Yury Luzhkov | |
|---|---|
Юрий Лужков | |
_(cropped)_(2).jpg) Luzhkov in 2016 | |
| 2nd Mayor of Moscow | |
| In office 6 June 1992 – 28 September 2010 | |
| Preceded by | Gavriil Popov |
| Succeeded by | Vladimir Resin (acting) Sergey Sobyanin |
| Deputy Chairman of the Committee on the Operational Management of the Soviet Economy | |
| In office 24 August 1991 – 29 October 1991 | |
| Premier | Ivan Silayev |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Yury Mikhaylovich Luzhkov 21 September 1936 Moscow, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union |
| Died | 10 December 2019 (aged 83) Munich, Germany |
| Resting place | Novodevichy Cemetery |
| Political party | CPSU (1968–1991) Fatherland (1998–2001) United Russia (2001–2010)[1] |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 4 |
| Alma mater | Gubkin Moscow Petrochemical & Gas Industry Institute |
| Awards |                              |
| Signature |  |
Yury Mikhailovich Luzhkov (Russian: Ю́рий Миха́йлович Лужко́в, IPA: [ˈjʉrʲɪj mʲɪˈxajləvʲɪtɕ lʊˈʂkof]; 21 September 1936 – 10 December 2019) was a Russian politician who served as mayor of Moscow from 1992 to 2010. Before the election of Gavriil Popov as the first mayor of Moscow, he also headed the capital in 1990-1991 as chairman of the Mosgorispolkom. He was the vice-chairman and one of the founders of the ruling United Russia party. During Luzhkov's time, Moscow's economy expanded and he presided over large construction projects in the city, including the building of a new financial district. At the same time, he was accused of corruption, bulldozing historic buildings, and poor handling of traffic, as well as the city's smog crisis during the 2010 Russian wildfires.[2] On 28 September 2010, Luzhkov was fired from his post by a decree issued by then-President Dmitry Medvedev.[3]
Yury Mikhailovich Luzhkov was born on 21 September 1936 in Moscow. His father, Mikhail Andreyevich Luzhkov, moved to Moscow from a small village in Tver Oblast in the 1930s.
In April 1990, the new chairman of the Moscow City Council, Gavriil Popov, on the recommendation of Boris Yeltsin,[4] nominated Luzhkov for the post of chairman of the Mosgorispolkom.[4][5]
Following the August coup Luzhkov was appointed on August 24, 1991, without leaving the post of vice-mayor of Moscow, one of three deputy heads of the Committee on the Operational Management of the Soviet economy,[6] which was created to replace the Cabinet of Ministers, which had supported the coup, and became the last government of the Soviet Union.[7] He was responsible for questions related to the agro-industrial complex, trade, foreign economic relations and the social sphere.[4] 2 months later it became known that Luzhkov left the committee due to employment as vice mayor.[8]
Many old Soviet landmarks, such as Rossiya Hotel or Voentorg, were reconstructed or demolished,[9] as well as several old buildings around the Kadashi Church in the proximity of the Moscow Kremlin. Many neighbourhoods, like Zamoskvorechye, were dramatically changed.[9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18] Sculptor Zurab Tsereteli enjoyed Luzhkov's personal support in setting many of his works over the city.
In 1999, in order to improve the housing conditions of Moscovites, Yury Luzhkov initiated a major demolition programme to replace Moscow’s old five-story apartment blocks that were unsuitable for renovation because of the outdated technology used during their construction. 1,722 of them were to be razed by 2010. The authorities stipulated that the apartment blocks could only be torn down and replaced after its residents had been moved into new housing.[19]
Luzhkov's rationale for permanent living place (propiska) registration was that Moscow's city infrastructure could not handle a rapidly growing population. Some of the most blatant limitations were removed by the Supreme Court and the Constitutional Court after a long fight with Luzhkov's lawyers, making the registration process somewhat simpler. In 2003 Privacy International awarded Luzhkov the runner-up position in its Most Egregiously Stupid Award for the propiska rules.[20][21]
In April 2001, 63% of Moscow residents had a good or very good view of Mayor Luzhkov. However, Luzhkov's ratings steadily declined, and according to the latest poll from October 2009, only 36% of Muscovites viewed him positively.[22]
Allegations of wrongdoing by Luzhkov had been made before, but he had been notable for never having lost a libel suit in his career, including against Boris Nemtsov, the newspaper Kommersant, and The New York Times.[23]
Despite the lawsuit history between the two, after Luzhkov’s dismissal Boris Nemtsov said: ‘I can’t help feeling that the current investigation is more of a revenge against Luzhkov and Baturina, and not an attempt to restore a lawful situation. I am absolutely convinced that the main task here is raiding with the help of the State. The goal is to take Baturina's business from her for a pittance. And criminal cases are just the way to do it. It's disgusting to take part in marauding, and I will never do it. Thus, the story of my conflict with Baturina is from now on completely over."[24]
