Page 16 - bne_newspaper_June_02_2017

Eastern Europe
June 2, 2017 www.intellinews.com I Page 16
$5bn Moscow housing project controversy sows dissent before 2018 election
bne IntelliNews
Large protests have returned to the Russian capital, not over corruption or vote rigging, but a housing issue that could stir unwelcome trouble on the Kremlin’s doorstep in the run-up to the 2018 presidential election.
An estimated 20,000 people took to the streets to denounce plans initiated by President Vladimir Putin to demolish more than 4,000 apartment blocks built in the 1950s and 1960s, and rehouse 1.6mn inhabitants in new high-rise developments.
Two demonstrations in May – one sanctioned, the other not – came two months after tens of thou- sands of people marched in Moscow and dozens of cities across the country in protest at corrup- tion, with the bulk of the claims centring on Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev.
The significance of the housing marches lies not so much in their numbers alone, but the fact that they quickly forced city hall to make concessions. Putin, whose popularity still hovers around the unassailable 80% mark, stayed above the fray, leaving Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin to hastily draft new legislation to guarantee that rehoused residents don’t get cheated and thrust into remote and less-valuable homes.
Russians are used to grand infrastructure schemes involving vast amounts of money. And since the Soviet collapse in 1991 they have also learned to expect much of the funding to disap- pear or at least end in the coffers of favoured and connected contractors.
A 'khrushchevka' being demolished in Moscow in 2008.
The same expectations will apply in the esti- mated $5bn housing project to replace the so- called khrushchevki – five-storey apartment blocks – built under Soviet leader Nikita Khrush- chev. But rather than financial shenanigans on high, people are directly concerned that their rights will be trampled on by those managing the project over the next 10-15 years.
“At town hall meetings and on social networks, people talk about their constitutional rights, primarily referring to property rights violated by the draconian legislative changes,” the Carnegie Moscow Centre wrote. Moreover, “such musings may easily lead to the conclusion that a govern- ment that violates the Constitution is illegitimate and hostile to the people of its city and country”.
Under the concessions being sent for parliamen- tary approval, replacement apartments would have the “same market value” as demolished apartments, as opposed to simply being the same size as previously proposed. They would also
be located in the same district. Financial compen- sation would be an alternative to relocation. And no longer will those refusing their new home be evicted, and they will have the right to turn down some offers – up to a point.
“We are taking into account preferences if pos- sible. But it’s not that easy – this is an apartment block, not a supermarket with a wide range of goods,” the mayor stressed.
Residents should vote on the fate of their building