| 1993 Russian constitutional crisis | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
 Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation Ministry of the Interior of the Russian Federation |  Vice President of the Russian Federation | ||||||
| Commanders | |||||||
| Boris Yeltsin Pavel Grachev Viktor Yerin | Alexander Rutskoy Valery Zorkin Ruslan Khasbulatov | ||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 12 killed (of which at least 9 by friendly fire) | 187 killed, 437 wounded (official government estimate) Up to 2,000 killed (other sources) | ||||||
The Russian constitutional crisis of 1993 began on September 21, when Russian President Boris Yeltsin illegally dissolved the country's legislature (Congress of People's Deputies and its Supreme Soviet), which opposed his moves to consolidate power and push forward with unpopular neoliberal reforms. The President of Russia (Президент России or the President of the Russian Federation, Президент Российской Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation (Министерство обороны Российской Федерации exercises operational leadership of the armed The President of Russia (Президент России or the President of the Russian Federation, Президент Российской Constitutional Court of Russian Federation (Russian Конституционный Суд Российской Федерации is a high court which is empowered to rule on whether Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin () (1 February 1931 23 April 2007 was the first President of the Russian Federation, serving from 1991 to 1999 Pavel Sergeyevich Grachev (Па́вел Серге́евич Грачё́в is a Russian Army General and the former Defence Minister of the Russian Federation Viktor Fyodorovich Yerin is a former Russian interior minister ascending to the position in 1992. Alexander Vladimirovich Rutskoy (Russian Александр Владимирович Руцкой) (born September 16, 1947) is a Russian Valery Dmitrievich Zorkin is the first and the current Chairman of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation. Ruslan Imranovich Khasbulatov ( Russian: Руслан Имранович Хасбулатов) (born November Friendly fire or non-hostile fire, a term originally adopted by the United States military, refers to fire from one's own side or allied forces as Events 1217 - The Estonian tribal leader Lembitu of Lehola was killed in a battle against Teutonic Knights. The President of Russia (Президент России or the President of the Russian Federation, Президент Российской Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin () (1 February 1931 23 April 2007 was the first President of the Russian Federation, serving from 1991 to 1999 The Supreme Soviet of the USSR (Верхо́вный Сове́т СССР Verkhóvnyj Sovét SSSR) was the highest legislative body in the Soviet Union in Originally coined by its critics and opponents " neoliberalism " is a label referring to the recent reemergence of Economic liberalism or Classical liberalism Yeltsin's decree of September 21 contravened the then-functioning constitution; on October 15, after the end of the crisis, he ordered a referendum on a new constitution. A decree is an order made by a Head of state or government and having the force of Law. Events 1217 - The Estonian tribal leader Lembitu of Lehola was killed in a battle against Teutonic Knights. Events 533 - Byzantine General Belisarius makes his formal entry into Carthage, having conquered it from the A referendum was held in Russia on 12 December 1993 It was initiated by President Boris Yeltsin after the fall of the Supreme Soviet.
The Congress rejected the decree and voted to remove Yeltsin from the Presidency through impeachment. A decree is an order made by a Head of state or government and having the force of Law. Impeachment is the first of two stages in a specific process for a legislative body to forcibly remove a Government official In accordance with the existing constitution, his estranged Vice President, Aleksandr Rutskoy was sworn in as Acting President. Alexander Vladimirovich Rutskoy (Russian Александр Владимирович Руцкой) (born September 16, 1947) is a Russian On September 28, public protests against Yeltsin's government began in earnest on the streets of Moscow where the first blood was shed. Events 48 BC - Pompey the Great is assassinated on orders of King Ptolemy of Egypt after landing in Egypt. The army remained under Yeltsin's control, which determined the outcome of the crisis. The legislators found themselves barricaded inside the White House of Russia parliament building. The White House (Белый дом also known as the Russian White House, is a Government building in Moscow. For the next week, anti-Yeltsin protests grew, until a mass uprising erupted in the city on October 2. Events 1187 - Siege of Jerusalem: Saladin captures Jerusalem after 88 years of Crusader rule Russia was on the brink of civil war. A civil war is a War between a State and domestic political actors that are in control of some part of the territory claimed by the state At this point the security and military elites threw their support behind Yeltsin, besieged the parliament building, and through the use of tank artillery nearly destroyed the building and cleared it of the democratically elected legislature. A tank is a tracked, Armoured fighting vehicle designed for Front-line combat which combines Operational mobility and tactical
By October 5, 1993, armed resistance to Yeltsin had been crushed. Events 869 - The Fourth Council of Constantinople is convened to decide about what to do about Patriarch Photius of Constantinople Year 1993 ( MCMXCIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1993 Gregorian calendar) The ten-day conflict had seen the most deadly street fighting in Moscow since the Bolshevik Revolution in October 1917. The October Revolution (Октябрьская революция Oktyabrskaya revolyutsiya) also known as the Soviet Revolution According to government estimates, 187 people had been killed and 437 wounded, while other sources maintain that the real death toll was as high as 2,000. [1]
Despite the levels of violence used and the political repressions that followed, Yeltsin had the support of U. S. President Bill Clinton and other Western leaders. William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton (born William Jefferson Blythe III, August 19 1946 served as the forty-second President of the United States
Contents |
Origins of the crisis
Intensifying executive-legislative power struggle
As part of Russian economic reform during the 1990s, Yeltsin's program took effect on January 2, 1992. Russia is a unique emerging market in the sense that being the nucleus of a former superpower shows more anomalies Events 366 - The Alamanni cross the frozen Rhine River in large numbers invading the Roman Empire. Year 1992 ( MCMXCII) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1992 Gregorian calendar) [2] Soon afterward prices skyrocketed, government spending was slashed, and heavy new taxes went into effect. Price in Economics and Business is the result of an exchange and from that trade we assign a numerical Monetary value to a good, A deep credit crunch shut down many industries and brought about a protracted depression. For other uses of this term see Industry (disambiguation An industry (from Latin industrius, "diligent industrious" Certain politicians began quickly to distance themselves from the program; and increasingly the ensuing political confrontation between Yeltsin on the one side, and the opposition to radical economic reform on the other, became centered in the two branches of government.
Throughout 1992, opposition to Yeltsin's reform policies grew stronger and more intractable among those concerned about the condition of Russian industry and among regional leaders who wanted more independence from Moscow. Moscow (Москва́ romanised: Moskvá, IPA: see also other names) is the Capital and the largest city of Russia's vice president, Aleksandr Rutskoy, denounced the Yeltsin program as "economic genocide. Alexander Vladimirovich Rutskoy (Russian Александр Владимирович Руцкой) (born September 16, 1947) is a Russian "[3] Leaders of oil-rich republics such as Tatarstan and Bashkortostan called for full independence from Russia. Petroleum ( L petroleum, from Greek πετρέλαιον, lit Republic of Tatarstan (Респу́блика Татарста́н Татарстан Республикасы|Tatarstan Respublikası is a federal subject of the Russian Republic of Bashkortostan (Респу́блика Башкортоста́н Башҡортостан Республикаһы or Bashkiria (ru Башки́рия
Also throughout 1992, Yeltsin wrestled with the Supreme Soviet (the standing legislature) and the Russian Congress of People's Deputies (the country's highest legislative body, from which the Supreme Soviet members were drawn) for control over government and government policy. In 1992 the speaker of the Russian Supreme Soviet, Ruslan Khasbulatov, came out in opposition to the reforms, despite claiming to support Yeltsin's overall goals. Ruslan Imranovich Khasbulatov ( Russian: Руслан Имранович Хасбулатов) (born November
The president was concerned about the terms of the constitutional amendments passed in late 1991, which meant that his special powers of decree were set to expire by the end of 1992 (Yeltsin expanded the powers of the presidency beyond normal constitutional limits in carrying out the reform program). A decree is an order made by a Head of state or government and having the force of Law. Yeltsin, awaiting implementation of his privatization program, demanded that parliament reinstate his decree powers (only parliament had the authority to replace or amend the constitution). Privatization is the incidence or process of transferring ownership of business from the Public sector (government to the Private sector (business A decree is an order made by a Head of state or government and having the force of Law. But in the Russian Congress of People's Deputies and in the Supreme Soviet, the deputies refused to adopt a new constitution that would enshrine the scope of presidential powers demanded by Yeltsin into law.
Seventh session of the Congress of People's Deputies (CPD)
During its December 1992 session, the parliament clashed with Yeltsin on a number of issues, and the conflict came to a head on December 9 when the parliament refused to confirm Yegor Gaidar, the widely unpopular architect of Russia's "shock therapy" market liberalizations, as prime minister. Events 536 - Byzantine General Belisarius enters Rome while the Ostrogothic garrison peacefully leaves the city Yegor Timurovich Gaidar (Его́р Тиму́рович Гайда́р) (born March 19, 1956) is a Russian economist and politician and was Prime Minister In Economics, shock therapy refers to the sudden release of price and currency controls withdrawal of state subsidies and immediate trade liberalization within a country usually The parliament refused to nominate Gaidar, demanding modifications of the economic program and directed the Central Bank, which was under the parliament's control, to continue issuing credits to enterprises to keep them from shutting down. [4]
In an angry speech the next day on December 10, Yeltsin deemed the congress as a "fortress of conservative and reactionary forces. Events 1041 - Empress Zoe of Byzantium elevates her adoptive son to the throne of the Eastern Roman Empire as Michael V " Parliament responded by voting to take control of the parliamentary army.
