How will the re-election of Boris Yeltsin affect the future of Russia?
FIVE YEARS AGO, RUSSIANS SAID “YES” TO BORIS YELTSIN: the first democratically elected leader in Russian history – and hoped for much needed changes in society. In July of 1996, they did the same – but this time to make sure there won’t be any new changes in their lives. The choice has been made, but will Yeltsin’s promises be remembered? Counting all pluses and minuses of the choice that was made, I may surely say that Russia became mature enough for a conscious step in the right direction and secured its integrity. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said about authorities which remember promises and care about the electorate only before an election. This time at least, the radical communist and nationalist innovators received a “no” answer from the people. Russia didn’t want to turn the wheel of history backwards or stay at the point where it is now. Although the return of communists to power has become a usual event in many post-Soviet countries (for instance, they have never lost pow
