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Kasparov Won't Run for Russia President
By MIKE ECKEL - 12/14/07
MOSCOW (AP) - The Kremlin appears to have checkmated chess genius
Garry Kasparov, eliminating the internationally known figure from the
presidential race.
Kasparov said Thursday his bid collapsed because supporters were
blocked from renting a meeting hall to nominate him - part of
President Vladimir Putin's campaign, he said, to snuff out any viable
opposition and turn Russia's March 2 ballot into a virtual one-man
contest.
The move makes it impossible for Kasparov to challenge Putin's chosen
successor as a candidate. But even if his supporters had nominated
him, Kasparov would have faced formidable barriers, such as a
Putin-era law forcing independent candidates to gather 2 million
signatures - nearly one out of 50 Russian voters - for a spot on the
ballot.
Kasparov has said that requirement would be impossible to fulfill.
"We all knew I wasn't running ... because we don't have an election,"
Kasparov told The Associated Press on Thursday. "It just shows that
this game is fake at each stage."
The former chess champion, dressed in a dark suit, looked exhausted
but determined as he stood between two burly bodyguards.
Under Russian law, independent candidates can run for president only
if a group of at least 500 supporters meets formally to vote on the
nomination. Thursday was the deadline for notifying the Central
Election Commission of such a meeting.
Members of the Other Russia coalition, which Kasparov helps lead, say
the managers of meeting halls and auditoriums refused to rent to
them. Kasparovsaid he believed the managers were ordered not to let
the meeting take place.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told the AP the accusations were
absurd. "The Kremlin isn't involved in renting out halls, and blaming
the Kremlin in any way in this case would be considered illegitimate,"
he said.
Authorities kept up the pressure on Kasparov and his allies
Thursday. Police halted buses carrying dozens of Other Russia
supporters on the outskirts of Moscow as they headed for the wake of
22-year-old Yuri Chervochkin. Chervochkin died earlier this month,
allegedly as a result of a police beating at an opposition protest in
November.
The activists were later released, and arrived at the ceremony
escorted by dozens of police, said Sergei Aksenov, a
participant. Mourners included Kasparov and the nationalist author
Eduard Limonov, leader of the opposition National Bolshevik Party.
"One can talk about a systematic, harsh, physical persecution of my
supporters in Russia," Limonov told Ekho Moskvy radio.
Denis Bilunov, an activist with Kasparov's United Civil Front, said
the wake was tense, as riot police stood by, smirking and talking,
while mourners remembered Chervochkin.
"It was absolutely a disgrace the way they acted," Bilunov said.
Lionized in the West, Kasparov is respected in Russia for his
reputation as one of the greatest chess players who ever lived but he
is not an influential figure.
After retiring from chess in 2005, Kasparov helped form the Other
Russia coalition, a disparate grouping of nationalists, left-wing
activists and liberals.
But the coalition has been ignored in the state-controlled media, and
has drawn little sympathy from ordinary Russians, who are grateful for
the country's nearly decade-long economic boom.
Putin is credited with creating stability after the chaotic years of
Boris Yeltsin's presidency. Many Russians seem willingly to overlook
the government's crackdown on the media, independent political figures
and maverick business tycoons.
Other Russia has staged opposition rallies in Moscow and elsewhere
over the past year, but police have violently disrupted most of
them. Kasparov was jailed for five days after a rally in Moscow last
month. Kasparov's wife and daughter, meanwhile, reportedly were
detained at St. Petersburg's airport Wednesday as they tried to board
an international flight. They were released after the flight
departed, according to United Civil Front. Border guards said the
pair were delayed because the daughter had no exit visa, Interfax
reported.
Putin said Monday he would support Dmitry Medvedev, a first deputy
prime minister, as his successor - an endorsement that effectively
guarantees Medvedev's election. Medvedev a day later called on Putin
to become prime minister after the March 2 vote.
Putin has not yet responded. If he accepts, it could make it possible
for him to retain control of Russia's political system after his term
ends in May.
More than two dozen candidates may eventually joint the presidential
contest, including firebrand nationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky, a
Putin supporter.
Zhirinovsky's Liberal Democratic Party of Russia party nominated him
Thursday. Neither he nor any other of the other well-known candidates
is expected to seriously challenge Medvedev.
Patriarch Alexy II, the leader of the Russian Orthodox Church, said a
Putin-Medvedev team "would be a great blessing for Russia." In an
interview on state television, Alexy praised Putin as "selfless" and
urged him to become prime minister "for the good of Russia and the
good of the people."
