Russian senators have approved a law forbidding heads of Russian
regions to be called presidents. They may, however, choose a term for
their positions according to historical traditions, RIA Novosti
reports.
The variants are ‘head’, ‘supervisor’ and ‘chairman of government’,
the law says.
Regions will have their own constitutions and charters according to
the law until January 1, 2015.
The initiative to forbid heads of regions to be called presidents came
from the lawmakers of Chechnya and Ingushetia. Their legislative
initiatives were viewed as an alternative to the law.
Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov proposed the regional government change
the term. His initiative found support in other republics of the North
Caucasus. The president was renamed ‘head of Chechnya’. The initiative
came into force on November 1.
21 of the 83 Russian regions are republics. There are presidents in
the Buryat Republic, Bashkiria, Mariy El, Tatarstan, Udmurtia,
Chuvashia, Adygeya, Dagestan, Ingushetia, Kabardino-Balkaria and
Karachay-Cherkessia. Tuva and Khakasia have chairmen of government.
Karelia, the Altay Republic, Mordovia, Komi and the Kalmyk Republic
have ‘heads of republics’.
The issue of renaming the regional leaders was raised in 2001 when the
reform on synchronizing the local constitutions with the Constitution
of Russia was in process.
Dmitry Medvedev commented on the statement of the Liberal Democratic
Party of Russia in 2009, saying that the term is secondary. It is a
recommendation issue and should only concern the authorities of the
regions it concerns.