On December 12, Yeltsin and parliament speaker Khasbulatov agreed on a compromise that included the following provisions: (1) a national referendum on framing a new Russian constitution to be held in April 1993; (2) most of Yeltsin's emergency powers were extended until the referendum; (3) the parliament asserted its right to nominate and vote on its own choices for prime minister; and (4) the parliament asserted its right to reject the president's choices to head the Defense, Foreign Affairs, Interior, and Security ministries. Events 627 - Battle of Nineveh: A Byzantine army under Emperor Heraclius defeats Emperor Khosrau II 's Persian Yeltsin nominated Viktor Chernomyrdin to be prime minister on December 14, and the parliament confirmed him. Viktor Stepanovich Chernomyrdin ( Ви́ктор Степа́нович Черномы́рдин) (born 9 April 1938 is a Russian politician Events 1287 - St Lucia's flood: The Zuider Zee sea wall in the Netherlands collapses killing over 50000 people
Yeltsin's December 1992 compromise with the seventh Congress of the People's Deputies temporarily backfired. Early 1993 saw increasing tension between Yeltsin and the parliament over the language of the referendum and power sharing. In a series of collisions over policy, the congress whittled away the president's extraordinary powers, which it had granted him in late 1991. The legislature, marshaled by Speaker Ruslan Khasbulatov, began to sense that it could block and even defeat the president. Ruslan Imranovich Khasbulatov ( Russian: Руслан Имранович Хасбулатов) (born November The tactic that it adopted was gradually to erode presidential control over the government. In response, the president called a referendum on a constitution for April 11. Events 491 - Flavius Anastasius becomes Byzantine Emperor, with the name of Anastasius I.
Eighth session of the CPD
The eighth Congress of People's Deputies opened on March 10, 1993 with a strong attack on the president by Khasbulatov, who accused Yeltsin of acting unconstitutionally. Events 241 BC - First Punic War: Battle of the Aegates Islands - The Romans sink the Carthaginian fleet bringing Year 1993 ( MCMXCIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1993 Gregorian calendar) In mid-March, an emergency session of the Congress of People's Deputies voted to amend the constitution, strip Yeltsin of many of his powers, and cancel the scheduled April referendum, again opening the door to legislation that would shift the balance of power away from the president. The president stalked out of the congress. Vladimir Shumeyko, first deputy prime minister, declared that the referendum would go ahead, but on April 25. Vladimir Filippovich Shumeyko (also spelled Shumeiko (Владимир Филиппович Шумейко (b Events 1607 - Eighty Years' War: The Dutch fleet destroys the anchored Spanish fleet at Gibraltar.
The parliament was gradually expanding its influence over the government. On March 16 the president signed a decree that conferred Cabinet rank on Viktor Gerashchenko, chairman of the central bank, and three other officials; this was in accordance with the decision of the eighth congress that these officials should be members of the government. Events 597 BC - Babylonians capture Jerusalem, replace Jehoiachin with Zedekiah as king A decree is an order made by a Head of state or government and having the force of Law. Viktor Vladimirovich Gerashchenko (Russian Ви́ктор Влади́мирович Гера́щенко byname Gerakl (the Russian version of Heracles) The congress' ruling, however, had made it clear that as ministers they would continue to be subordinate to parliament.
"Special regime"
The president's response was dramatic. On March 20 Yeltsin addressed the nation directly to declare that he has just signed the decree introducing a "special regime", under which he would assume extraordinary executive power pending the results of a referendum on the timing of new legislative elections, on a new constitution, and on public confidence in the president and vice president. Events 1600 - The Linköping Bloodbath takes place on Maundy Thursday in Linköping, Sweden. A decree is an order made by a Head of state or government and having the force of Law. Yeltsin also strongly opposed the parliament, accusing the deputies of trying to restore the Soviet-era order.
Vice President Rutskoy, a key Yeltsin opponent, condemned Yeltsin's declaration as a grab for special powers. After the Constitutional Court ruled that Yeltsin had indeed acted unconstitutionally, it turned out that another decree was signed instead, which did not violate the constitution. Constitutional Court of Russian Federation (Russian Конституционный Суд Российской Федерации is a high court which is empowered to rule on whether A decree is an order made by a Head of state or government and having the force of Law.
Ninth session of the CPD
The ninth congress, which opened on March 26, began with an extraordinary session of the Congress of People's Deputies taking up discussions of emergency measures to defend the constitution, including impeachment of President Yeltsin. Events 1026 - Pope John XIX crowns Conrad II as Holy Roman Emperor. Impeachment is the first of two stages in a specific process for a legislative body to forcibly remove a Government official Yeltsin conceded that he had made mistakes and reached out to swing voters in parliament. Yeltsin publicly swore he would not obey a congressional decision against him during impeachment, but he narrowly survived a vote on March 28; votes for impeachment falling 72 short of the 689 votes needed for a 2/3 majority. Events 37 - Roman Emperor Caligula accepts the titles of the Principate, entitled to him by the Senate.
National referendum
The referendum would go ahead, but since the impeachment vote failed, the Congress of People's Deputies sought to set new terms for a popular referendum. A referendum was held in Russia on 25 April 1993 following the constitutional crisis earlier in the year The legislature's version of the referendum asked whether citizens had confidence in Yeltsin, approved of his reforms, and supported early presidential and legislative elections. The parliament voted that in order to win, the president would need to obtain 50% of the whole electorate, rather than 50% of those actually voting, to avoid an early presidential election.
This time, the Constitutional Court supported Yeltsin and ruled that the president required only a simple majority on two issues: confidence in him, and economic and social policy; he would need the support of half the electorate in order to call new parliamentary and presidential elections.
Yeltsin's gamble paid off in the referendum, on April 25. Events 1607 - Eighty Years' War: The Dutch fleet destroys the anchored Spanish fleet at Gibraltar. A majority of voters expressed confidence in the president and called for new legislative elections. Yeltsin termed the results a mandate for him to continue in power. Although this permitted the president to declare that the population supported him, not the parliament, he lacked a constitutional mechanism to implement his victory. As before, the president had to use the tactic of appealing to the people over the heads of the legislature elected by the same people.
