Department of Government and International Relations
Abstract
This study places the 2011-2012 Russian protests within the framework of Eurasian mass-civil mobilisation. Researchers have examined the shared and divergent properties of these events, commonly labelled „colour revolutions.‟ However, research has not employed the experience of the colour revolutions to understand the current civil unrest in Russia. Drawing on existing research, this study generates a „colour revolution‟ framework and applies it to the case study of the 2011-2012 Russian protests. This approach allows the Russian protests to be analysed in relation to „colour revolutions‟ in societies that are geographically, politically and historically proximate. This study finds that the current protests are the immediate result of perceptions of extensive electoral fraud. However, the underlying drivers are gradual socio-economic shifts toward the growth of the middle class, and the increasing predisposition of the Russian government towards a „managed democracy.‟ This thesis concludes that based on the idiosyncrasies and political diversity of the Russian pro-democracy protests, it must be considered a “Grey Revolution” – a mix of colours. Due to these factors it is unlikely that the movement will succeed in its goals in the short term. However, the need for future research to focus on the longer-term prospects of this „Grey Revolution‟ is clear
