Global Studies II

Unit II Russia

Name ______________________________
Date ____________
Russian Democracy Has Disappeared?
- Clifford J. Levy, New York Times

Directions: After reading the article mentioned above, answer the questions below. Please
answer in complete sentence format.
1. What is human rights? According to the author, identify human rights issues the current
political regime in Russia have violated.
Human Rights are rights that are equal to all people in the world. Some human right issues that
have been going on are the elections that are not free and open to everyone, the government does
not allow for open elections to occur. Milkhail Beketov was beaten up because he was writing about
the government and how crooked they were. So now he is in a wheelchair and is unable to even
complete a sentence since his brain is damaged.
2. Identify political corruption issues Mr. Levy identifies in Russia today.
Political corruption issues that Mr. Levy identified in Russia today in the article is land deals,
crooked loans, and under the table hush money.
3. How does Mr. Gorbechev, the previous Russian premier, feel about the current leaders? Why
does he feel this way?
He is critic of the Kremlin and Putin is undermining Russias fledgling democracy by crippling
opposition forces. He feels this way because he thinks that the democracy is standing in Putins
way. He hand picked his successor and was then appointed Prime Minister of Russia, after
Medvedev won election by landslide numbers.
4. The caption for the picture on page one is titled, Batman and Robin. Explain this caption.
Putin is really in charge (Batman) and his side kick(Robin) is Medvedev. They both work together to
get the job done with Putin the one who makes all the decisions.
5. According to the author [and Mr. Gorbechev, democracy begins with:
Elections, accountability, and turnover
6. In addition to the aspects of democracy identified above, which other key ingredient is
necessary for a democracy? According to the author, how does Russia meet this ingredient?
Back up your answer with facts.

Another key ingredient that is necessary for a democracy is rule of law, which is a key component.
Critics of the Kremlin are routinely denied permission for the rallies, and the police detain anyone
that attends the unauthorized demonstrations. For this reason, people think that they live in a
police state.
7. Identify two cases the author identifies where the Russian government has failed the
democratic test.
-In jury trials, judges almost always convict but a jury of ordinary people was expected to be more
fair. The jurors are intimidated by the authorities, and when they acquit a defendant, their
verdicts are overturned.
-Lawmakers have been cutting back on the types of crimes that qualify for a jury trial.

Bibliography
"Teacher Resources, Children's Books, Student Activities for Teachers | Scholastic.com." Russian Democracy Has
Disappeared. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Nov. 2014.