AP Comparative government Nationality There are many societal cleavages that greatly impact policymaking These cleavages include Nationality religion social class and rural v urban divisions ID: 233005
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Slide1
Russia: Citizens, Society, and The State
AP Comparative governmentSlide2
Nationality
There are many societal cleavages that greatly impact
policymaking. These cleavages include:
Nationality
, religion, social class, and rural v. urban
divisions
Nationality is one of the main cleavages in Russia.
80
% of the
Russian population
is identified as being Russian
20% however are identified as Tatars, Ukrainians, Armenians, Chuvash's,
Bashkis
, Byelorussians, and Moldavians.
Due to these differences in nationality, Russia was formed into a federation with autonomous regions
These regions are republics with borders based upon ethnicity
Many of these regions would like to have independence but beneficial trade partnerships push them to stay
In 2004
Chechnya
tried to fight for independence (clarify this)
Russia was able to keep them in the Russian Federation by writing a new constitution but the relationship is still touchySlide3Slide4
Religion
Under Tsarist rule, Russia was extremely Russian Orthodox
Under Soviet rule, religious practices of all kinds were banned
With the establishment of the Russian Federation, Boris Yeltsin encouraged the Russian Orthodox Church to reestablish itself
While the Orthodox Church has reestablished itself, and many Russians identify themselves as Russian Orthodox, very few people actually attend church
In 2007 the Russian Church Abroad and the Russian Orthodox Church reunited showing greater acceptance of religion within the countrySlide5
Religion
Religion and Ethnic Groups in Russia
Religion
Ethnic Groups
Russian Orthodox 15-20%
Russian 79.8%
Muslim 10-15%
Tatar 3.8%
Other Christian 2%
Ukrainian 2%
Chuvash 1.1%
Note: estimates are of practicing worshipers: Russian has large numbers of non-practice believers and non-believers, a legacy of soviet
rule
Other 12.1%Slide6
Religion
Russia has the greatest concentration of Muslims in
Europe,
with the exception of Turkey
Muslims are generally located in Moscow
They form a large share of laborers
The Caucasus
This area is between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea
This is the region where the Chechens have been controlled
This region has a tendency for violence
Bashkortostan and Tatarstan
These tend to be the calmest of regions for Muslim/Russian relationsSlide7
Social Class
With the fall of the Soviet Union the entrepreneur class began to rise
This class has been pushed by
Yeltsin and Putin,
who
have granted
large favors to the
class
of citizensSlide8
Rural v Urban
73% of the Russian population lives in cities in the western portion of the country
There is a wide economic
gap between those
in the cities
and those in the country
Citizens in the cities tend to be
wealthier
, better educated and more in touch with western cultureSlide9
Beliefs and attitudes
The concept of
Marxism
, which
was based on
the idea that the industrialized west would eventually fall, led to strong nationalism
The belief that
their society
would out last all others
lead
many to buy into the Marxist system
Stalinism
tried to strengthen these concepts through internal development
When the USSR fell, it brought a tide of changing attitudes to RussiaSlide10
Beliefs and attitudes
Mistrust of government-
Most do not trust government
officials
or institutions
People support democratic
ideals
of free elections and wide spread individual civil liberties and rights, but don’t trust
officials
to
institute
those policies
There is also very little political participation because of this mistrust
Statism-
Russian citizens believe the state should take an active role in their lives
Russians expect a great deal from their government because of their history as subjects, rather than
as participantsSlide11
Beliefs and attitudes
Economic Beliefs-
Economic beliefs are separated by those who support old style Soviet tactics and those who support a market style
economy
This argument is generally made amongst generational lines
Westernization
Slavophile v westernizerSlide12
Political Participation
Early in Russian voting history, close to 100% of the citizens voted for their leader
These elections were not free and
competitive,
and those who did not vote faced strict consequences
Gorbachev
instituted
competitive elections, but it was between people from the same party with similar
attitudes
This effectively gave the citizens no choice in their leader
Voter turnout rates have dropped since the establishment of the Russian Federation in 1991
During the election of
1991,
75% of eligible citizens
voted
In 2004
less than
64.3%
of citizens
voted
In 2008 it was 69.7%
In 2012 it was 62.5%Slide13
Civil Society
There is very little form of
political participation
within the society
This is due to a relatively undeveloped
civil society
Most Russians don’t attend church
Most also do not belong to sports leagues, literary or cultural groups, charitable organizations, or labor unions
Only 1% of people belong to a political party
Much of civil society was demolished with the start of the Soviet Union
The state setup a state corporatist arrangement where the government could control the voice of the peopleSlide14
Russian Youth Groups
The
Nashi
is a youth movement created by Putin
It is a group designed to build a following of loyal, and patriotic young people who would support the state