Most Russians against allowing revolutions – poll

(Interfax – November 6, 2012) Most polled Russians believe that a revolution cannot be allowed to take place in the country nowadays, the Russian news agency Interfax reported on 6 November.

According to a poll carried out by the state-funded All-Russian Centre for the Study of Public Opinion (VTsIOM), most respondents are convinced that a revolution cannot be allowed to take place in Russia nowadays (78 per cent). The majority of those who share this view are people who consider revolutions to be tragic events (89 per cent), One Russia (United Russia) supporters (85 per cent), supporters of non-parliamentary parties (86 per cent) and those who approve of the president’s work (86 per cent), Interfax said.

The share of respondents who perceive revolutions to be catastrophic for Russia has increased in the past decade from 10 to 18 per cent. Another 17 per cent see them as obstacles on the path of socio-economic development, Interfax said.

Meanwhile, 40 per cent of Russians believe that revolutions in general are unavoidable and have their pluses and minuses while 37 per cent believe that it is impossible to justify revolutions.

Only 15 per cent of polled Russians have positive attitudes towards revolutions, above all, they are Liberal Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR) supporters (23 per cent) and Communist Party (CPRF) supporters (26 per cent), Interfax said. The figure was 10 per cent seven years ago, Interfax added.

Furthermore, 13 per cent of Russians believe that Russia needs a revolution. This view is mainly shared by those who see revolutions as an opportunity for change (31 per cent), LDPR and CPRF supporters (32 and 27 per cent respectively) and respondents who are critical towards the president’s work (27 per cent), Interfax said.

The poll was conducted among 1,600 people in 46 constituent parts of Russia on 27-28 October, Interfax said.