On March 21, the fourth German Khodorkovsky Debates will take place in Berlin. The debates will address the stagnation of the political modernisation process in Russia and how it can be revitalised.

One year after the Russian parliamentary elections in 2012, and the spontaneous demonstrations on the streets of Moscow that accompanied them, all that seems to remain of the “Russian Spring” is a dwindling memory. President Vladimir Putin has cracked down hard, undermining ever further the possibility of a strong and committed civil society.  Nevertheless, many experts continue to believe that political transformation is not only essential but inevitable.

Hosted by the Heinrich Boell Foundation and Dr Andreas Schockenhoff (MP), Coordinator of German-Russian Intersocietal Cooperation at the Federal Foreign Office, the Khodorkovsky Debates will discuss the relationships between  economic and political factors and the possibilities of a genuine political opposition sprouting from the seeds of social protest.

Amongst others, Maria Lipman, Chair of the Carnegie Moscow Center’s Society and Regions Programme and member of the organising committee of the Khodorkovsky Debates in Russia, and Sergey Parchomenko, journalist and member of the Opposition Coordination Council, will participate in the discussion.

The Khodorkovsky Debates originated in Russia in 2007 to provide a platform for representatives of the liberal and democratic opposition, from think tanks and across civil society, to discuss trends and to support Russia’s economic, scientific and technological development. The debates have also been held in Germany since 2011.

Event Details
What: 4th Khodorkovsky Debates “Russian Alternatives: After Spring the Long Winter?”
When: 21 March 2013, 4pm to 8pm
Where: Heinrich Boell Foundation, Schumannstraße 8, 10117 Berlin
No registration necessary
Link: http://www.boell.de/calendar/VA-viewevt-de.aspx?evtid=12525