Monitors Slam Russian Election

08/12/2003| IslamWeb

One thing is in no doubt after Russia's parliamentary election - Vladimir Putin's political allies have scored an overwhelming victory. But was the poll free and fair? The president certainly thinks so, hailing the exercise as a step forward for democracy. It is a view not shared however by Western observers, with Europe's rights and democracy watchdog, the OSCE, critical of an election it says was "overwhelmingly distorted" by pro-government bias. In Russia too, the ballot was branded a "shameful farce" by the heavily-defeated Communists whose leader, Gennady Zyuganov, has accused the Kremlin of fixing the result and manipulating the media to promote the pro-Putin lobby. A look at the way the 450-seat Duma divides up, based on final preliminary results, demonstrates the dominance of the main presidential loyalists. The party in question, United Russia, has 222 seats to its credit. There are 38 seats for the ultra-nationalist Liberal Democrats who back the Kremlin on key issues. It can also count on support from the newly-created Motherland bloc, which picked up 37 seats. The Communists have 53 seats. And making victory all the sweeter for Vladimir Putin, there is the verdict of the experts who say the result effectively guarantees him a second term in office in next spring's presidential poll. **PHOTO CAPTION*** Russian President Vladimir Putin arrives for a cabinet meeting in Moscow, December 8, 2003. (REUTERS/ITAR-TASS/PRESIDENTIAL PRESS SERVICE)