"Some of the people on top are scared," says the legendary Russian journalist.
As one of the most recognizable personalities on Russian television, Vladimir Pozner is no stranger to the spotlight. But the 78-year-old veteran journalist found himself in the midst of a controversy last month after lambasting the state of justice in the country during his popular show on state-controlled Channel One.
Pozner harshly criticized the abduction and alleged torture of opposition activist Leonid Razvozzhayev, which he said was reminiscent of KGB tactics. He also condemned the prison sentences of members of the feminist punk rock collective Pussy Riot. The October 28 broadcast led to calls for Pozner to be sacked, including
from United Russia State Duma Deputy Ilya Kostunov, and rumors that he
may flee the country. I spoke to Pozner on the sidelines of an event hosted by the Eurasia Foundation in Washington.
For the record, will you continue to host your Channel One show and do you plan to stay in Russia?
The answer is yes. There has been a rumor
spread that my last show was going to be on the 11th of November and
then I'd be leaving Russia forever. [That's] totally without any kind of
basis.
Why did you decide that this was the moment to come out
with such a sharp critique -- and to do it on state-controlled
television?
First of all, it's the only place I can do it if I want
to reach anybody. Of course, I could do it on my site and I could do it
in a magazine that is read by a very small number of people; but if I
want to reach any large number of people, my only way of doing it is on
one of the three television networks that are all, directly or
indirectly, controlled by the government. That's point No. 1.
Point No. 2: I said it because I felt that this was something that had
to be said. I felt that the whole Razvozzhayev story was absolutely
incompatible with even the remotest understanding of a half-normal
judicial system, and I felt that it was important that I speak out
because I am not seen by anyone as being a dyed-in-the-wool opposition
person nor, for that matter, dyed-in-the-wool pro-government. I'm seen
more as being someone in the middle. And therefore if I say something
very critical and very loud, it's prone to generate more interest,
because the others are predictable in that sense.
I guess I'm not. And that's why there was the outcry that ensued.
Do you see any signs of fracture within the Kremlin and a
faction that would perhaps be more receptive to the critical points
you've made?
I find it very difficult to answer that question. You
know, we sometimes see what we'd like to see, but it isn't there. I
don't think there is any real split. I think that basically, Mr.
[Vladimir] Putin is in charge. There may be some differences between the
way he sees what should be going on and, say, what Mr. [Prime Minister
Dmitry] Medvedev does, but this is not a split. This is just normal
human differences.
I'm certain that there are some people in the Kremlin who support my
view, and there are some who don't. But whether it's Medvedev and Putin,
I would very much doubt. I don't know, to be quite frank with you.
You've sounded the alarm on the Razvozzhayev case, but
there have also been recent legal changes in Russia -- relating to
foreign-funded NGOs, the definition of treason, political rallies, et
cetera -- that some say signify deepening authoritarianism. Overall, how
would you characterize the way things are going?
I would characterize them, first of all, by saying that
I don't like the way they're going and I do feel that there's an
element of paranoia. This is reflected in these laws: the law on meetings, which on the surface is a normal law but can be used in a very repressive way; the law pertaining to who is or who is not a traitor -- again, it can be used in very different ways.
And so I would say that definitely there is a danger. There is a danger
here. It's all in the constitution. You don't have to have additional
laws. It's all very clearly said. I get the feeling that some of the
people on top are scared and they're trying to figure out ways to
control people who are less and less supportive of the government --
they believe less and less in the people who are at the top.
Did your sense of that dynamic influence your decision to offer the criticism that you did?
Judging by the reaction to what I said, clearly there
were a lot of people listening. When I talk[ed] about Razvozzhayev and
the KGB in the 1930s, the point I was making, simply, was that when a
representative of the police, if you will, said that [Razvozzhayev] had
confessed, I simply said that the way people were forced to confess back
then, probably you would sign it, too.
I wanted to make that point, because confession really doesn't mean anything if you use torture and other methods. It's not that I think a long time in advance and say to myself, "Well, if I say this, then maybe this is going to happen." Very often I act on gut feeling. I simply feel that as a journalist I have to say this. I just don't really have a choice.
I do think that being free is not a question of choice. You have to do certain things to preserve your freedom or you say, "OK, the hell with my freedom [and] I'm not going to do that." So that's what really moves me. And I think that this is a time when more people are listening. But it could be also dangerous, because different people are listening and some are not so happy with what I've said and some demanded that I be fired.
I must say that Mr. Putin, as yet, has made no comment, and he probably won't.
Have you been under any direct pressure to either step down or apologize for your remarks?
Not only have I not, but when I met with Konstantin
Ernst, who is the general director of Channel One -- and I met [with
him] for a completely different reason -- he began the meeting by
saying, "Well, should I fire you?" And I said, "Yeah, go right ahead! I
mean, we'll really get some hot news there." And he kind of laughed and
said, "I don't know who this stupid guy is, but let's forget about it."
And that was that.
Now, he may have gotten some phone calls, but he, insofar as he relates to me, has never put pressure on me, saying, "You know, I have been getting these phone calls and this is very unpleasant." So I have not felt any kind of pressure.
This post appears courtesy of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.
