#18 | September 25 - October 8, 1997  

By Edward Limonov

Georgievski electoral district number 52 is a huge chunk of a hot land in Southern Russia, size of Belgium and Holland together. Land is flat, steppe and half-desert. Dry, hot weather. Very hot summer at eastern edge of desert around town of Neftekumsk, less hot summer influenced by the nearest Caucuses Mountains in the Cossack's town of Georgievsk, founded in 1777. The second largest town by population in district is Budyonnovsk, tragically famous for savage attack on it by Shamail Basayev and his band. To the south, electoral district 52 borders Chechen Republic, Republic of North Ossetia, Kabardino-Balkars Republic. On the east it borders Republic of Dagestan, on the north, Kalmykia. In another words it is very dangerous place to live.

I was a candidate for a place of a deputy in the State Duma, one of seventeen competing for it. With a team of about ten members of a National-Bolshevik's Party, I tried to communicate to dry, rigid, archaic minds and souls of population of 52 district.

Previous deputy for Georgievski district was 65 year old redneck named Manzhosov. He was chairman of kolkhoz (collective farm) and member of Communist Party of Russian Federation, that of Zyuganov. He have died of natural death, and my "nazbol" (short of "National-Bolshevik") boys from Georgievsk started to collect a signatures for my nomination as a candidate. When "nazbol" boys have collected more than three thousands of signatures, they called me in Moscow. I have had stupidity to accept. Only when district's electoral commission finally have published a colorful poster with candidates photos, became tragically clear and obvious that only I have a human face. They have all their vices on their chunks of meat: gluttony, treachery, brutality, even on schizophrenic and one suspected pedophile were among them.

That was Aschot Stepanian, militia officer in charge of teenage crime in Georgievsk. Wearing a white suit he cruised district in his fast BMW. Ironically, his young nephew was convicted for a two rape-murders (he raped then killed girl with brick, smashed her head). Nevertheless, Stepanian made a head cause of his electoral campaign struggle against teenage crime. I heard vague rumors that Stepanian is pedophile.

There was also Mr. Pozdniakov, the chief farmer of a district. Suspiciously rich man of 28 years old. Malicious tongues said he enriched himself and his relatives, because as a chairman of Association of Farmers he was responsible for the distribution of state credits to the farmers. In order to please youngsters of Georgievsk he funded a disco every Saturday night in the central place of Georgievsk.

Another competitor was Mr. Bryukhanov, the only "quality" of him that he is married to a neice of Zhirinovsky himself. On September 12, Zhirik arrived to Georgievsk and Budyonnovsk and talked to electoral masses. He said, "One mad writer, Limonov, wants to be your deputy, but he is dangerously mad, that man, his place in a mad-house..."

Mr. Burlakov and Mr. Snekov both were elected to the State Duma in 1993 on the list of Zhirinovsky's Liberal Democratic Party, but both very soon have betrayed Zhirik and left his party in Duma. They both lost 1995 elections. Mr. Burlakov, bald, Fantomas-like head, functionary of a Ministry for Nationalities, strangely enough was a nominated from Barkashov's party Russian National Unity [a neo-Nazi right-wing party-Ed.]. Burlakov advocated very archaic, racist nationalism, tried to please such conservative groups as Cossacks or militiamen. Mr. Snekov, gray-haired old man, proved to be a sick schizophrenic. In his leaflet he printed "Asbuka" (alphabet), a senseless collection of mad sentences. He claimed Peter the Great destroyed Russia because he introduced modern calendar, so he preached return to the old Russian chronology, starting from the day of Creation.

That was above all militia Colonel Mr. Lyashenko. Present on television, on radio waves, on street walls. Some of his political advertising was a motto, saying, "I have already have beaten Chechen wolf in his teeths." As a matter of fact Colonel Lyashenko was a chief of militia in Budyannovsk during Basayev's attack. 150 Russians were killed, 17 of them militiamen. Mr. Lyashenko was fired, went to court to challenge, and two years later was reinstated as chief of police of Budyannovsk. Impudent liar Mr. Lyashenko issued photograph of himself, wearing camouflage, looking dull, with a words: "The power in the mighty hands!" Rumors in Budyannovsk were revealing that before Basayev's attack Lyashenko forced some Chechen businessman to exchange his luxurious apartment for a Lyashenko's wooden house. Lyashenko was nominated from a Congress of Russian Communities. Chairman of that organization Mr. Rogozin helped Colonel Lyashenko in his campaign, they toured together Georgievski district. On September 13, four militiamen of Budyannovsk have attacked a house where lived members of my electoral team Irena Tabatskova and Nikolai Tiagli. Both were savagely beaten and transported to the militia station where they were beaten all night. That savage story is now under investigation of a public prosecutor. During the beating militiamen called Mr. Lyashenko.

All these monsters, and me also, we have lost. To the invincible man, who stayed out of campaign, to the twin-brother of deceased Manzhosov, the redneck Mr. Mescherin, also chairman of kolkhoz and also member of a Communist Party of Russian Federation. What else! Only 30% of electorate expressed his will. 60 thousand voters have chosen Mr. Mescherin. Voters proved to be old, very old, very unconscious old vegetables. My nazbol boys counted only from one to five young voters on each of 309 polling stations. Old sick people have chosen a party of their happy past.

When I just arrived at Georgievsk in the beginning of August I saw the strange burial procession of mafia men (all wearing black pants and black silk shirts). About one hundred of them surrounded by their women hastily transported the coffin to the cemetery. "Bratok," killed by Armenian mafia had a name Edik (Edward). When on September 15 we have left for a Georgievsk train station to go to Moscow, another "bratok" (mafia-man) was killed by Armenians. His family name was Ivanov.