Luzhkov was dismissed by President Medvedev on 28 September 2010, after returning from a holiday in Austria, citing "loss of trust", a traditional Russian legal formula for dishonorable dismissal.[25] In recent years, the Kremlin had consistently been replacing old regional heads, elected during Boris Yeltsin's time, with younger candidates. Pundits had been predicting Luzhkov's imminent ousting for years.[22] The September 2010 dismissal followed weeks of speculation regarding Luzhkov's position, caused by his questioning of Medvedev's leadership.[25] Government-controlled television channels had run programs criticizing Luzhkov's handling of the 2010 summer peat fires and accused him and his wife of corruption.[26] Some observers have seen this as being part of a struggle between Medvedev and then-Prime Minister Putin.[27] Luzhkov officially declared that he had left the United Russia party.[28] Luzhkov had sent a letter to the President on 27 September criticizing Medvedev's policy and his administration's actions.[29] According to the President's press-secretary Medvedev read the letter after the decision had been made but it would not have affected that decision in any case.[30]
In November 2010 Luzhkov gave an interview to the Telegraph newspaper stating that he was sending his daughters to study in London "to protect them from possible persecution". He said that a house had been bought in the West of the city for them. He and his wife intended to visit them regularly.[31] Luzhkov also claimed that the Russian authorities were planning to break up his wife's business empire and that the couple would fight the attempt: "We will not give up. My wife will battle for her business and for her honour and self-worth. That is for sure."[31]
On 1 October 2010 Luzhkov was appointed Dean of the Faculty of Management of major cities of the International University in Moscow.[32] The order for appointment was signed by the president of the university, former mayor (and Luzhkov's predecessor as mayor) of Moscow Gavriil Popov. The faculty of management of large cities was established in 2002 on the initiative of Luzhkov, in the same year Luzhkov became the scientific leader of this faculty and an honorary professor at the university. On the same day, ex-mayor Luzhkov left his former workplace.[33]
On 21 September 2016, Luzhkov's 80th birthday, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree awarding him the Order of Merit of the Fatherland, 4th degree "for active public work".[34][35]
In 1998, as Boris Yeltsin's political troubles grew partly because of the August economic crisis, Luzhkov formed his own national political faction, Otechestvo (Fatherland), to serve as his base for the upcoming presidential election. Otechestvo had the support of many powerful regional politicians, and it gained further support when it merged with another party, Vsya Rossiya (All Russia) to form Otechestvo-Vsya Rossiya. Many observers of Russian politics believed that Luzhkov and his new ally, former prime minister Yevgeniy Primakov, would be likely to displace both Yeltsin and his inner circle in the parliamentary and presidential elections due to be held in late 1999 and mid-2000, respectively.[36] [37]
However, Luzhkov's fortunes turned when Boris Yeltsin appointed Vladimir Putin as Prime Minister in August 1999. While virtually unknown when first appointed, Putin rapidly gained popular support due to a hard-line law and order image and the backing of powerful state-owned and state-allied media and economic interests. The hard-fought autumn 1999 Duma campaign ended with Otechestvo-Vsya Rossiya only in 3rd place. Compromising, Luzhkov and his party accepted integration with the pro-Putin Unity party into the single United Russia, and supported Putin in the 2000 presidential elections, which he won easily. Though still a co-chairman of United Russia, after this Luzhkov became less active in federal politics.
Luzhkov was accused of brutal suppression of opposition protests, and he was widely condemned for leaving Moscow during the smog crisis resulting from the 2010 Russian wildfires. He is also blamed for traffic congestion in the city.[2][38]
In 2002, Luzhkov proposed returning to Lubyanka Square the fifteen-ton iron statue of Felix Dzerzhinsky, founder of the Soviet Cheka. The statue was removed after the failure of the attempted coup against the Soviet government of Mikhail Gorbachev in 1991. Opponents of the proposal collected the signatures of 114,000 Moscow residents against the statue's return.[39]
In 1996 Luzhkov, hoping to advance his political stature on a national level, became the main advocate for a claim to the city of Sevastopol in Ukraine. In December, the Russian Federation Council passed a resolution officially claiming the city, affecting negotiations between President Boris Yeltsin and Ukraine's President Leonid Kuchma over possession of the Black Sea Fleet (housed at Sevastopol) and helping spur Ukraine to seek a relationship with NATO.[40]
On 12 May 2008 Luzhkov was banned from entering Ukraine by the Security Service (SBU) after his statement concerning the legal status of Sevastopol:
In 1954 the city of Sevastopol was not included into the Oblast, the territory, which was transferred to Ukraine by Nikita Khrushchev. We state that this issue remained unresolved.
