Russia: Citizens, Society, and The State - PowerPoint Presentation

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 touchySlide3
Slide4

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