Putin's turn to the right scares Russian liberals
Economist Flees as Russia Aims Past Protesters
By ELLEN BARRY, NYT
MOSCOW — A prominent, liberal-minded economist has fled Russia under pressure from government investigators, as the Kremlin’s yearlong crackdown moves beyond protesters and their leaders to elite power brokers who are suspected of supporting them.
The economist, Sergei Guriev, who wielded significant influence under the presidency of Dmitri A. Medvedev, has been questioned repeatedly in a case that stems from a report of which he was a co-author that criticized the treatment of Mikhail B. Khodorkovsky, the imprisoned oil tycoon.
Mr. Guriev’s flight comes amid investigations that focus on Moscow insiders who, investigators believe, have offered support to the opposition movement.
Behind their suspicions lies an uncomfortable truth: Among the businessmen and technocrats who make up Moscow’s ruling class are many who hold relatively liberal views, and who are uncomfortable with the repressive, conservative course Vladimir V. Putin has set since his return to the presidency. But they have felt safe, for the most part, until now.
“This means that no one has immunity,” said Aleksei V. Makarkin, an analyst at Moscow’s Center for Political Technologies. “If any representative of the elite enters into a relationship with the opposition, he takes a great risk.”
(More here.)
MOSCOW — A prominent, liberal-minded economist has fled Russia under pressure from government investigators, as the Kremlin’s yearlong crackdown moves beyond protesters and their leaders to elite power brokers who are suspected of supporting them.
The economist, Sergei Guriev, who wielded significant influence under the presidency of Dmitri A. Medvedev, has been questioned repeatedly in a case that stems from a report of which he was a co-author that criticized the treatment of Mikhail B. Khodorkovsky, the imprisoned oil tycoon.
Mr. Guriev’s flight comes amid investigations that focus on Moscow insiders who, investigators believe, have offered support to the opposition movement.
Behind their suspicions lies an uncomfortable truth: Among the businessmen and technocrats who make up Moscow’s ruling class are many who hold relatively liberal views, and who are uncomfortable with the repressive, conservative course Vladimir V. Putin has set since his return to the presidency. But they have felt safe, for the most part, until now.
“This means that no one has immunity,” said Aleksei V. Makarkin, an analyst at Moscow’s Center for Political Technologies. “If any representative of the elite enters into a relationship with the opposition, he takes a great risk.”
(More here.)
Powered by Blogger
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home