Date: Wed, 2 May 2007
Subject: Yeltsin, Putin, Jefferson and Freedom
From: Andrei Sitov (andreisitov@yahoo.com)
President Yeltsin's recent death has been used to increase attacks on President Putin's record on media freedom, especially since the sad event closely preceded the World Press Freedom Day. I'd like to add a couple of rather self-evident comments to the numerous comparisons between the two Russian leaders in this respect.
For Yeltsin freedom was obviously an end in itself. He couldn't offer his people anything else, his historic mission was more that of dismantling communism than of building something new in its place. So he understandably kept urging the Russians to keep and value his legacy of freedom above everything else.
His was undoubtedly a momentous achievement, a breakthrough in the history of Russia, though in fairness he shares it with his predecessor Gorbachev.
As for his successor, Putin clearly has a different mission. And for him, without a doubt, freedom is not an end in itself. His goals, as he indicated many times, are a worthy place for Russia in today's world and a decent life for the Russians. For achieving these goals freedom can be of help and can also be of hindrance - if, for example, it's a "freedom" of bending the law to take advantage of others. So Putin treats it accordingly. He respects it - certainly, within the bounds of the law, - but doesn't make a fetish out of it.
This is in full accordance with the Church's teaching too: freedom is not an absolute value, it can be used both for good and evil ends. Just remember what happened recently at Virginia Tech.
If absolute freedom and truth - the attributes of a Higher Power - were knowable, life would've been much easier. But they are not. And there's certainly nothing wrong with the fact that Putin probably understands them differently than Yeltsin did. Especially since the current Russian president has a majority of his nation on his side.
In conclusion I would also urge caution in using famous quotes. Two prominent Congressmen quoted Jefferson the other day as a prelude to attacking Russia and other countries. "Were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter”, - the future President said in 1787.
Yeltsin's sentiments, exactly. But if such a scenario were to play out in today's America, both the Congressmen - career politicians - would have been out of their jobs. And even Jefferson - not in revolutionary, but in ordinary times - would probably have been hard pressed to govern relying only on newspapers.