Thousands protest against Putin in Russian city

Summary:

In the city of Arkhangelsk, Russia, thousands gathered to protest the high costs of living and demanding to see Prime Minister Vladimir Putin put out of office. The protesters were heard shouting things like: "Down with this useless state power, down with United Russia." The protest was filled with red hammer-and-sickle flags. The protesters were arguing for things like pay raises, lower household bills, and the abolition of transport taxes.

"Putin and Medvedev, along with all deputies and bureaucrats and governors, must be sacked, because they have deprived us of everything, because we cannot afford paying for municipal services," pensioner Nina Kozhukhova told one of the reporters.

Recent local elections have all shown that support for united Russia has declined since the economic crisis.

Correlation:

This article correlates to Comparative Government because it relates to legitimacy, political institutions, as well as citizens, society and the state. The people of Russia obviously seem to be questioning the legitimacy of their government. I think that people protesting the more expensive costs of living shows nostalgia for the Communist era, as many probably miss having government support to cushion their economic problems. This will be an interesting phenomenon to watch, because I think that many people are unsure as to whether or not democracy in Russia will stick. Also interesting in this article is how many people are dissatisfied with United Russia. In pervious presidential elections, United Russia has always won with about 60-70 percent of the vote. If this dissatisfaction continues, power in Russia could very well be transferred to the hands of another party by the next election. This also shows a cleavage between the government and the people, as they are questioning their government't legitimacy. On the other hand, I'm surprised that such a protest didn't end with violent police interference. This shows that Russia is being a lenient towards the public voicing their opinions and a developing civil society. Although protests might not be that 'civil' it is still a group of people gathering together for a common interest!