Russians See Bureaucrats Profiting From Yukos Affair — Poll

Many Russians do not see any benefits for the country in the so-called Yukos case and expect the authorities to repress more top businessmen, reads a poll conducted by Yuri Levada’s Analytical Center. Poll respondents said that civil servants were pursuing their own financial interests while destroying the country’s largest oil company.

According to the poll, 41 percent of Russians believe that the civil servants are deliberately hampering Yukos’ tax debt repayment and forcing the company to the verge of bankruptcy. 68.6 percent of the respondents were sure that Yukos’ bankruptcy and sale of its assets would be conducted for the benefit of the civil servants and businessmen close to the authorities. The country and the people will only lose from it.

The percentage of people who think that the trial of former Yukos boss Mikhail Khodorkovsky and his close associate Platon Lebedev is biased grew by 6.5 percent in October compared with September. Now, 48.2 percent of Russians believe that the authorities are pressuring court officials to pass a guilty verdict.

Only 10 percent of Russians said they saw an attempt by the authorities to restore justice by prosecuting Khodorkovsky and Lebedev. 35.9 percent of those polled said the reason behind the process was the desire to pass the assets controlled by Khodorkovsky under the control of government-appointed managers. 28.8 percent said the situation was caused by the authorities’ desire to limit Mikhail Khodorkovsky’s political influence.

In October over 57 percent of those polled said they foresaw more similar legal moves against businessmen in Russia.


HERE