Dmitry Medvedev divides opposition into radicals and politicians

During Tuesday’s summit Dmitry Medvedev explained his attitude to the opposition. He is impressed by positions of those who do not violate the law on parties. Radicals, who do not observe the Russian legislation, the president considers to be criminals. He suggests calling the non-system opposition “parties, which failed registration.” Newspapers comment also on his another meeting with leaders of unregistered pasties due on April ۲. “Major” oppositionists have not been as yet invited to another meeting with the president.
On Tuesday, Dmitry Medvedev announced the power should continue discussion with the opposition if the latter “criticises it fiercely,” the Kommersant writes. The president is sure that soon non-system opposition will not remain: some politicians will apply for registration of parties and will become members of the system, and those violating the law will be considered not politicians, but criminals. These statements, like the entire political reform, cause controversial comments from experts. Some say, Dmitry Medvedev is trying to keep himself as a politician where the tandem does not exist. Others are sure the reform has been started to ease Vladimir Putin’s presidential term.

Dmitry Medvedev is really undertaking steps to keep himself in politics, the newspaper quotes Director General of the International Institute of Political Expertise Evgeny Minchenko. Quite possibly, the emerged political reform may help him even when he as a prime minister would have to implement “unpopular reforms.” The expert is convinced the reform had been planned not to “let Medvedev survive the competition with Putin.” There is not competition whatsoever.

The opposition realise the president’s attempt to separate “Aries from goats,” the Nezavisimaya Gazeta writes. Dmitry Medvedev is the author of the law on parties, which opens the door to big policy for structures, which collect only ۵۰۰ allies. Medvedev’s statement of Tuesday seemed to try involving into Russia’s big policy those, who had been aspiring it for a long time. For example, PARNAS. Or Solidarity. Or Vladimir Ryzhkov’s Republican Party. Moreover, since the latter is about to be registered by the Ministry of Justice in compliance with recommendations from the Strasbourg Court.

A night earlier, it became clear that several prominent oppositionists will not be at the meeting with the president. Boris Nemtsov, invited to the meeting, said he would be away and would not be able to attend the event. As yet, invitations had not been issued to Sergei Udaltsov or Vladimir Ryzhkov. Mikhail Kasyanov’s press secretary Elena Dikun said he had not received an invitation either. The newspaper writes that Kasyanov, a co-chairperson of PARNAS, had not been invited to the earlier meeting either. Nor were invited leader of Solidarnost Eduard Limonov or Garri Kasparov. At the same time, the meeting will feature representatives of the structures, which have not at all proven themselves in politics.

Another meeting with non-system opposition, organised undertime, “demonstrates confusion,” a political scientist Gleb Pavlovsky said. “Realistic structures are mixed with those false, spoiling, phoney...” There is no sense in the event, he said. Pavlovsky cannot understand why should “real, though small-format politicians be next to those who are true spoilers.” Why would Medvedev need to meet with this mixed group of politicians and clowns? If I were him, I would divide these two formats. Not to offend these or those.”

The Novye Izvestia writes political scientists wonder why major representatives of the opposition have not been invited to the event. “If this meeting will feature only the Green, and other low profile parties, it would not be effective,” a political scientist Alexei Makarkin told the newspaper. “If the real opposition, Vladimir Ryzhkov or Sergei Udaltsov or somebody from PARNAS, are not invited, it would be not a meeting, but rather a profanation.”