Tsarist and Soviet glories in Russia of the Supreme Guide

Putin's proposals to the Constitution approved.  Proposed establishment of a new role, the "Supreme Guide", above or in place of the Federal President.  Today's Russia is nostalgic for the Tsarist period.  All Orthodox bishops are prohibited from attending Chaplin's funeral.

Moscow (AsiaNews) - Discussion on the changes to the Russian Constitution, proposed by President Vladimir Putin in a speech to the parliamentarians and ruling classes of the country, is coming to fruition.  The appropriate committees met and immediately approved all the Putinian proposals, which aim to rebalance the functions between government and parliament, but also highlight the "superior role" of a new body, the "Council of State", which could be in the future chaired by Putin himself.

As if to reinforce and make explicit the meaning of these changes, there is also the proposal to establish, in place or above the position of federal president, the new role of "Supreme Guide" of the country (the Verkhovny Pravitel)  .  The author of this proposal is unknown.  It was announced on 25 January by the head of the parliamentary committee for "state institution and legislation", Pavel Krasheninnikov, in an interview with Rossijskaja Gazeta.  The proposal was supported by Vladimir Zhirinovskij, leader of the liberal-nationalists.

The term "Supreme Guide" refers to the times of the first revolution of February 1917, when a provisional government formed immediately after the abdication of Tsar Nicholas II, and in the phase following the Bolsheviks' takeover, Russia plunged into civil war.  In an attempt to seize power from the Tsarist-oriented White Armies, Admiral Aleksandr Kolchak was appointed Verkhovnyj Pravitel, a "supreme" title to replace the Tsar assassinated by the Bolsheviks.  The fact is has been proposed again today points to a desire in some way a return to the tsarist symbolism of the past;  Putin's press office made it known that "the president has no position on it."

Tsarist and Soviet glories

Moreover, the end of the decade 2010-2019 offers in all respects a nostalgic vision of today's Russia, which dreams of recreating  the glories of tsarism and those of the Soviet regime, and the constitutional changes seem to correspond to both of these inspirations.  Today the country is increasingly dominated by the flourishing of traditionalist groups and movements, even aggressive ones, which bring together national glory with the radical profession of the Orthodox faith, the opposition to "western" human rights (LGBTIQ +, internet information, international adoption of children, interference from foreign governments and much more) and demonstrative events in the life of Russian society.

On 21 December the movement called "Stolypin's Legacy" - the prime minister assassinated in 1911, who was imitated by Mussolini - led by leader Pavel Pozhigajlo, organized a "Vigil of prayer for the Family ”, to protest the proposed law on domestic violence.  As stated also by Patriarch Kirill (Gundjaev), there is an attempt to classify all family problems under the title of "domestic violence", allowing the state and social organizations to enter the "sacred space" of the family.  The leaders of Putin's "United Russia" party supported the protests.

Next to the Pozhigajlo group, the red and white flags of the movement of the "Forty forties" (the ancient bells of Moscow) and the yellow ones with imperial symbols of the "Two-headed eagle" society, which wanted to bring the culture of Tsarism to today's Russia, were paraded.  The late protoierej Vsevolod Chaplin also attended the Vigil.  In this regard, the patriarch prohibited all Orthodox bishops from attending Chaplin's funeral, to avoid giving funeral honors to the extremism of his former collaborator.

Representatives of the "pan-Russian parental resistance" and over 80 regional organizations of the same orientation also participated in the demonstrations in defense of the family.  These actions are transmitted and amplified by media such as the TV channel "Tsargrad" ("The Imperial City") of the orthodox oligarch Konstantin Malofeev, who is very active also in the foreign propaganda the neo-tsarist ideology, but also other  patriotic-orthodox channels like "The Savior", "Soyuz" and even "Stalingrad", and many others.  The era of the tsar is returning to Russia.