It was Luzhkov who controversially ordered the destruction of houses built in the Rechnik neighbourhood of Moscow. According to an interview published in the Moskovsky Komsomolets, Luzkhov said that the residents were squatting on land in a "protected environmental zone." Residents claimed that Soviet-era permits to the land, which was set aside as a gardening collective in the 1950s, gave them de facto title over the land the houses were built on and many of these titles were bought or inherited from the original owners; Luzhkov was accused of lobbying the interests of building companies.[9] However, the City Hall claimed that no permissions for private house building on that land were given since the 1950s and that the residents could never claim amnesty because of that. Nevertheless, Luzhkov stated that the city was ready to provide full compensation by offering other land plots in the vicinity of Moscow for veterans of World War II who lived in Rechnik since Soviet times.[41][42]
In 2010, Luzhkov made public his plans to honour Soviet leader Joseph Stalin with ten posters of him in the city of Moscow, for the first time in around fifty years after Nikita Khrushchev's criticism of Stalin-period policies. Liberal critics expressed concern that Stalin was being rehabilitated as memories of his "reign of terror" faded.[43][44]
Luzhkov married his first wife, Marina Bashilova, in 1958, and had two sons with her, Mikhail and Alexander. Bashilova died from liver cancer in 1989. He met his second wife, businesswoman Yelena Baturina, 27 years his junior, in 1987. They married in 1991 and had two daughters, Elena (born 1992) and Olga (born 1994), and owned a home in the affluent Kensington area of London, purchased in 2013 through an offshore company domiciled in Gibraltar.[45]
Luzhkov frequently appeared in public at different festivals and celebrations, and was an enthusiastic promoter of Moscow. His hobbies included tennis and beekeeping. His support for physical fitness was well known, and a statue of the mayor in tennis garb was created by Zurab Tsereteli.[46]
Luzhkov was allegedly a devoted Orthodox Christian believer, often appearing at Christmas and Easter liturgies.[47] A BBC documentary made during the late 1990s questioned this, asserting he was not an Orthodox Christian. When asked why he supported the Church, he replied that he supported its moral teachings.[48] He was friendly with Patriarch Alexy II. In 2005 he was given an award from the International Fund of Unity of Orthodox Christians.[49]
Luzhkov was critical of homosexuality and issued several bans on the Moscow Pride parade, organised by Nikolay Alexeyev. Gay activists accused him of homophobia,[50] and sent their appeals to the European Court of Human Rights complaining the breach of Freedom of Assembly, which is granted in the European Convention on Human Rights.[51]
Luzhkov was known as an enthusiastic advocate of the Northern river reversal project, which he believed would solve the water problem of Central Asia and earn money for Russia.[52]
Luzkhov died on 10 December 2019 in Munich, Germany at the Klinikum der Universität München where he underwent invasive heart surgery. Luzhkov was administered anesthesia and died from subsequent anaphylactic shock.[53]
Yury Luzhkov Foundation was set up in September 2020 with the purpose of perpetuating his memory, work and accomplishments, as well as popularizing his socio-political, literary and scientific heritage.[54] The memorial work of the Foundation was endorsed by a special order of President Vladimir Putin. The Foundation strives to support and develop the socio-cultural and philanthropic initiatives that continue the line of Yury Luzhkov’s work to benefit the citizens of Moscow and Russia, with a particular focus on involvement of younger people into developing solutions for contemporary urbanistic problems.
An award for prominent theatre management was established in the name of Yuri Luzhkov by the National Theatre Award “Crystal Turandot” and first awarded in June 2021.[55] At the festival the Foundation has established a special prize to the “Young Innovator” and awarded it annually.
Long-term cooperation has been established with the International Festival of Scientific and Technological Development for Children and Youth.[56]
Annual scholarship and grant programmes have been established with Moscow universities to honour Luzhkov’s contribution to industry, science and education, including his alma mater Gubkin Russian State University of Oil and Gas.[57][58]
The foundation is an ongoing supporter of the educational campaign “All-Russian Economic Dictation” developed by the Free Economic Society of Russia and pays special attention to supporting young economists: the youngest author of the dictation tasks receives a special award from the Yury Luzhkov Foundation.[59][60]
Together with the Moscow Sports Department and the Russian and Moscow Tennis Federations, the Foundation holds the annual all-Russian youth competition “Tennis Tournament in Memory of Yury Luzhkov."[61][62]
Other sports events supported by the foundation include the annual summer Moscow festival of street sports The BOWL[63] and an amateur tennis tournament “Leather Cap”.[64][65]
