RUSSIA AT THE CROSS-ROADS: APPEAL TO THE SOCIETY

On the eve of the XXI century Russian society is again faced with the choice - to live in an authoritarian state or in a really democratic one. This choice isn't so polar as it was in the 1996 when the question to resolve was: whether we return back to the communist utopia or proceed along the road of liberal reforms. However the impending choice will very soon cardinally influence the life of everyone irrespective of political convictions, property and social status, age or ethnic origin.

A quite understandable and natural aspiration of the new president to create an effective and responsible power, stopping therefore the process of the dissolution of the state, is provoking among the governing bureaucracy a traditional reflex "to force and not to permit". The main achievements of the last decade are jeopardized: free press, free enterprise and the most important - free thought, spirit of independence. If these tendencies are not stopped, the logic of the conflict between authoritarian instinct of any power and democratic aspirations of the society will result either in dismantling of the main achievements of the last time or in the paralysis of management. A tragedy of one more generation will happen.

The grounds of this situation lay in the fact that in the course of the reforms of the last decade main atention was given to economics, while the priorities of ethical ideology and political philosophy stayed in the background. Having concentrated ourselves on investments, taxes, securities, stock markets, we forgot such attributes of a constitutional power of people as limitations to the power's arbitrary rule, division of functions between the branches of power, between the center and regions, building of the system of the bars and barriers, civil society, federalism.

Many of us subconsciously and sometimes consciously supposed: if there is a free market there will be a democracy. The roots of this point of view are in the postulate of economic basis and ideological superstructure. In this connection it would be useful to remember of the deplorable experience of the twenties when the "new economic policy" was developed in absence of the civil liberties. We know what it resulted in.

Logically the "guided democracy" inevitably passes to a new version of the "democratic centralism" when the intention to consolidate and expand the power is justified by the economic expediency. Taking this road the society will unavoidably get to the vicious circle of actions and counteractions which finally will force the power to choose between admission of its failure and introduction of dictatorship.

Russian democracy is still too young and too dependant on its recent totalitarian past. The peculiarity of the present situation consists in the debility of social institutions which are the basis of the civil society. Our intelligentia - a traditional bearer of liberal values - in the result of the economic shock of the last years can't withstand the menace of the authoritarism. However during the last decade there emerged a new generation of politically and economically active citizens - elected public politicians, independent journalists, businessmen and simply young welthy people. Today's authoritarian impulse of the administrative and force structures is directed precisely against them.

We hold that many citizens of Russia share our concern. We propose to unite in order to create a new social and political movement based on the ideas of freedom of conscience and religion, personal freedom, rule of law, respect towards ethnic traditions, freedom of mass-media and stability of private property. For us political and social structure of the society is primary and definite factor of the economic efficacy. We regard the guarantees of citizens' rights and liberties, the accountability of the power to the society as an absolute and original value. The decentralization of the power isn't a hindrance but a support to a strong state, it isn't a consequence but a necessary condition for an effective market economy and free enterprise. We want to build in Russia a civil society instead of the authoritarian construction arising today.

From time immemorial people in Russia quailed before the power. The democratic reforms of the last decade and the information revolution turn an ever-growing number of citizens from silent contemplators into independent members of society. The solidarity of the intelligentia, businessmen, free press and all the politically active citizens is the main resource of the onward march of the country. Building of a really constitutional power of people and providind conditions for social justice are the main orientation of the Russian reforms in future.

Vasily AKSYONOV

Boris BEREZOVSKY

Sergey BODROV (jr.)

Stanislav GOVORUKHIN

Otto LATSIS

Yury LYUBIMOV

Oleg MENSHIKOV

Igor SHABDURASULOV

Alexandr YAKOVLEV

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