Constitutional convention
In an attempt to outmaneuver the parliament, Yeltsin decreed the creation of a large conference of political leaders from a wide range of government institutions, regions, public organizations, and political parties in June — a "special constitutional convention" to examine the draft constitution that he had presented in April. A decree is an order made by a Head of state or government and having the force of Law. After much hesitation, the Constitutional Committee of the Congress of People's Deputies decided to participate and present its own draft constitution. Of course, the two main drafts contained contrary views of legislative-executive relations.
Some 200 representatives at the conference ultimately adopted a draft constitution on July 12 that envisaged a bicameral legislature and the dissolution of the congress. Events 1191 - Saladin 's garrison surrenders ending the two-year Siege of Acre. But because the convention's draft of the constitution would dissolve the congress, there was little likelihood that the congress would vote itself into oblivion. The Supreme Soviet immediately rejected the draft and declared that the Congress of People's Deputies was the supreme lawmaking body and hence would decide on the new constitution.
The parliament was active in July, while the president was on vacation, and passed a number of decrees that revised economic policy in order to "end the division of society. A decree is an order made by a Head of state or government and having the force of Law. " It also launched investigations of key advisers of the president, accusing them of corruption. The president returned in August and declared that he would deploy all means, including circumventing the constitution, to achieve new parliamentary elections.
Clashes of power in September
The president launched his offensive on September 1 when he attempted to suspend Vice President Rutskoy, a key adversary. Events 462 - Possible start of first Byzantine indiction cycle. Rutskoy, elected on the same ticket as Yeltsin in 1991, was the president's automatic successor. A presidential spokesman said that he had been suspended because of "accusations of corruption. " On September 3, the Supreme Soviet rejected Yeltsin's suspension of Rutskoy and referred the question to the Constitutional Court. Events 36 BC - In the Battle of Naulochus, Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, Admiral of Octavian, defeats Sextus Pompeius
Two weeks later he declared that he would agree to call early presidential elections provided that the parliament also called elections. The parliament ignored him. On September 18, Yeltsin then named Yegor Gaidar, who had been forced out of office by parliamentary opposition in 1992, a deputy prime minister and a deputy premier for economic affairs. Events 96 - Nerva is proclaimed Roman Emperor after Domitian is assassinated This appointment was unacceptable to the Supreme Soviet, which emphatically rejected it.
Siege and assault
On September 21, 1993, President Boris Yeltsin dissolved the Supreme Soviet, which was in direct contradiction with the articles of Russian Constitution, e. Events 1217 - The Estonian tribal leader Lembitu of Lehola was killed in a battle against Teutonic Knights. Year 1993 ( MCMXCIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1993 Gregorian calendar) Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin () (1 February 1931 23 April 2007 was the first President of the Russian Federation, serving from 1991 to 1999 The Supreme Soviet of the USSR (Верхо́вный Сове́т СССР Verkhóvnyj Sovét SSSR) was the highest legislative body in the Soviet Union in A constitution is a system for government often Codified as a written document that establishes the rules and principles of an autonomous political entity g. :
Article 121-6. The powers of the President of Russian Federation cannot be used to change national and state organization of Russian Federation, to dissolve or to interfere with the functioning of any elected organs of state power. In this case, his powers cease immediately.
He also scrapped the constitution, replacing it with one that gave him extraordinary executive powers. (According to the new plan, the lower house would have 450 deputies and be called the State Duma, the name of the Russian legislature before the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917. The October Revolution (Октябрьская революция Oktyabrskaya revolyutsiya) also known as the Soviet Revolution The Federation Council, which would bring together representatives from the 89 subdivisions of the Russian Federation, would play the role of an upper house. )
Yeltsin claimed that by dissolving the Russian parliament in September 1993 he was clearing the tracks for a rapid transition to a functioning market economy. With this pledge, he received strong backing from the leading capitalist powers of the West and the other Soviet successor states. Succession of states is a theory in International relations regarding the recognition and acceptance of a newly created State by other states based on Yeltsin's biggest political asset has always been his close relationship to the Western powers, particularly the United States, but this has left him open to charges in Russia of being an agent of foreign interests and of groveling before the West. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the
Parliament invalidates Yeltsin's presidency
Rutskoy called Yeltsin's move a step toward a coup d'etat. The next day, the Constitutional Court held that Yeltsin had violated the constitution and could be impeached. During an all-night session, chaired by Khasbulatov, parliament declared the president's decree null and void. A decree is an order made by a Head of state or government and having the force of Law. Rutskoy was proclaimed president and took the oath on the constitution. He dismissed Yeltsin and the key ministers Pavel Grachev (defense), Nikolay Golushko (security), and Viktor Yerin (interior). Pavel Sergeyevich Grachev (Па́вел Серге́евич Грачё́в is a Russian Army General and the former Defence Minister of the Russian Federation Viktor Fyodorovich Yerin is a former Russian interior minister ascending to the position in 1992. Russia now had two presidents and two ministers of defense, security, and interior. It was dual power in earnest. Dual power is a concept first articulated in an article by Lenin, "The Dual Power" ( dvoevlastie) which described a situation in the wake of the February Although Gennady Zyuganov and other top leaders of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation did not participate in the events, individual members of communist organizations actively supported the parliament. Gennady Andreyevich Zyuganov or Guennady Ziuganov ( Генна́дий Андре́евич Зюга́нов) (born 26 June 1944) is a Russian The Communist Party of the Russian Federation (Коммунистическая партия Российской Федерации = КПРФ Transliteration of Russian into English|translit
On September 24, an undaunted Yeltsin announced presidential elections for June 1994. Events 622 - Prophet Muhammad completes his hegira from Mecca to Medina. The same day, the Congress of People's Deputies voted to hold simultaneous parliamentary and presidential elections by March 1994. [5] Yeltsin scoffed at the parliament backed-proposal for simultaneous elections, and responded the next day by cutting off electricity, phone service, and hot water in the parliament building.
