From August 19 to 21, 1991, a group nostalgic for the communist order attempted to seize power to prevent the fifteen member republics of the Soviet Union from signing a “Federation Pact” that granted them broad autonomy. Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev, on vacation, was held prisoner at his dacha in Crimea. During these three days of tension, tens of thousands of people demonstrated, especially in Moscow and St. Petersburg. In the capital, they gathered to defend the “White House”, the Russian parliament, a symbol of opposition to the regime. A picture of Russian Federation President Boris Yeltsin standing on top of a tank turret and disturbing people is spreading around the world.
The night of the 20th to the 21st ends with the deaths of three young demonstrators during clashes with soldiers. On the 21st, the coup was defeated by Yeltsin’s determination. On the 22nd, Gorbachev returned to Moscow, but his power was wavering in the face of a more popular Russian president. In the following days, Gorbachev resigned as General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU). Prohibited by the authorities of many republics, the activities of the Communist Party were “suspended” by Yeltsin in Russia. Within weeks, the Soviet republics, including Ukraine, declared their independence. The three Baltic republics, whose independence the Soviet Union recognized on September 6, were admitted to the UN on the 17th. The main conspirators were quickly arrested – two of whom committed suicide – and in 1994 they benefited from a parliamentary amnesty.
If he really only started this rebellion, “Prigozhin is already dead, or a cup of hot polonium tea is waiting for him in Minsk”
1993 uprising
From September 21 to October 4, 1993, Russia experienced a major political and constitutional crisis. On September 21, Russian President Boris Yeltsin dissolved the Supreme Soviet, a parliament dating back to the Soviet era accused of obstruction and usurpation of powers. Former parliament speaker Ruslan Kasbulatov and former Russian vice president Alexander Rutskoi have been leading the political struggle against the head of state for months, barricading themselves in parliament with several hundred deputies. The building was gradually surrounded by government forces.
That all changed on October 3 after protests took to the streets of Moscow. Supporters of the “White House” rebels attacked City Hall and the state television center. Clashes between the government forces and the protesters have been going on throughout the night. Boris Yeltsin decrees a state of emergency and decides to storm parliament on the morning of the 4th. Tanks fire on building. The rebels surrender. Their leaders are imprisoned. Officially 150 people died in the violence, several hundred more according to multiple sources. In December, a new constitution that significantly strengthened the powers of the head of state was approved by nearly 60% of the electorate, but the legislative elections held at the same time failed for Yeltsin’s supporters. On February 23, 1994, the Duma (lower house), with a conservative majority, voted for amnesty for those responsible for the 1993 uprising.
In Russia, a riot that lasted only 24 hours: the strange exodus of the man who wanted to “go all the way”.
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