President Boris Yeltsin's declaration of "special rule" came under renewed attack Monday, as the Constitutional Court began hearings on its legality while several of Russia's regions said they would ignore it.
In a closed hearing that continued late into the night, Russia's highest court deliberated on whether Yeltsin's arrogation of special powers to break his deadlock with the conservative legislature was in breach of the Constitution.
If the 13-member court were to rule against the president, that would open the way for his impeachment by the country's conservative legislature.
At a press conference Monday evening, the court's chairman, Valery Zorkin, called again for the president to back down and abide by the Constitution. Zorkin had accused the president on Saturday of attempting to stage a coup.
"This is not the Russia of 1917, but of March 1993", he said. "It does not have a Brezhnevite constitution, but a constitution with a principle of the division of powers, a defined relationship with the regions, and a guarantee of human rights".
Zorkin said that because Yeltsin had not yet signed and published his decree declaring special rule, the justices would base their decision on a draft decree as well as on the televised speech the president made Saturday announcing his plan.
Sources in parliament believe Yeltsin has delayed signing the decree on "special rule" so that he can amend its content.
Zorkin said he did not know when the court would reach a decision. A simple majority of the 13 justices is needed to declare Yeltsin's special rule unconstitutional. At least one judge, Ernst Ametistov, was against the court's decision to take the case, Interfax reported.
In a statement released Monday, Vyacheslav Kostikov, the president's press secretary, accused Zorkin of violating legal ethics.
"In this way the chairman of the Constitutional Court has come out in advance and supported the position of one side, thus casting doubt on his impartiality", the statement read.
Yeltsin received further support for his move on Monday from Britain, Japan, South Korea, Ukraine, and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.
But closer to home, several of Russia's regions said they would ignore Yeltsin's decree.
Local authorities in the Kuzbass, Russia's largest coal-producing region and a traditional Yeltsin stronghold, voted Monday to ignore the president's rule by decree pending the Constitutional Court's decision. On Sunday, the semi-autonomous republic of Karelia also denounced the president's decision.
Yeltsin signed a decree Monday aimed at weeding out his opponents in the regional administrations. The measure, requiring "certification" of regional heads, would test their "professional, business and moral standards". He has already dismissed the governors of Novosibirsk and Irkutsk in Siberia.
In his statement, Kostikov lashed out at unnamed top officials who over the weekend made public their opposition to Yeltsin's televised declaration - foremost among them Vice President Alexander Rutskoi.
"The reaction to the president's address clearly separated real supporters of democratic reform from those who - occupying senior state posts because of the president's victory in 1991 - at the decisive moment failed the loyalty test", the statement said.
Rutskoi denounced Yeltsin's move again Monday, saying that he had introduced special rule to hide the failure of "shock therapy" market reforms. He accused Yeltsin's aides of bringing Russia to "the brink of the abyss".
In a development that may be related to the legal dispute, Interfax reported the resignation of Justice Minister Nikolai Fyodorov on Monday. Neither Fyodorov's office nor that of Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin would confirm the report.
Yeltsin canceled a planned appearance at a rally by his supporters in Moscow on Monday, paying last respects to his mother, who died on Sunday at the age of 85.
In a special session on Sunday, parliament had condemned Yeltsin's action - which declares invalid any parliamentary legislation contradicting his decrees - and asked the court to examine its legality. It stopped short of calling a special session of the Congress to impeach the president.
Instead, the legislators said they would wait for the court's decision before making their next move.
Parliament was quiet on Monday, its corridors nearly empty as the legislators resumed their usual work.
The presidium, parliament's agenda-setting body, discussed laws on fishing, autopsy procedures and judges uniforms.
But hardliners said that if the court made no decision by Thursday or Friday, they would call a session of the Congress anyway.
"We hope the Constitutional Court will make an objective decision", said Gennady Sayenko, leader of the Russia faction. "But if not, we will do it ourselves".
