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Reuters; BBC. 24 December 2001. Russians' Worries Clash with Putin's TV Optimism; Russians grill their president. MOSCOW -- President Vladimir Putin was upbeat Monday about Russia's performance in 2001 in a live television phone-in, but his optimism clashed with ordinary Russians' concerns about low living standards and slow reform. Putin answered a barrage of questions from his country's citizens in a marathon live appearance, broadcast simultaneously on TV, radio and internet. Russians from across the country and abroad sent in around 500,000 questions by internet and telephone, most of them about low salaries and poor electricity and heating services. The Kremlin's aim was apparently to bring Mr Putin closer to the people, but some observers said his performance was tense and defensive. He took the opportunity to list what he believed Russia had achieved over the past year. "One can boldly say that the past year, 2001, was successful for Russia," Mr Putin began by saying. He said incomes were up by 6.6% in real terms and the average wage had increased by 21%. He said unemployment rates were falling and birth rates rising. But a teacher from the city of Yekaterinburg in the Urals complained that her salary was "comical." And a World War II veteran demanded to know why she had to survive on a pension of 1,000 roubles ($33) per month. A 10-year-old boy told Mr Putin his school in the Siberian city of Irkutsk had been closed for three weeks because there had been no heating. He was worried he might miss out a whole year's schooling if the situation did not change. Putin sought to dispel fears voiced by callers, many earning well below the national average of 3,500 roubles (around $116), that their incomes might be hit by the fall in prices for Russia's vital oil exports. At times he seemed to find it difficult to answer those complaining of poor salaries and pensions, asking them to leave their phone numbers so that he could deal with their grievances later. Only a handful of the thousands of questions that were sent in made it to air. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Barry Stoller http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ProletarianNews ==^================================================================ This email was sent to: [email protected] EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?a84x2u.a9WB2D Or send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] T O P I C A -- Register now to manage your mail! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/register ==^================================================================
