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2013 Summer Institute at Columbia University to Study Russian-Speaking Diaspora

Details: 05 February 2013

On June 9-29, 2013, Columbia University will host a three-week institute entitled “America’s Russian-Speaking Immigrants and Refugees: 20th Century Migration and Memory,” sponsored by the National Endowment for the Humanities. The institute welcomes college and university teachers and independent scholars to apply to this special program designed to enrich their understanding of the four waves of Russian-speaking immigration to the United States.

Details: Politics

Putin’s Tricks, or Where Do Elections Go?

Details: 01 February 2013; Tatiana Stanovaya

One of the riddles of the first year of Vladimir Putin’s “new” presidency has been the return of direct gubernatorial elections and their subsequent rollback. One can find a great many analytical materials on this subject in Russian media, but the “home kitchen” remains off-screen. Tatiana Stanovaya, head of the analytical department at the Center for Political Technologies and an IMR advisor, considers why the Kremlin reversed its own decision.

Details: Law

Sacrificial Offering à la Homo Sovieticus

Details: 31 January 2013; Ekaterina Mishina

The Kremlin’s decision to retaliate against Russian orphans after the passage of the U.S. Magnitsky Act was a continuation of Soviet traditions. IMR Advisor Ekaterina Mishina, a prominent Russian legal expert, notes that the entire history of the USSR was marked by a hypocritical “care for children.”

Details: Politics

Back on the Leash: The End for A Just Russia

Details: 29 January 2013; Vladimir Kara-Murza

A Just Russia, one of Russia’s four parliamentary parties, has demanded that four of its members, prominent opposition activists Dmitri Gudkov, Gennady Gudkov, Ilya Ponomarev, and Oleg Shein, sever all links with the protest movement. IMR Senior Policy Advisor Vladimir Kara-Murza argues that this ultimatum, which marks the end of A Just Russia’s cooperation with the pro-democracy opposition, leaves the party without a political future.

Details: Nation

Corruption in Russia as a Business

Details: 29 January 2013; Alexandra Kalinina

Transparency International has ranked Russia 133rd in its recently-published 2012 Corruption Perceptions Index. The previous year, Russia was ranked 143rd. Is this improvement a result of effective anticorruption measures by the Russian government, or just a different methodology of calculation? According to economist Alexandra Kalinina, despite the improved score, corruption in Russia remains “not a problem, but a business.”

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