Первое олигархическое государство

[worldCitizen]

Как долго оно просуществует?

Wealth attracts more wealth, which subsequently leads to a concentration of power. The problem of income distribution therefore makes its way to the political system and the overall system of governance, as the economic elite seeks to protect its concentration of power, leaving elected rulers powerless to stop this self-sustaining process. In the long run, widening economic inequality would impact the political class, depriving it of the power to act as the rich get more powerful and more united while the poor lose the capacity to impact the polity. The end state of this slow, incremental process spells the end of the democratic process. A once-liberal society would therefore be transformed into an oligarchical society.

Структура власти
Piketty’s thesis seems to have found a real-life expression in Ukraine. Indeed, wealth breeds power, which in turn supersedes and slowly replaces the democratic political process. But why has this happened in Ukraine, of all places? Why has it not affected other ex-communist states?

The answer is that the former Soviet bloc witnessed a sudden transition from communism to capitalism that was forcefully applied through the mass privatization of state assets. In the bleak years following 1989, this process had lax rules and virtually no oversight. Thus, the individuals that benefitted most from the transition found themselves very rich, very fast, in a society that had just begun to open up to Western markets. Seizing the opportunity, oligarchs were quick to interfere in the democratic development of their respective societies and gear the political system to their favor.

Except for Belarus, Russia, Ukraine and Moldova, all former communist countries of Europe had to rid themselves of the nefarious influence of oligarchs in order to join the ranks of the European Union. This meant creating strong democratic institutions and inclusive political processes.

Belarus has been ruled by strongman Lukashenko for the past 20 years and Moldova, one of the poorest regions of the former USSR, was pushed forward by Romania to stay on the European track. Russia is an interesting case; its infamous oligarchs were tamed by Putin, some fleeing for London, others bankrolling the regime while others ended up in jail with their assets seized. Which just leaves Ukraine.

Indeed, a few powerful individuals have held the key to the castle: Rinat Akhemtov, Dimitri Firtash, Viktor Pinchuk and, surprisingly, Petro Poroshenko, who is also the frontrunner in the upcoming Ukrainian Presidential elections. Throughout the Maidan movement, they were courted by both protesters and international actors, all urging them to turn their backs on Yanukovych. Easier said than done.

According to the Chatham House, Akhmetov controlled a bloc of 50 lawmakers in Parliament, while Firtash controlled another 30. Furthermore, companies belonging to Akhmetov were consistently awarded 31 percent of state contracts under Yanukovych’s rule. We therefore have an insidious blend of political and financial interests, powerful enough to effectively pilot Ukraine from the shadows. The best example for this can be found in the way the two oligarchs changed their stance when they realized that Western sanctions could actually bite into their business interests.

With a flick of the fingers, the media empires controlled by Firtash and Akhmetov (some ten TV stations, including Ukraine’s largest) began openly supporting the Euromaidan, while their groups in the parliament endorsed an initiative to depose the scandal-prone president. This two-pronged approach accelerated the collapse of the regime and the start of a new chapter in Ukraine’s troubled history. The scenario isn’t at all new, having been played out along similar lines during the Orange Revolution of 2004. The regime held together until the same group of oligarchs endorsed Viktor Yushchenko’s party.

A notorious party flip-flopper, Poroshenko’s appointment signifies a new step in the strengthened grip the oligarchs have over Ukraine. If up to this point, they limited themselves to bankrolling political candidates, in a rule-by-proxy type approach, this new evolution signals their unwillingness to entrust the levers of power to one who is not part of their tightly knit clan.

More proof of the emergence of a government-by-oligarch transformation in Ukraine’s political scene came in February, days after Yanukovych’s departure, when the new government in Kiev appointed two billionaires Ihor Kolomoysky and Serhiy Taruta, as governors in two regions of Eastern Ukraine.

Everything points to the fact that Ukraine is the only country in the region where the oligarchs have thrived, playing political leaders off against each other and skewing the political system to their favor. Were Poroshenko to win the elections, we would see the birth of the first truly oligarchical society in Europe.
http://foreignpolicyblogs.com/2014/05/2 ... t-ukraine/