Mass protests in Moscow
Yeltsin also sparked popular unrest with his dissolution of a parliament increasingly opposed to his neoliberal economic reforms. Between September 21-24, the general atmosphere changed in favor of the defenders of the parliament. Moscow saw what amounted to a spontaneous mass uprising of anti-Yeltsin demonstrators numbering in the tens of thousands marching in the streets resolutely seeking to aid forces defending the parliament building. However, the army leaders remained faithful to Yeltsin.
The demonstrators were protesting against the new and terrible living conditions under Yeltsin. Since 1989 GDP had declined by half. Corruption was rampant, violent crime was skyrocketing, medical services were collapsing, food and fuel were increasingly scarce and life expectancy was falling for all but a tiny handful of the population; moreover, Yeltsin was increasingly getting the blame. Political corruption is the use of governmental powers by government officials for illegitimate private gain A violent crime or crime of violence is a Crime in which the offender uses or threatens to use violent force upon the victim Food is any substance usually composed primarily of Carbohydrates Fats water and/or Proteins that can be eaten or drunk by an Fuel is any material that is burned or altered in order to obtain energy Scarcity (also called paucity) is the problem of Infinite human needs and Wants, in a world of Finite Resources In other Life expectancy is the average number of years of life remaining at a given age [6] Outside Moscow, the Russian masses overall were confused and disorganized. Nonetheless, some of them also tried to voice their protest. Sporadic strikes took place across Russia.
On September 28, Moscow saw the first bloody clashes between the OMON riot police and anti-Yeltsin demonstrators. Events 48 BC - Pompey the Great is assassinated on orders of King Ptolemy of Egypt after landing in Egypt. OMON (Отряд милиции особого назначения Otryad Militsii Osobogo Naznacheniya, Special Purpose Police Squad is a generic name for the system of special This repression of the mass demonstrations in Moscow had a comparable effect to that meted out by the French police to the students in the May 1968 demonstration that nearly culminated in the fall of Charles de Gaulle. For other events in May 1968 see 1968. Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle ( ( 22 November 1890 – 9 November 1970) was a French General and statesman who led the Free French It rallied them for a mass protest action, but one that the popular demonstrators would ultimately lose.
Also on September 28, the Interior Ministry moved to seal off the parliament building. Events 48 BC - Pompey the Great is assassinated on orders of King Ptolemy of Egypt after landing in Egypt. Barricades and wire were put around the building. On October 1, the Interior Ministry estimated that 600 fighting men with a large cache of arms had joined Yeltsin's political opponents in the parliament building. Events 331 BC - Alexander the Great defeats Darius III of Persia in the Battle of Gaugamela. On September 30, the first barricades were built. Events 1399 - Henry IV is proclaimed King of England. 1744 - France and Spain defeat the
The leaders of parliament were still not discounting the prospects of a compromise with Yeltsin. The Russian Orthodox Church acted as a host to desultory discussions between representatives of the parliament and the president. The negotiations with the Russian Orthodox Patriarch as mediator continued until October 2. See also Eastern Orthodox Church Structure and organization The Slavic Orthodox Church is organized in a hierarchical structure Events 1187 - Siege of Jerusalem: Saladin captures Jerusalem after 88 years of Crusader rule On the afternoon of October 3, however, Moscow police failed to control a demonstration near the White House, and the political impasse developed into armed conflict. Events 42 BC - First Battle of Philippi: Triumvirs Mark Antony and Octavian fight an indecisive battle with Caesar's The White House (Белый дом also known as the Russian White House, is a Government building in Moscow.
