Tens of thousands of Russians demonstrate against pension reform | TIME ONLINE



[ad_1]

Tens of thousands of people protested in several Russian cities against an expected increase in the age of retirement. In Moscow alone according to the organizers, about 100,000 protesters were counted. Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev asked him to resign. Demonstrations were organized by several leftist groups, including the unions and the Communist Party.

The Russian government wants to gradually increase the age of retirement until 2034. According to the study, men will now be entitled to pension instead of 65 years old at the 39, age 65 Women will work until the age of sixty-six and thus eight years older than before. In January 2018, about 46 million pensioners lived in Russia, about 32% of the population. The pension is on average at the equivalent of about 200 euros.

"You can live from the board if you spend money just for food and home and buy something to wear every six months, for more than that," said a protester. A banner said, "We want to live off our pensions and not die at work," was one of the banners. The inscription referred to the low life expectancy in in Russia .

Unionists launched an online petition arguing that in dozens of regions of Russia, the average life expectancy for men is less than 65 years old. "Implementing the proposed increase in retirement age means that a large portion of citizens will not survive until retirement." Saturday, the petition had signed nearly three million people.

The average life expectancy in Russia is about 67 years for men and about 77 years for women. In Germany, where the pension must start at the age of 67 from 2031, men are on average around 78 years old and women about 83 years old.

Announces the day of the opening of the World Cup

The plans have surprised people. Many had hoped for a pension increase, now they should work longer. According to the Lewada Opinion Research Center about 90% of Russians reject the reform. The timing also causes discontent. The government announced the plans on June 14 in the shadow of the opening of the World Cup in Russia. Critics saw it as a "lack of respect for the people by the state".

Parliament also had a dispute over the reform. While the ruling party, United Russia, wielded the law in almost closed first reading, formed in the opposition as a systemic resistance. "It's hard to imagine any other state power decisions that trigger such a unanimous rejection," said sociologist Denis Volkov of Lewada.

President Vladimir Putin has been kept publicly covered for a long time and only spoke in about a month or so. He does not like the increase in the age of entry, but it is necessary, said the president. In 1970, there were still 3.7 workers for a retiree, today, "there would be six employees for five retirees and their number will decrease," said the president. "Then the system will burst."

Authorities announced changes to address citizens' concerns. Some opponents of the reform fear that they will not be able to find a job in old age or can no longer work for health reasons. Experts pointed out that the age of retirement is for many anyway just the theory. According to the Rosstat statistics office, approximately 40% of men aged 60 to 65 and women aged 55 to 63 continue to work despite their retirement. The pension in Russia is a second income for low-income people to guarantee a decent lifestyle, wrote the newspaper Vedomosti .

Experts expect new protests in the fall, with more parliamentary votes on the ongoing reform. But few people trust the subject to mobilize the mbades in the long run. The sociologist Volkov said that the most virulent criticism came from the old opposition guard, which many Russians did not trust.

[ad_2]
Source link