01 / 12 / 2011
Vladimir Putin's 'managed democracy' faces key test in Russia
"Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has trumpeted a system of 'managed democracy' that has virtually guaranteed his party's grip on Russian politics – until now. Russians are expected to turn out in large numbers Sunday to choose a new parliament, after a controversial election campaign that the Kremlin describes as a healthy exercise in democracy but which even participating opposition party leaders denounce as little more than a charade". Read more
By Fred Weir, The Christian Science Monitor, 30 November 2011