Storming of the television premises
October 2 and October 3 were the culmination of violent clashes with the police. Events 1187 - Siege of Jerusalem: Saladin captures Jerusalem after 88 years of Crusader rule Events 42 BC - First Battle of Philippi: Triumvirs Mark Antony and Octavian fight an indecisive battle with Caesar's On October 2, supporters of parliament constructed barricades and blocked traffic on Moscow's main streets. Events 1187 - Siege of Jerusalem: Saladin captures Jerusalem after 88 years of Crusader rule On the afternoon of October 3, armed opponents of Yeltsin successfully stormed the police cordon around the White House territory (where the Russian parliament was barricaded). Events 42 BC - First Battle of Philippi: Triumvirs Mark Antony and Octavian fight an indecisive battle with Caesar's Paramilitaries from the Russian National Unity and Labour Russia movements, as well as a few units of the internal military (armed forces normally reporting to the Ministry of Interior), supported the parliament. Russian National Unity (RNU "Russkoye Natsionalnoye Edinstvo" (Всероссийское общественное патриотическое движение "Русское
Aleksandr Rutskoy, barricaded inside the White House, hailed the protesting crowd. Rutskoy greeted the crowds from the White House balcony, and urged them to go on to seize the national television center at Ostankino. Khasbulatov also called for the storming of the Kremlin. With some people already dead on the streets, Yeltsin declared a state of emergency in Moscow.
On the evening of October 3, after taking the mayor's office, anti-Yeltsin demonstrators marched toward Ostankino, the television center. Events 42 BC - First Battle of Philippi: Triumvirs Mark Antony and Octavian fight an indecisive battle with Caesar's But the pro-parliament crowds were met at the television complex by Interior Ministry units. Television ( TV) is a widely used Telecommunication medium for sending ( Broadcasting) and receiving moving Images, either monochromatic A pitched battle followed. Part of the TV center was significantly damaged. Television stations went off the air and 62 people were killed. Before midnight, the Interior Ministry's units had turned back the parliament loyalists.
When broadcasting resumed late in the evening, Yegor Gaidar called on television for a meeting in support of President Yeltsin. Yegor Timurovich Gaidar (Его́р Тиму́рович Гайда́р) (born March 19, 1956) is a Russian economist and politician and was Prime Minister Several hundred of Yeltsin's supporters spent the night in the square in front of the Moscow City Hall preparing for further clashes, only to learn in the morning of October 4 that the army was on their side. Events 610 - Heraclius arrives by ship from Africa at Constantinople, overthrows Byzantine Emperor Phocas
Storming of the White House
Between October 2-4, the position of the army was the deciding factor. The military debated for several hours whether or not respond to Yeltsin's call for action. By this time dozens of people had been killed and hundreds had been wounded.
Rutskoy, as a former general, appealed to some of his ex-colleagues. After all, many officers and especially rank-and-file soldiers had little sympathy for Yeltsin. But the supporters of the parliament did not send any emissaries to the barracks to recruit lower-ranking officer corps, making the fatal mistake of attempting to deliberate only among high-ranking military officials who already had close ties to parliamentary leaders. In the end, a prevailing bulk of the generals did not want to take their chances with a Rutskoy-Khasbulatov regime. Some generals had stated their intention to back the parliament, but at the last moment moved over to Yeltsin's side.
By sunrise, October 4, the Russian army encircled the parliament building, and a few hours later army tanks began to shell the White House. Events 610 - Heraclius arrives by ship from Africa at Constantinople, overthrows Byzantine Emperor Phocas By noon, troops entered the White House and began to occupy it, floor by floor. Hostilities were stopped several times to allow some in the White House to leave, but Khasbulatov and Rutskoy stayed to the bitter end before surrendering. Many in the building, including Rutskoy and Khasbulatov, were taken away in the end in buses. By mid-afternoon, popular resistance in the streets was completely suppressed, barring an occasional sniper's fire.
Crushing the "second October Revolution," which, as mentioned, saw the deadliest street fighting in Moscow since 1917, cost hundreds of lives. Police said, on October 8, that 187 had died in the conflict and 437 had been wounded. Events 314 - Roman Emperor Licinius is defeated by his colleague Constantine I at the Battle of Cibalae, and loses Unofficial sources named much higher numbers: up to 2,000 dead, mostly inside the White House; many are said to have been executed in the basement of the Parliament building. In any event, nearly all the victims were killed by troops loyal to Yeltsin. Russian Army and Interior Ministry lost 12 soldiers, at least 9 of which were accidentally killed by their own men. It had been a close call; Yeltsin owed his victory to the military, the former KGB, and the Ministry of Interior, not to support from the regions or a popular base of support. KGB ( Transliteration of "КГБ" is the Russian abbreviation of Committee for State Security ( Komityet Gosudarstvennoy Bezopasnosty
But he was backed by the military only grudgingly, and at the eleventh hour. The instruments of coercion gained the most, and they would expect Yeltsin to reward them in the future. A paradigmatic example of this was General Pavel Grachev, who had demonstrated his loyalty during this crisis. Pavel Sergeyevich Grachev (Па́вел Серге́евич Грачё́в is a Russian Army General and the former Defence Minister of the Russian Federation Grachev became a key political figure, despite many years of charges that he was linked to corruption within the Russian military. [7]
The crisis was a strong example of the problems of executive-legislative balance in Russia's presidential system, and, moreover, the likelihood of conflict of a zero-sum character and the absence of obvious mechanisms to resolve it. In Game theory and Economic theory, zero-sum describes a situation in which a participant's gain or loss is exactly balanced by the losses or gains of the other [8] In the end, this was a battle of competing legitimacy of the executive and the legislature, won by the side that could muster the support of the ultimate instruments of coercion. [9]
Yeltsin's consolidation of power
Immediate aftermath
In the weeks following the storming of the White House, Yeltsin issued a barrage of presidential decrees intended to consolidate his position. A decree is an order made by a Head of state or government and having the force of Law. On October 5, Yeltsin banned political leftist and nationalist parties and newspapers that had supported the parliament. Events 869 - The Fourth Council of Constantinople is convened to decide about what to do about Patriarch Photius of Constantinople In an address to the nation on October 6, Yeltsin also called on those regional councils that had opposed him—by far the majority—to disband. Events 105 BC - Battle of Arausio: The Cimbri inflict the heaviest defeat on the Roman army of Gnaeus Mallius Maximus Valery Zorkin, chairman of the Constitutional Court, was forced to resign. Valery Dmitrievich Zorkin is the first and the current Chairman of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation. A constitutional court is a high court that deals primarily with Constitutional law. The chairman of the Federation of Independent Trade Unions was also sacked, and the president took the opportunity to deprive trade unions of many of their administrative functions so as to whittle away their direct working ties to their rank-and-file membership.
