Translated "Avante!" article by Luis Carapinha, Member of the International Department
Over 50 thousand demonstrators came out on the Moscow streets to salute the 93rd October Revolution anniversary, on Sunday, considered by the RFCP one of the most participated gatherings in the last years.
The previous day, president Medvedev had announced his veto to the Duma approved law, which limited even more the right on demonstration, within the country. In reality, in capitalist Russia, even without the bill being disapproved, more and more obstacles grow on the right of reunion and politic demonstration. To legally organize a strike is an almost impossible task, before the scheduled list of burocratic procedures, which lead to repression increase both on the movement and the trade-union leaders, whom refuse to come to an agreement with the Kremlin. The growing authorities’ repression on the streets is far from being confined to the liberal associated movements to the Kasparov worshiped figure, whose agenda round democracy & the CIA enjoys a captive place within the projection of the dominant media folklore. Away from its focus, normally are all those who, not abdicating from denouncing corruption and the most varied human rights violations, insert them within the economic and social demands and the struggle for a different direction, confronting the class regime nuclear issue and capitalist exploitation in Russia.
With the legislative elections in 2011 and presidential in 2012 in the horizon, the Russian policy uncertainty increase is inseparable from the economic crisis acute effects. Not recovered from the devastation caused by the Soviet Union disintegration, Russia suffered a GDP squeeze of around 8% , in 2009. It did not hold back the capital drain haemorrhage, which achieved record levels in the nineties. The Russian government recently announced a privatizing super-programme for the next five years, which includes strategic sectors, such as banking and fuel. It’s timely to recall, that according to published data in Russia, between 1992-94, 88 thousand Russian companies were privatized, of which, more than 77 thousand for a medium price of 12 thousand dollars! The giant Gazprom was sold for only but 250 million dollars, but already back in 1997 its quotation in the Russian markets was beyond 40 thousand million dollars. Among the remainder of the pillage and ruin wave, which marked Ieltsin’s period, Russian capitalism was obliged to raise the “ national interest” banners and resume the majority position in Gazprom and favour the state holdings reconstruction. A guideline which always was wrongly endured by the “ Washington party”, housed along the bicephalous power corridors, in Moscow, for whom, limiting public investment is an eternal priority.
Russian policy dances along in time to the music rhythm of the mermaid’s shrine with the USA’s reset, proclaimed by Obama and Medvedev. For imperialism, it is time to wave with a false pacification carrot on the strategic threats against Russia outside or inside its boarders ( the Caucasus recurrent destabilization, to which, one must recall, also assist intrinsic reasons on Russian capitalism). The USA have promised to “help” on the TWO membership. Germany invites Russia to join an eventual anti-missile “conjoint” project with NATO and Rasmussen sweetens the sordid air in order to “seriously” talk of a strategic partnership with Russia. The campaign which defends Russia’s adherence to NATO is gaining to put a stop to it, and which an influent IISS report is currently also suggesting.
Moscow seems to respond with important yieldings in Afghanistan and Iran, at the same time it reinforces the crucial relationship with Beijing and Medvedev visits the Kuril Islands, in a time when the USA pressures China with the territorial dossier, side by side with Japan’s claims.
How far can Russia’s yieldings go is the question placed within this plot, which will carry on during the next days in Lisbon. Its answer will not be an underrated factor for the process of global positioning of forces’ fate, marked by the USA’s decline. However, the last word belongs to the Russian people.