Associated Press Writer Mansur Mirovalev contributed to this report.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
By MIKE ECKEL - 12/14/07
MOSCOW (AP) - The Kremlin appears to have checkmated chess genius
Garry Kasparov, eliminating the internationally known figure from the
presidential race.
Kasparov said Thursday his bid collapsed because supporters were
blocked from renting a meeting hall to nominate him - part of
President Vladimir Putin's campaign, he said, to snuff out any viable
opposition and turn Russia's March 2 ballot into a virtual one-man
contest.
The move makes it impossible for Kasparov to challenge Putin's chosen
successor as a candidate. But even if his supporters had nominated
him, Kasparov would have faced formidable barriers, such as a
Putin-era law forcing independent candidates to gather 2 million
signatures - nearly one out of 50 Russian voters - for a spot on the
ballot.
Kasparov has said that requirement would be impossible to fulfill.
"We all knew I wasn't running ... because we don't have an election,"
Kasparov told The Associated Press on Thursday. "It just shows that
this game is fake at each stage."
The former chess champion, dressed in a dark suit, looked exhausted
but determined as he stood between two burly bodyguards.
Under Russian law, independent candidates can run for president only
if a group of at least 500 supporters meets formally to vote on the
nomination. Thursday was the deadline for notifying the Central
Election Commission of such a meeting.
Members of the Other Russia coalition, which Kasparov helps lead, say
the managers of meeting halls and auditoriums refused to rent to
them. Kasparovsaid he believed the managers were ordered not to let
the meeting take place.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told the AP the accusations were
absurd. "The Kremlin isn't involved in renting out halls, and blaming
the Kremlin in any way in this case would be considered illegitimate,"
he said.
Authorities kept up the pressure on Kasparov and his allies
Thursday. Police halted buses carrying dozens of Other Russia
supporters on the outskirts of Moscow as they headed for the wake of
22-year-old Yuri Chervochkin. Chervochkin died earlier this month,
allegedly as a result of a police beating at an opposition protest in
November.
The activists were later released, and arrived at the ceremony
escorted by dozens of police, said Sergei Aksenov, a
participant. Mourners included Kasparov and the nationalist author
Eduard Limonov, leader of the opposition National Bolshevik Party.
"One can talk about a systematic, harsh, physical persecution of my
supporters in Russia," Limonov told Ekho Moskvy radio.
Denis Bilunov, an activist with Kasparov's United Civil Front, said
the wake was tense, as riot police stood by, smirking and talking,
while mourners remembered Chervochkin.
"It was absolutely a disgrace the way they acted," Bilunov said.
Lionized in the West, Kasparov is respected in Russia for his
reputation as one of the greatest chess players who ever lived but he
is not an influential figure.
After retiring from chess in 2005, Kasparov helped form the Other
Russia coalition, a disparate grouping of nationalists, left-wing
activists and liberals.
But the coalition has been ignored in the state-controlled media, and
has drawn little sympathy from ordinary Russians, who are grateful for
the country's nearly decade-long economic boom.
Putin is credited with creating stability after the chaotic years of
Boris Yeltsin's presidency. Many Russians seem willingly to overlook
the government's crackdown on the media, independent political figures
and maverick business tycoons.
Other Russia has staged opposition rallies in Moscow and elsewhere
over the past year, but police have violently disrupted most of
them. Kasparov was jailed for five days after a rally in Moscow last
month. Kasparov's wife and daughter, meanwhile, reportedly were
detained at St. Petersburg's airport Wednesday as they tried to board
an international flight. They were released after the flight
departed, according to United Civil Front. Border guards said the
pair were delayed because the daughter had no exit visa, Interfax
reported.
Putin said Monday he would support Dmitry Medvedev, a first deputy
prime minister, as his successor - an endorsement that effectively
guarantees Medvedev's election. Medvedev a day later called on Putin
to become prime minister after the March 2 vote.
Putin has not yet responded. If he accepts, it could make it possible
for him to retain control of Russia's political system after his term
ends in May.
More than two dozen candidates may eventually joint the presidential
contest, including firebrand nationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky, a
Putin supporter.
Zhirinovsky's Liberal Democratic Party of Russia party nominated him
Thursday. Neither he nor any other of the other well-known candidates
is expected to seriously challenge Medvedev.
Patriarch Alexy II, the leader of the Russian Orthodox Church, said a
Putin-Medvedev team "would be a great blessing for Russia." In an
interview on state television, Alexy praised Putin as "selfless" and
urged him to become prime minister "for the good of Russia and the
good of the people."
Associated Press Writer Mansur Mirovalev contributed to this report.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress