An Analysis Of Liberal Democracy In Russia Politics Essay

An Analysis Of Liberal Democracy In Russia Politics Essay Russia is one of the important countries and the largest country in the world, which established worldwide power and influence in the international politics. The arguable question, in which interested a lot of knowledgeable people, is what the regime has the Russian Federation after the death of Communism and how it works. The majority of Western Europe and USA has very critical opinion about Russian politics and definitely argue that Russia has not liberal democracy. They also believe that it is unlikely to thrive in post-Communist Russia. In my essay I will debate if liberal democracy could thrive or not in Russian Federation, giving the arguments and facts of both sides. Firstly I will argue that liberal democracy cannot thrive in Russia because of many arguments. The first is the high level of corruption. The second is the siloviki and oligarchs, who have enormous political power. The third is absence of media freedom. The fourth is lack of civil society. The fifth is Constituti on, which give a lot of power to the president and no strong opposition. It means that Russia has a one-party system. However, there is some soil for liberal democracy. The first argument is democratic experience. The second argument is a right to create political parties. The third is a right to practise citizens’ culture and religious. The fourth is a freedom of speech, belief and discussion. I argue that liberal democracy could thrive in Russia, only if the barriers to liberal democracy will pass, such as corruption, siloviki, absence of media freedom. I will argue that to make more suitable soil for liberal democracy Russia should change a Constitution, to create a strong opposition, and emphasis for reforms, which protect individual rights, increase civil liberties, improve the well-being of citizens; develop society to pursue their interests and develop own talents. But, when these criteria would not be achieved, liberal democracy is unlikely to thrive in post-communist Russia. Criteria of liberal democracy Firstly, I would like to define democracy and describe the criteria of liberal democracy, looking which of them Russia has. According to McFaul, democracy is the institutional arrangement where the individuals have the power to make political decisions by means of competitive struggle. According to this minimal definition and implicit in ‘analysis of the rule of law, civil society and the party system in Russia is an ideal type of liberal democracy rather than a minimal standard of electoral democracy’ (McFaul, 2004: 2-3). However, liberal democracy has the criteria, by which we could judge Russian regime. The first is the control of the state by elected civilian officials; the military is subordinate to the government. The second is a right to form a party and contest the elections by any group, which adheres to constitutional principles. Thirdly, a right for different ethnic, religious or different minority groups should exist fo r practicing their culture or express their interests in the political process. Fourthly, the freedom of belief, opinions, discussion and speech should exist. The last is that the citizens are equal under the law.