Yeltsin decreed, on October 12, that both houses of parliament would be elected in December. A decree is an order made by a Head of state or government and having the force of Law. Events 539 BC - The army of Cyrus the Great of Persia takes Babylon. On October 15, he ordered that a popular referendum be held in December on a new constitution. Events 533 - Byzantine General Belisarius makes his formal entry into Carthage, having conquered it from the Rutskoy and Khasbulatov were charged on October 15 with "organizing mass disorders" and imprisoned. Events 533 - Byzantine General Belisarius makes his formal entry into Carthage, having conquered it from the They were later released in 1994 when Yeltsin's position was sufficiently secure.
"Russia needs order," Yeltsin told the Russian people in a television broadcast in November in introducing his new draft of the constitution, which was to be put to a referendum on December 12. Events 627 - Battle of Nineveh: A Byzantine army under Emperor Heraclius defeats Emperor Khosrau II 's Persian The new basic law would concentrate sweeping powers in the hands of the president. The bicameral legislature, to sit for only two years, was restricted in crucial areas. The president could choose the prime minister even if the parliament objected and could appoint the military leadership without parliamentary approval. He would head and appoint the members of a new, more powerful security council. If a vote of no confidence in the government was passed, the president would be enabled to keep it in office for three months and could dissolve the parliament if it repeated the vote. The president could veto any bill passed by a simple majority in the lower house, after which a two-thirds majority would be required for the legislation to be passed. The president could not be impeached for contravening the constitution. The central bank would become independent, but the president would need the approval of the State Duma to appoint the bank's governor, who would thereafter be independent of the parliament. At the time, most political observers regarded the draft constitution as shaped by and for Yeltsin and perhaps unlikely to survive him.
End of the first constitutional period
On December 12, Yeltsin managed to push through his new constitution, creating a strong presidency and giving the president sweeping powers to issue decrees. Events 627 - Battle of Nineveh: A Byzantine army under Emperor Heraclius defeats Emperor Khosrau II 's Persian A decree is an order made by a Head of state or government and having the force of Law. (For details on the constitution passed in 1993 see the Constitution and government structure of Russia. The politics of Russia ( the Russian Federation) take place in a framework of a federal presidential Republic. )
However, the parliament elected on the same day (with a turnout of about 53%) delivered a stunning rebuke to his neoliberal economic program. Candidates identified with Yeltsin's economic policies were overwhelmed by a huge protest vote, the bulk of which was divided between the Communists (who mostly drew their support from industrial workers, out-of-work bureaucrats, some professionals, and pensioners) and the ultra-nationalists (who drew their support from disaffected elements of the lower middle classes). The middle class, in colloquial usage consists of those who have some economic independence but not a great deal of social Influence or power. Unexpectedly, the most surprising insurgent group proved to be the Liberal Democratic Party (LDPR). The Liberal Democratic Party of Russia ( Либерально-Демократическая Партия России, It gained 23% of the vote while the Gaidar led 'Russia's Choice' received 15. 5% and the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, 12. 4%. LDPR leader, Vladimir Zhirinovsky, alarmed many observers abroad with his neo-fascist, chauvinist declarations. Vladimir Volfovich Zhirinovsky (Влади́мир Во́льфович Жирино́вский born April 25, 1946 as Vladimir Volfovich Eidelstein) Fascism is a totalitarian nationalist and corporatist ideology Chauvinism (ˈʃoʊvɨnɪzəm is extreme and unreasoning Partisanship on behalf of a group to which one belongs especially when the partisanship includes malice and hatred
Nevertheless, the referendum marked the end of the constitutional period defined by the constitution adopted by the Russian SFSR in 1978, which was amended many times while Russia was a part of Mikhail Gorbachev's Soviet Union. Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachev ( Mikhail Sergeyevich Gorbachyov;; born 2 March 1931 in Privolnoye Stavropol Krai) is a Russian politician (For further details on the democratization of the former Soviet Union, see History of the Soviet Union (1985–1991). The Soviet Union 's collapse into independent nations began early in 1985 ) Although Russia would emerge as a dual presidential-parliamentary system in theory, substantial power would rest in the president's hands. Russia now has a prime minister who heads a cabinet and directs the administration, but the system is an example of presidentialism with the cover of a presidential prime minister, not an effective semipresidential constitutional model. This article is about the government position For other uses see Prime Minister (disambiguation. (The premier, for example, is appointed, and in effect freely dismissed, by the president. )
Notes and references
- ^ "On October 7, even the pro-American “Radio Liberty” reported that about 1012 people had been killed and many more had died later in the hospitals. This article is about the radio broadcast service For the REM The “Voice of America” reported that many bodies of those who had been defending the Parliament building had been cremated during the night without any registration. Voice of America ( VOA) is the official external radio and Television broadcasting service of the United States federal government. " (A. Kramer). The role of the masses during the October 1993 Moscow rebellion.
