Thirteen Years Later
Wednesday was the 13th Anniversary of Boris Yeltsin’s military suppression of the Supreme Soviet. On October 3-4, 1993, Yeltsin sent tanks to the White House, which is located on “Free Russia Square”, to shell the rebellious parliament led by Alexandr Rutskoi and Ruslan Khasbulatov. The incident was a mess of events. Yeltsin decreed to disband the parliament, the parliament voted to impeach Yeltsin in defiance. Pro-parliament municipal leaders then barricaded themselves in the Ostankino television studios. There is no doubt that Yeltsin’s move can be considered undemocratic. But at the time, it was justified as a way to prevent the Communists and Nationalists from reversing “democracy.” This was the logic that the Clinton Administration used when it gave its full support to Yeltsin’s use of force, a move that cost 123 lives. The direct result was the creation of a strong presidency ..read more