Legislators can call a Congress with a petition of at least 250 signatures. The hardline Russian Unity faction, which pushed Sunday for an emergency session of Congress, controls over 300 votes.
In a closed hearing that continued late into the night, Russia's highest court deliberated on whether Yeltsin's arrogation of special powers to break his deadlock with the conservative legislature was in breach of the Constitution.
If the 13-member court were to rule against the president, that would open the way for his impeachment by the country's conservative legislature.
At a press conference Monday evening, the court's chairman, Valery Zorkin, called again for the president to back down and abide by the Constitution. Zorkin had accused the president on Saturday of attempting to stage a coup.
"This is not the Russia of 1917, but of March 1993", he said. "It does not have a Brezhnevite constitution, but a constitution with a principle of the division of powers, a defined relationship with the regions, and a guarantee of human rights".
Zorkin said that because Yeltsin had not yet signed and published his decree declaring special rule, the justices would base their decision on a draft decree as well as on the televised speech the president made Saturday announcing his plan.
Sources in parliament believe Yeltsin has delayed signing the decree on "special rule" so that he can amend its content.
Zorkin said he did not know when the court would reach a decision. A simple majority of the 13 justices is needed to declare Yeltsin's special rule unconstitutional. At least one judge, Ernst Ametistov, was against the court's decision to take the case, Interfax reported.
In a statement released Monday, Vyacheslav Kostikov, the president's press secretary, accused Zorkin of violating legal ethics.
"In this way the chairman of the Constitutional Court has come out in advance and supported the position of one side, thus casting doubt on his impartiality", the statement read.
Yeltsin received further support for his move on Monday from Britain, Japan, South Korea, Ukraine, and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.
But closer to home, several of Russia's regions said they would ignore Yeltsin's decree.
Local authorities in the Kuzbass, Russia's largest coal-producing region and a traditional Yeltsin stronghold, voted Monday to ignore the president's rule by decree pending the Constitutional Court's decision. On Sunday, the semi-autonomous republic of Karelia also denounced the president's decision.
Yeltsin signed a decree Monday aimed at weeding out his opponents in the regional administrations. The measure, requiring "certification" of regional heads, would test their "professional, business and moral standards". He has already dismissed the governors of Novosibirsk and Irkutsk in Siberia.
In his statement, Kostikov lashed out at unnamed top officials who over the weekend made public their opposition to Yeltsin's televised declaration - foremost among them Vice President Alexander Rutskoi.
"The reaction to the president's address clearly separated real supporters of democratic reform from those who - occupying senior state posts because of the president's victory in 1991 - at the decisive moment failed the loyalty test", the statement said.
Rutskoi denounced Yeltsin's move again Monday, saying that he had introduced special rule to hide the failure of "shock therapy" market reforms. He accused Yeltsin's aides of bringing Russia to "the brink of the abyss".
In a development that may be related to the legal dispute, Interfax reported the resignation of Justice Minister Nikolai Fyodorov on Monday. Neither Fyodorov's office nor that of Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin would confirm the report.
Yeltsin canceled a planned appearance at a rally by his supporters in Moscow on Monday, paying last respects to his mother, who died on Sunday at the age of 85.
In a special session on Sunday, parliament had condemned Yeltsin's action - which declares invalid any parliamentary legislation contradicting his decrees - and asked the court to examine its legality. It stopped short of calling a special session of the Congress to impeach the president.
Instead, the legislators said they would wait for the court's decision before making their next move.
Parliament was quiet on Monday, its corridors nearly empty as the legislators resumed their usual work.
The presidium, parliament's agenda-setting body, discussed laws on fishing, autopsy procedures and judges uniforms.
But hardliners said that if the court made no decision by Thursday or Friday, they would call a session of the Congress anyway.
"We hope the Constitutional Court will make an objective decision", said Gennady Sayenko, leader of the Russia faction. "But if not, we will do it ourselves".
Legislators can call a Congress with a petition of at least 250 signatures. The hardline Russian Unity faction, which pushed Sunday for an emergency session of Congress, controls over 300 votes.
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