Conservatism in Russia
Conservatism in Russia (Russian: Консерватизм) is a broad system of political beliefs in Russia that is characterized by support for Orthodox values, Russian imperialism, statism, economic interventionism, advocacy for the historical Russian sphere of influence, and a rejection of late modernist era Western culture.[1]
Like other conservative movements, Russian conservatism is seen as defending the established institutions of its time, such as the Tsarist autocracy and Soviet strong-man rule. Russian conservatism rejects the concept of laissez-faire economics prevalent in American conservatism, and instead supports a mixed economy, as opposed to economic liberalism. This makes Russian conservatism largely populist in its promotion of anti-privatesector-establishment views, strong nationalism, and social conservatism. Russian conservatives believe that the state should control both economic and social policy, as it aligns with its origins in Tsarism and the teachings of the Russian Orthodox Church.[2]
Political parties[edit]
The two main conservative parties in Russia are the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR) led by Leonid Slutsky and United Russia led by its de facto leader Vladimir Putin. Other Russian conservative parties include Rodina, the Russian All-People's Union, and the Eurasia Party. United Russia is the ruling party of Russia and largest party of Russia, holding 74.4% of seats in the State Duma.[13][14]
The LDRP was founded in 1992 by Zhirinovsky as a more ideological conservative party. The LDRP scored 22.9% of votes in the 1993 state Duma elections, opposing the right–left dichotomy in Russia like the United Russia party. In 2016, the party received 13.4% of the vote, giving it 39 of the 450 seats in the State Duma. During the 1990s, Zhirinovsky and the LDPR formed a component of the political opposition to Yeltsin in the 1990s, although members of the party largely voted against the impeachment of Yeltsin in 1999. Into the 2010s, the LDPR has often supported the agenda of the United Russia party and Putin government when voting in the Duma, leading some to believe that the party receives funding from the Kremlin.[15]
Criticism[edit]
Although the ideology itself has not been poorly received by the general public, political parties such as United Russia have come under intense scrutiny as a party of "crooks and thieves", a term coined by activist Alexey Navalny amidst the corruption in Russia which was consistently used by opposition parties during the 2011 election to characterize the United Russia party as being corrupted and concerned with "maintaining and strengthening their own power". The 2011–2013 Russian protests show the Russians public's perception of a flawed election process in Russia, and the yearning for a more democratic process against what they believe has become an authoritarian government.[16][17][18]
The ideology of Russian conservatism has been criticized as authoritarian and an oppressive system of governance. Opposition from both left-wing and right-wing groups has characterized the Putin government's harsh laws in promoting stability in the country, as being exercised to cement the government's own power. Regulations on freedom of the press and economic interventionism have been opposed starkly by right-libertarians, while social views on abortion and Putin's ban on LGBT rights has been criticized by left-wing groups.[19]
Declarative conservatism of the Russian authorities has been described as hypocrisy by those who pointed out the lavish lifestyle of Russian elites, numerous morality scandals in which top politicians were involved, a bizarre mix of Orthodox, Soviet, and Stalinist symbolism (the latter two being ideologically anti-religious), widespread abortion, sexually transmitted diseases, and high divorce rates.[20][21][22]