Municipal Government

Thinking Locally

Can Democracy in Russia Be Built from the Ground Up?

For most of Russia’s history, and for most of Russia’s citizens, life was dominated by the village. Local leaders and their decrees had much more influence than national ones, particularly after the creation of local councils called zemstvos at the end of the 19th century. What happened in far-away Moscow or St. Petersburg had little effect on everyday life. Of course, this changed with the  Bolsheviks, who imposed their model of planning and collectivization across the country from the top down. In addition, Russia’s rapid 20th century urbanization broke down local structures and hierarchies. But while the restrictions of the Soviet era repressed civil society and local customs, they were not destroyed altogether. During the recent municipal reforms, which began in 2003, local groups formed to fight for their rights; clans and ethnic groups in the North Caucasus began using legal structures to fight for their land; and some activists acted globally with their local problems, taking a conflict between a small town and the Russian government all the way to the European Court of Human Rights. In an era when national politics seem almost a fait accompli, local government still gives individuals an outlet for expressing their frustration and having a say about issues that affect them the most.