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Russian lawmakers have presented parliament with a bill that would give Vladimir Putin life immunity from prosecution if and when he decides to step down.
The bill would give a former president immunity from prosecution for any crime committed during his life. A majority of lawmakers should lift the protections. Currently, former presidents are protected for actions taken only while they were in office.
It is the second bill this week that includes special provisions for former presidents, prompting to talk about whether Putin, 68, could prepare for retirement.
Saturday sponsored legislation that would give a former president the right to a lifetime seat as a senator on the Council of the Russian Federation, a position that also comes with immunity from prosecution.
The bills follow Russia’s adoption of constitutional amendments that “reset” Putin’s term of office, allowing him to potentially run twice more for presidency and remain in office until 2036, when he would be 84. He has ruled the country, primarily as president, since 2000.
Political analysts have deviated on their interpretation of Putin’s plans. Although he has paved the way for governing for years, it’s possible he simply didn’t want to be seen as a lame duck as he would be forced to leave terms in 2024 – he was first elected president in 2000, then returned to la presidency in 2012. He has worked largely remote since the outbreak of the pandemic, holding meetings from a windowless bunker and rarely appearing in public.
Presidential immunity played a major role in Putin’s rise to power. Among Putin’s first acts as president was to issue a decree granting former President Boris Yeltsin immunity from prosecution, interrogation and searches of his property.
The decision was interpreted by some as an incentive for Yeltsin – who was later trapped in a Swiss investigation into credit cards issued to his family – to step down and choose Putin as his successor. Yeltsin denied in his memoirs that there was an agreement with Putin. A presidential immunity law was adopted by the Russian parliament in 2001.
The only other living Russian to whom Putin’s new bill would apply is Dmitry Medvedev, who was president from 2008 to 2012 and then stepped aside to allow Putin to return.
The bill will have to pass three readings to the lower house, then to the upper house, before being signed by Putin to go into law.
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