The Russian Congress Turns into a Ruckus

ON THE PAINFULLY SLOW PATH FROM INFANCY TO maturity, Russian democracy last week encountered adolescence. During Day 3 of the Congress of People's Deputies, a dispute over procedure degenerated into a fistfight on the floor of the Grand Palace in the Kremlin, where members of the country's supreme legislature had gathered to decide the fate of political and economic reform. The melee erupted when conservative parliament speaker Ruslan Khasbulatov, tired of arguing with a group of liberal representatives, called on his supporters for help in silencing his critics. On cue, a swarm of his backers descended upon the hapless advocates of reform. Unable to restore order, Khasbulatov adjourned the session for the day.

The scuffle may have ended in a draw, but at week's end the Congress only narrowly turned aside a constitutional amendment that would have stripped President Boris Yeltsin of his powers to appoint a government and seriously jeopardized his radical reform program. Though the "constitutional coup," as one minister dubbed it, was averted, more trouble lies ahead for Yeltsin as the Congress continues this week. Dominated by former Communist Party hacks, the Congress has passed a resolution fiercely critical of Yegor Gaidar, Yeltsin's architect of reform. To save Gaidar, the President may have to sacrifice other ministers and compromise with the opposition on a program that would slow, but not halt, the pace of economic change.