Putin's second term is up in 2008. He's made noise about running again. If he did, he might win, because there isn't really a BIG-NAME, opposition leader to oppose him (if he seeks reelection) - or to oppose his machine if Putin seeks to put up a crony. Well, until now, that is... now Russia's chess hero - Garry Kasparov has said all but thrown his hat into the ring:
INDEPENDENT (UK):
Mr Kasparov is already chairman of the opposition body Committee 2008, a group of liberals fighting to halt Russia's slide to autocracy and to ensure that Mr Putin resigns when his second term in office ends in three years. [...] Mr Kasparov has become one of the most outspoken critics of the Putin regime on the international circuit, lambasting its decision to clamp down on the media and its stranglehold over the courts and parliament. [...] In comments published on the website of the Russian weekly journal Yezhednevny Zhurnal, he said: "In chess I have done all I could and even more. Now I intend to use my intellect and strategic thinking in Russian politics. "I will do all I can to oppose Putin's dictatorship. "It is very hard to play for a country with undemocratic authorities. I will be tackling this problem with those who hold Russia dear and care about it." Mr Kasparov, 41, has dominated international chess tournaments since becoming world champion at the age of 22.
Kasparov says Russia under President Vladimir Putin is moving in the wrong direction. At the group's launch last year he spoke of what he said was the growing threat to democracy. "We see a clear danger, a clear and present danger, for the current constitution, for our democratic rights and that is why we are bringing [together] all different people, citizens, on the basis of our citizenship, that believe in democracy as an institution," Kasparov said.
No comments:
Post a Comment