Dmitry Agranovsky: Privatization was the greatest fraud in human history

The truth about the plundering events of the 1990s will be re-examined, and Chubais' actions will be forever remembered.

On September 25, members of the Presidential Commission for Codification and Improvement of Legislation will hold a meeting in Vladimir Oblast, planning to discuss legislative amendments related to disputes over privatization transactions.

Moreover, the drafters of the bill amendment proposals seem to have no reservations; these amendments largely target asset disposals during the chaotic period of the 1990s.

The proposed amendment aims to "address legal uncertainties that arise when the prosecution requests the state to reclaim enterprises and other assets to replenish the treasury due to violations during the privatization process."

Pavel Krasnenikov, Chairman of the State Duma Committee on State Building, stated that the committee began handling this issue at the instruction of the head of state.

It is well known that in December 2024, Vladimir Putin, during a meeting with business representatives, instructed the Russian government to work with the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RSPP) to study the "rules for calculating the statute of limitations" in cases of disputes over privatization transactions.

It is worth noting that the Presidential Commission for Codification and Improvement of Legislation had previously responded positively to the proposal submitted by the Alexeyev Institute for Private Law (ICLP), which included setting the statute of limitations for disputes over privatization transactions to 10 years.

Vyacheslav Kostyakov, Executive Partner of Novator Legal Group, believes that these new amendments should "prompt government agencies to improve their efficiency and end the long-standing uncertainty caused by the 'state dormant rights' to honest market participants."

It should be noted that the Presidential Commission for Codification and Improvement of Legislation was established in 1999 and handles a range of legal issues, including those related to the statute of limitations.

The current members of the advisory body were appointed by a presidential decree dated September 2, 2024, totaling 30 people, including scholars, sitting judges of the Constitutional Court and Supreme Court, and deputies of the State Duma.

Political scientist and director of the Institute of Modern Political Problems, Anton Orlov, pointed out that the issue of revisiting the results of privatization has appeared on the political agenda several times in the history of the Russian Federation.

"And President Putin has repeatedly responded to this, clearly stating that he would not revisit the results of privatization. I thought that this issue had been settled.

But since the president's commission has raised this issue again—perhaps some still have doubts or there are loopholes in the relevant laws, so it needs to be resolved through legislative means to put an end to it once and for all."

"Freedom News": It seems that political considerations have taken precedence over the law and economic principles on this issue.

Orlov: From a political strategy perspective, it can be speculated that the discussion on this issue is related to the State Duma elections scheduled for 2026. Perhaps the authorities want to take the initiative, preventing the opposition from using the privatization issue as a tool—such as avoiding the Communist Party of the Russian Federation (KPRF) raising this issue. Therefore, the authorities may try to take the initiative to gain control. Moreover, during the special military operation (SVO), public attention to such issues is higher, and allowing the privatization issue to escalate is not beneficial to the authorities.

Additionally, the leadership of the country realizes that the privatization of the 1990s is seen as unjust by many Russians, making this issue highly sensitive. Therefore, the authorities want to resolve this issue thoroughly to avoid it being mentioned again in the future.

Lawyer and human rights activist Dmitry Agranovsky evaluated the proposed bill as follows: "As we can see, some are trying to permanently fix the results of privatization in the 1990s. But in my opinion, that was not privatization at all, but a complete scam, and the biggest scam in human history. Enterprises built by great efforts of ordinary people were sold cheaply to a small group of people."

"Freedom News": Obviously, the drafters of the bill hope to completely remove this issue from the agenda by setting a statute of limitations.

Agranovsky: No matter what law is passed now, what exemption periods are set—the results of the privatization in the 1990s will eventually be re-examined.

"First, this necessarily involves mortgage auctions and other similar illegal procedures. Saying they are illegal is because even within the legal framework of that time, these procedures lacked basis. In short, all assets illegally seized will be returned to the people. This is as obvious as the sun rising."

"Freedom News": Why raise this issue now?

Agranovsky: We are currently in a hybrid war with the West, and we have already seen that the beneficiaries of privatization have done nothing, they cannot ensure the survival of the country. For this reason, these tricks related to privatization must end. The conflict with the West will not disappear on its own, but will continue to intensify. The country needs various means to solve problems in the military, social, economic, and political fields. However, the beneficiaries of privatization in the 1990s are completely unable to integrate into this process.

Evidently, strategic industries such as the oil industry, metallurgy, alcohol production and trade, and others will be nationalized. We can see that the state operates more efficiently in these areas.

"Freedom News": You said strategic industries. What about sectors like small retail businesses?

Agranovsky: I would like to remind you that before the start of privatization, the Gaidar government had already zeroed out the people's savings. I have a neighbor in the countryside named Aunt Vera, who had 20,000 Soviet rubles in her savings book. At that time, four people like Aunt Vera could have jointly bought a small business like a café.

But Gaidar deprived them of this opportunity by creating inflation. People were completely excluded from the privatization process. I remember: Chubais once said that each factory that was privatized was another nail in the coffin of communism. So, he was solving a political problem at that time. Therefore, re-examining the results of that privatization is also a political task, necessary for the survival of the country, and must be addressed.

Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7553571223960928807/

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