One In Ten Russians Describe Ex Yukos Chief As Political Prisoner - Poll
Interfax - 4.9.12 - JRL 2012-66

A nationwide survey conducted by the VTsIOM pollster has shown that one in ten Russians consider former Yukos CEO Mikhail Khodorkovskiy a political prisoner, although most people struggle to define exactly what a political prisoner is. The results of the survey, published on 9 April by the Vedomosti daily, were relayed by the Interfax news agency on the same day.
file photoThe research showed that most Russians (40 per cent) were unable to say who political prisoners were. Twenty-six per cent of respondent said they were people who opposed the authorities, 8 per cent described them as dissidents, 6 per cent - as people out of favour with the authorites, 5 per cent - as betrayers of state secrets, 3 per cent - as corrupt officials and thiefs, and 2 per cent said they were enemies of the state.

Thirty-nine per cent of respondents proved unable to name any specific political prisoners, 10 per cent pointed to Mikhail Khodorkovksioy and 1 per cent each - to Platon Lebedev and Boris Berezovskiy. Another 23 per cent rejected that such a group of people existed and 26 people could not commit to an answer.

Interfax quoted Vedomosti as saying in its article: "When sociologists specifically ask about Khodorkovskiy, what he is in prison for, a relative majority (44 per cent) names the economic crimes that he committed. Twenty-seven per cent do not know anything about him and his case. And just 19 per cent say that Khodorkovskiy is being persecuted for political reasons."

Keywords: Russia, YUKOS, Khodorkovsky - Russian News - Russia

A nationwide survey conducted by the VTsIOM pollster has shown that one in ten Russians consider former Yukos CEO Mikhail Khodorkovskiy a political prisoner, although most people struggle to define exactly what a political prisoner is. The results of the survey, published on 9 April by the Vedomosti daily, were relayed by the Interfax news agency on the same day.

file photoThe research showed that most Russians (40 per cent) were unable to say who political prisoners were. Twenty-six per cent of respondent said they were people who opposed the authorities, 8 per cent described them as dissidents, 6 per cent - as people out of favour with the authorites, 5 per cent - as betrayers of state secrets, 3 per cent - as corrupt officials and thiefs, and 2 per cent said they were enemies of the state.

Thirty-nine per cent of respondents proved unable to name any specific political prisoners, 10 per cent pointed to Mikhail Khodorkovksioy and 1 per cent each - to Platon Lebedev and Boris Berezovskiy. Another 23 per cent rejected that such a group of