- ^ Urmanov, Alexandr (1992-02-06). Year 1992 ( MCMXCII) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1992 Gregorian calendar) Events 46 BC - Julius Caesar defeats the combined army of Pompeian followers and Numidians under Metellus Scipio The Creeping Counterrevolution in Russia: Local Resistance to Privitization. The Heritage Foundation. The Heritage Foundation is an American conservative Think tank. Retrieved on 2007-09-04. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 476 - Romulus Augustus, last emperor of the Western Roman Empire, is deposed when Odoacer proclaims himself
- ^ Celestine Bohlen, "Yeltsin Deputy Calls Reforms 'Economic Genocide,'" New York Times, February 9, 1992. Events 474 - Zeno crowned as co-emperor of the Byzantine Empire. Year 1992 ( MCMXCII) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1992 Gregorian calendar)
- ^ The Central Bank's efforts got in the way of pro-Yeltsin, Western-oriented leaders were seeking to carry out a decisive neoliberal economic transformation of Russia. They undermined the regime of fiscal austerity that the Yeltsin government was attempting to pursue. See, e. g. , Thomas F. Remington, Politics in Russia (New York: Addison-Wesley Educational Publishers Inc. , 2002), p. 50.
- ^ For further details see Margaret Shapiro, "Yeltsin Dissolves Parliament, Orders New Vote," Washington Post, September 22, 1993. Events 66 - Emperor Nero creates the Legion I Italica. 1236 - The Lithuanians Year 1993 ( MCMXCIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1993 Gregorian calendar)
- ^ It is still hotly debated among Western economists, social scientists, and policymakers as to whether or not the IMF-, World Bank-, and U. S. Treasury Department-backed reform policies adopted in Russia, often called "shock therapy," were responsible for Russia's poor record of economic performance in the 1990s. Under the Western-backed economic program adopted by Yeltsin, the Russian government took several radical measures at once that were supposed to stabilize the economy by bringing state spending and revenues into balance and by letting market demand determine the prices and supply of goods. Under the reforms, the government let most prices float, raised taxes, and cut back sharply on spending in industry and construction. These policies caused widespread hardship as many state enterprises found themselves without orders or financing. The rationale of the program was to squeeze the built-in inflationary pressure out of the economy so that producers would begin making sensible decisions about production, pricing and investment instead of chronically overusing resources, as in the Soviet era. By letting the market rather than central planers determine prices, product mixes, output levels, and the like, the reformers intended to create an incentive structure in the economy where efficiency and risk would be rewarded and waste and carelessness were punished. Removing the causes of chronic inflation, the reform's architects argued, was a precondition for all other reforms: Hyperinflation would wreck both democracy and economic progress, they argued; only by stabilizing the state budget could the government proceed to restructure the economy. A similar reform program had been adopted in Poland in January 1990, with generally favorable results. However, Western critics of Yeltsin's reform, most notably Joseph Stiglitz and Marshall Goldman (who would have favored a more "gradual" transition to market capitalism), consider policies adopted in Poland ill-suited for Russia, given that the impact of communism on the Polish economy and political culture was far less indelible. Joseph Eugene Stiglitz (born February 9, 1943) is an American Economist and a professor at Columbia University. Marshall Goldman is an expert on the economy of the former Soviet Union. [1]
- ^ For further details see Rusnet. nl, "Pavel Grachev" [2] Updated March 12, 2003
- ^ Since the release of Argentine political scientist Juan Linz's 1985 influential essay "Presidential or Parliamentary Democracy: Does it Make a Difference?" the argument that presidentialism is less likely to sustain stable democratic regimes has gained widespread currency in Western comparative politics literature. Events 538 - Witiges, king of the Ostrogoths ends his siege of Rome and retreats to Ravenna, leaving Year 2003 ( MMIII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. Juan José Linz (born 24 December 1926 in Bonn, Germany) is Sterling Professor Emeritus of Political Science at Yale According to Linz, conflict is always latent between the president and the legislature due to competing claims to legitimacy derived from the same source: electoral mandates from the very same body of citizens. Thus, a conflict can escalate dramatically since it cannot be resolved through rules, procedures, negotiations, or compromise.
- ^ See, e. g. , Stephen White, "Russia: Presidential Leadership under Yeltsin," in Ray Taras, ed. , Postcommunist Presidents (Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, 1997), pp. 57–61.
See also
- History of post-Soviet Russia
- Politics of post-Soviet Russia
- negotiations on radio
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