International   

Last Czar rehabilitated

MOSCOW: Russian monarchists have won their years-long battle to have Czar Nicholas II recognised as a victim of Communist repression.

Nicholas II and his German-born wife and five children were killed by revolutionary firing squad in 1918, less than a year after a victorious Bolshevik revolution in October 1917.

Russia’s Supreme Court on Wednesday formally rehabilitated the last Czar declaring that he and his family were victimised by Bolshevik authorities.

The Russian Orthodox Church welcomed the decision, saying it “strengthens the rule of law, restores historical continuity and 1,000 years of state tradition.”

In fact, the court ruling went against the Russian law, which says that only those are entitled to formal rehabilitation who were illegally accused of some crime and indicted.

Bolshevik authorities never moved any charges against Nicholas II and never put him on trial.

In line with the law, the Supreme Court last November refused to rehabilitate Nicholas II and his family, qualifying their killings as premeditated murder, but not as political repression. The rehabilitation ruling is a political move to placate the Russian Orthodox Church, which has canonised Nicholas II, and émigré descendants of Nicholas II who spearheaded the campaign to rehabilitate the imperial Romanov family.

The 90th anniversary of the slaying of Nicholas II and his family earlier this year became the occasion for religious processions throughout Russia.

However, a majority of Russians are indifferent to the last tsar.

Many Russians blame him for clearing the road for Bolsheviks by voluntarily stepping down in February 1917. Nicholas II did not make it to the list of 12 most popular Russian leaders of all times compiled this year through Internet voting.

The list is topped by Prince Alexander Nevsky, a 13th century military leader who stopped the Swedes’ invasion of Russia.

He is followed by writers Alexander Pushkin and Fyodor Dostoyevsky. Vladimir Lenin and Joseph Stalin have also entered the list.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Stories in this Section

Congress leaders sound hopeful
Rice seeks to reassure opponents of nuclear deal
Another U.S. strike in Pakistan?
Iraq takes over control of Sunni militia from U.S.
Hu calls for rural uplift, food safety
Beginning of LTTE end: Colombo
Last Czar rehabilitated
Gorbachev to form political party?
Of faith and pain relief

Copyright © 2008, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu