Criticism of President Vladimir Putin is very rare in today’s Russia. And criticism of the Russians’ war of aggression in Ukraine is prohibited by law. Therefore, it is surprising that Boris Nadezhdin has come as far as he actually has in his attempt to become a presidential candidate in Russia. For the 60-year-old calls himself a “principled opponent” of the country’s current leader. CRITIC: Boris Nadezhdin wants an end to the war in Ukraine. Photo: AFP According to The Moscow Times, Nadezhdin wants to end the war in Ukraine, he wants the Russian soldiers home and he wants to release political prisoners. Furthermore, he wants to start a dialogue with the West and stop the repression of queers in Russia. An opportunity to show resistance In a number of places in Russia, thousands of Russians have recently been queuing outside Nadezhdin’s election campaign offices. This is reported by the news agency AP. It is necessary to collect 100,000 signatures nationally and 2,500 from each of the regions of Russia. MANY WILL CONTRIBUTE: Signatures in support of Boris Nadezhdin are being collected in many places in Russia. Photo: AP In St. Petersburg, 21-year-old Anna explains why she wants an alternative to Putin in this way: – The economy is in free fall. People are getting poorer and prices are rising, says the 21-year-old, who does not want to give his full name for fear of getting into trouble. – I hope for changes. I do not support what is happening in Russia, says Larisa in Moscow. – I have gone through a long period of apathy where I thought I couldn’t do anything. Supporting Nadezhdin is an opportunity to exercise my civil rights, says Aleksander Rakitjansky. RARE OPPORTUNITY: Experts believe that many of those who support Nadezhdin primarily want to express their dissatisfaction with the country’s leadership in a way that is not affected by Russian laws. Photo: Reuters He comes from the border town of Belgorod, which has been subjected to a number of Ukrainian attacks. – I support Nadezhdin so that my home town is not bombed and people die in the streets, he says. The Moscow Times writes that for some of the supporters, the opportunity to express their dissatisfaction with the country’s leadership is at least as important as the opportunity to vote for Nadezhdin. May be stopped by the electoral commission Nadezjdin is running as a candidate for a small party that calls itself Citizens’ Initiative. It has no seats in parliament, so the hopeful candidate must collect signatures. – The signature campaign has gone surprisingly well. To be honest, I did not expect this, says Nadezhdin to the news agency AP. CAN BE STOPPED: The 60-year-old Nadezhdin on tour. Photo: AFP The lists must be delivered to the central electoral commission during Wednesday. An expert says that the 60-year-old may be stopped by the commission. – I think they will cut Nadezhdin out when he presents his signatures, says Jekaterina Schulman who is a researcher associated with the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center in Berlin. She suggests that the electoral commission may find parts of the signatures invalid and bar Nadezhdin from the election. It is also likely that the authorities will threaten him and his associates with prison if they incite protests, according to Schulman. A lightning rod for the Kremlin? In the 1990s, Nadezhdin worked as an adviser to Sergej Kiriyenko, who is now President Putin’s chief of staff. But he also worked with Boris Nemtsov, who was a leading opposition politician until he was killed outside the Kremlin in 2015. SIMPLE: An election campaign stall in Moscow in support of Vladimir Putin getting a second term. Photo: AFP Some of Nadezhdin’s critics say, according to the Moscow Times, that he is approved by the leadership in the Kremlin. The purpose must be to create a false impression that there is competition in this election. Because no matter what happens to Nadezhdin, no one doubts that Putin will get another six-year term. And if the 71-year-old leader stays healthy, he will probably be in power until 2036. Then he will pass the longest-serving dictator from the Soviet era, Josef Stalin himself.
ttn-69
Boris Nadezhdin receives support to become a Russian presidential candidate – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
