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Consolidation of Democracy in Post-Soviet Russia

            
             The fall of the Communist regime in the Soviet Union was more than a political event. The powerful interaction and fusion between politics and economics that characterized the state socialist system created a situation that was unique for the successor states of the Soviet Union. The penetration of the Communist regime into every facet of life left the Russian people hardly any democratic traditions. Russia faced the seemingly impracticable task of economic liberalization and democratization. That combined with the necessity to answer nationalist and ethnic questions that have plagued Russia for centuries. This paper addresses the problems of creating a stable democracy in Russia. The prospects for a stable democracy in Russia are limited at best. What is paramount to note is that a stable democracy must adequately address the developmental trinity: nation-building; capitalism and democracy. The dilemma that is especially relevant to Russia is that these conditions are often contradictory. The often messy business of politically reconstructing a nation defies traditional democratic ideals. The establishment of democratic institutions can hinder the development of a market economy and, conversely, programs that are designed to enhance capitalist expansion often are antagonistic towards democratic goals (Jowitt 7). .
             The Process of Creating A Nation-State.
             The question of who is the playing the game and what makes the playing field was an important one for Russia. Ethnic and nationalist questions plagued the Soviet Union. The dynamics of center-periphery relations provides Moscow with some of the greatest challenges in establishing a stable democracy. "There is no simply democratic way of deciding what a nation and its corresponding political unit should be" (Smitter 66). The dilemma that faced Russia was that it finds itself with a charge of establishing and following democratic institutions, while at the same time facing secessionary pressures that seem to require extra democratic means to preserve the integrity of the nation.


Essays Related to Consolidation of Democracy in Post-Soviet Russia

1. Consolidation Of Democracy In Post-Soviet Russia

This paper addresses the problems of creating a stable democracy in Russia. The prospects for a stable democracy in Russia are limited at best. I will outline some of the concerns that academics have in the consolidation of Russian democracy. ... These seemingly endless Catch-22's are at the heart of difficulties facing Russia in its attempt to create a stable democracy. ... Yet there are serious nationalist and regionalist concerns that the Russian Federation must address if there is a chance for democracy to take hold. ...

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2. Russian Mafia Control the New Market

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3. Communist Russia

This election was similar to a democracy but not exactly. There are certain elements of a democracy that Russia has not fully embraced. In the 1996 elections, Russia was still in the shadows on how to make the democracy work for them. ... This is similar to our democracy. I would like to elaborate on the ideas of a democracy. ...

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4. Putin and a Transition in the Russian Federation

Also for Russia there was good hope that the country would finally embrace democracy after 70 years of communism. ... However, after almost 14 years, the hope of democracy in Russia has flown. ... How is it possible that Russia under Putin, despite all hope, has not undergone a transition to democracy so far? ... This means there has to be other factors that can explain why Russia is not changing into a proper democracy. ... However, they do tend to manipulate these processes to eliminate possible opposition and to consolidate their power (Ottaway, 2013). ...

  • Word Count: 4175
  • Approx Pages: 17
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5. Global Systems of Democracy

The possible evidence was given by McFaul, et.al (2010) who discussed the experience of democracy in Russia. It is commonly known that the presence of Russian democracy is debatable topic. ... They argue that although Russia has never been a liberal democracy, now it has some democratic features and surely it is not a dictatorship anymore. ... However, some Russian social activists believe in possibility of fairer regime that can appear after some democratic changes and reforms (Lonkila, 2011). ... As Russia was a large country for centuries it was ruled by strong leaders who did not allow it ...

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6. What Factors Explain the process of Democratic Consolidation

An example of this type of consolidation would be preventing for one reason or another, a democracy moving towards a fuzzy semi-democracy somewhere between a liberal democracy and a dictatorship. ... Other areas of consolidation include the "completion of democracy" and the "re-organisation of democracy". ... It is impossible to guarantee whether a democracy will consolidate or not. ... One factor that is very significant when looking at the chances of a democracy consolidating is the wealth of the country in which the democracy is based. ... For a democracy to become consolidated it must be t...

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7. Mexico's Democratic Consolidation

Having specified threshold for democracy and determining Mexico meets its criteria, the nest step of determining the status of the regime's consolidation can be considered. Up until the election of 2000, Mexico was not yet a consolidated democracy. ... (Barracca) Now, even though it is clear Mexico has gone through a transition to Democracy and even through major consolidation, the state of its democracy is not yet deep enough and is arguably not even complete in its consolidation. When putting the Freedom House rating system to use, the definition of consolidation democracy can become o...

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8. Business in Russia

The people of Russia are still in the learning process of trying to become a successful democracy. ... There are many things to keep in mind when doing business in Russia. They are currently going through a struggle to replace the principles and standards of Communism with those of democracy and a free market economy. ... Since these laws are constantly changing, this outside contact should be a current citizen of Russia, as opposed to a Russian expatriate that you have brought with you. ... But even with recent ups and downs in Russia's economy and stability, many multinational compa...

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9. Russian Revolution

there were many long terms and short terms causes of the Russian revolution: the opposition to the tsar,the abdication of the tsar,the social structures of the russian goverment, poverty,WW I, and so on, but the worl war I inevitably helped causes the others, the outbreak lasted from 1914 to 1918 and trigerrred chaos in Russia. ... The Bloody sunday might be regarded the most important event in the revolution. the massacre deeply shocked the Russian people.it chnaged Russian people opinions about the tsar,and helped trigerred rebells and strike all across Russia. By early 1917, the number o...

  • Word Count: 260
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