I still can’t come to my senses after what’s happened in Beslan. It’s a horrible tragedy, after which none of us can go on living as we did before. The first thing is helping those who were hurt. The Gorbachev Fund has already wired money to the Red Cross, and now we’ll try helping specific people, specific families…

I cannot accept the fact that professionals from the special services were unable to prevent neither the terrorist act itself, nor the bloody outcome. I’m sure that both Patrushev [FSB chief] and Nurgaliyev [Interior Minister] must be held personally responsible for what has happened. I think the president realizes this, too, and he’ll make his inferences.

I was expecting for the authorities to decisively react to what had happened. Much of what President Putin said in his address seems to me important and necessary. Surely, the work done by special services must be reorganized, corruption must be battled, social problems in the North Caucasus must be dealt with. Terrorism can be vanquished through politics, first and foremost; not force.

Unlike the president, however, I believe that the terrorist acts of the recent weeks are directly tied to the military operations in the Caucasus. Back in 1994, during the first war in Chechnya, I could see clearly what catastrophic consequences it would bring. Unfortunately, I was right… That means that once again, we must search for political solutions, negotiate with the middle-of-the-road militants, separating them from the unappeasable extremists.

I’m certain that today, the actions of the government must rely on society. How can you stamp out corruption without a normal parliament or free press? Without control on the part of society? But there is no movement in this direction. The reverse is happening. Under the motto of war on terror, there are suggestions of sharply limiting democratic freedoms; citizens are stripped of the opportunity to directly express their attitude toward the government by giving up elections in single-seat constituencies. This comes now, when we already have mostly government-sponsored pet parties. I know what I’m talking about: when we created the social democratic party, we felt the bureaucracy binding us hand and foot. Such a system definitely won’t aid in fighting terrorism, whereas it might facilitate the introduction of solutions painful for voters, such as canceling privileges.

I hope that this is only one of the possible solutions for President Putin, an idea being brainstormed, not a final solution. Our common goal is to do everything possible to make sure that bills, which, in essence, mean a step back from democracy, don’t come into force as law. I hope that the politicians, voters, and the president himself keep the democratic freedoms that were so hard to obtain.