Darkness at Dawn: The Rise of the Russian Criminal StateAnticipating a new dawn of freedom after the disintegration of the Soviet Union, Russians could hardly have foreseen the reality of their future a decade later: a country impoverished and controlled at every level by organized crime. This riveting book views the 1990s reform period through the experiences of individual citizens, revealing the changes that have swept Russia and their effect on Russia’s age-old ways of thinking. “The Russia that Satter depicts in this brave, engaging book cannot be ignored. Darkness at Dawn should be required reading for anyone interested in the post-Soviet state.”—Christian Caryl, Newsweek “Satter must be commended for saying what a great many people only dare to think.”—Matthew Brzezinski, Toronto Globe and Mail “Humane and articulate.”—Raymond Asquith, Spectator “Vivid, impeccably researched and truly frightening. . . . Western policy-makers, especially in Washington, would do well to study these pages.”—Martin Sieff, United Press International |
Contents
The Kursk | 9 |
Ryazan | 24 |
The Young Reformers | 34 |
The History of Reform | 45 |
The Gold Seekers | 72 |
The Workers | 93 |
Law Enforcement | 112 |
Organized Crime | 127 |
Krasnoyarsk | 182 |
The Value of Human Life | 198 |
The Criminalization of Consciousness | 222 |
Does Russia Have a Future? | 248 |
Notes | 257 |
Bibliography | 289 |
Acknowledgments | 303 |
| 305 | |
Common terms and phrases
aluminum Andrei Anna apartment building arrested asked August Avtovaz bandits bank became began Bezzubov body bombings bribes Buinaksk Bykov called Chechen Chechnya Cherepkov Chernoy Chubais corruption criminal crowd Dagestan death deputy director Doug driver Duma economic election explosion factory firm Gaidar Galina gangsters Grozny hexogen hospital investigation investment investors killed killers Klimentiev Komsomolskaya Pravda krai Krasnoyarsk KRAZ Kursk leader lived Lyudmilla Mabetex Mavrodi mayor metro Mikhailov million Ministry months Moscow Motorin Mozdok murder Nazdratenko night Novaya Gazeta Novosyelov oblast organized crime percent Petukhov Pogranichny police political Primoriye privatization prosecutor Putin raion reformers reported rescue residents result rubles Russian Ryazan salaries September Sergei shares soldiers Solntsevo Soviet Union station Street submarine Svetlana Tanya teachers television tion told took Uralmash Viktor Vladimir Vladivostok Volgodonsk Voloshin vote waiting wanted workers Yekaterinburg Yeltsin Yukos Yuri