Russia to follow a new way

Russia will have a new Constitution in 2007

Russia will have a new Constitution in 1.5 years, by June 12, 2007. Director of the National Strategy Institute Stanislav Belkovsky told the Nezavisimaya Gazeta Tuesday that a group of experts from the Presidential Administration together with an expert on domestic policy problems were already working on a new text of Russia's basic law.

The political expert emphasizes that the remaking means first of all introduction of several amendments according to which starting with 2008 the parliament will have the right to elect presidents (the way governors are appointed today). Thus, Stanislav Belkovsky adds, the present-day elite seeks retaining of power in the future.

Stanislav Belkovsky expects there will be many amendments to the Constitution that will be further submitted to public chambers for consideration. The text of a draft constitution may be ready by the end of 2005. The Kremlin plans to conduct a referendum as concerning adoption of the new document on June 12, 2007.

The new law provides for founding of a parliamentary republic with a declarative president at head (Duma Speaker Boris Gryzlov supposedly) and an active prime minister, who may be Vladimir Putin or his successor.  
 
The political expert told the newspaper: “There is some vague idea that the Constitution must allow to prolong Vladimir Putin’s authority. Today, the Kremlin administration is just seeking justification for its activity. It is obviously ineffective in any competitive environment that has political struggle (either Ukraine or the Yamalo-Nenetsk autonomous district). The Kremlin administration needs any process to produce an illusion of active work and their importance.”

He added, the idea of remaking the Constitution would not work; it will be “just a heap of amendments to the basic law in force, but Russia needs a new, a different governmental system under conditions of the breakup of the Yeltsin-Putin political system.”