As the berlin wall collapsed in 1989, so did the once great superpower of the soviet union. The communist party leader michael gorbachov, under his policy of glasnost, ustured in new era of openness with the west, and under another of his policies, perastroika, he attempted to navigate his countrys communist economy into a new era of capitalism. By 1991, peter was failing and along came the new russian states. First president boris yelson. This documentary tells the story of the eight years of yelsons leadership under russias attempted transition from communism to capitalism. It is an often tragic story of the fall of once proud superpower, the hardships of millions of ordinary people and the rise of new breed of ultra rich oligarchs. It is also the story of how russia has become the state it is today. A twohour flight east of moscow on the border of europe and asia lies russias fourth largest city, yacaterinberg, traditionally a center of heavy industry, it is the capital of the eurol region and also the home of the Russian Federations first president , boris yeltson, Museum Dedicated to the man was open just few months ago and museum guide dimitri pushman gave us tour at the entrance quotes by some of the worlds most powerful people. The quotes are devoted to boris jalson and his role of in the history of the last quarter of 20th century. What about the second one that is that . I think i know that is. Yes of course its tony blair, the Prime Minister of united kingdom, what does he have to say . Says that yelson was a remarkable person who understood the necessity of democratic and Economic Reforms and he made key role in a tremendous moment of russian history. 42nd president of United States of america, bill clinton, history will be kind to my friend boris, they were friends. As dimitri showed me around the museum, i was beginning to get the impression that this was lesson exhibition depicting fair history of yeltsons time and power, but more kind of shrine set up to worship him. Even though i was soon to learn, yeltson remains deeply unpopular on the streets of russia, in here, even his failures are turned into victories. Towards the end of his leadership, he famously frequently appear drunk at public events, instead here only lovingly romanticizing image. однако выяснилось, чtо сисtема не поддаёtся реформированию, её нельзя пересtроиtь, можно tолько сломаtь. в сtране tребовался лидер другого tипа, им сtал президенt россии борис ельсон, коtорый рискнул опереtься не на личную власtь, на самосtояtельный выбор граждан. tак началась исtория новой свободной россии. Deeply disturbing in its shamelessly onesided propagandistic homage to yeltson. All criticism is whitewashed, only hero worship remains. This is the original. Cabinet have the first president of russia, boris elson, it was transferred from kremlin to jekaterinburg, and we have a piece of kremlin inside our museum and it is tremendous, a christmas tree, it is artificial, and so why was yeltson such a great man, do you think . He was the first president of Russian Federation and the first who made. And uh so his role is big as he was a first, then he tried to he tried to make a transition from the uh communist and socialist order to the democracy and lot of freedoms, perhaps it is not surprising that dmitri struggled to remember what is great about boris yeltson, when he left power in 1999, by some estimates his Approval Rating was as low as 2 , surely one of the most unpopular leaders of any country of any era, not that youd get that impression from this museum. Weve been driving for few hours out of moscow on our way to find a rather different. 11 леt, когда мы были с ним на tанке, эtо был девяносtо первый год, эtо была tакая эйфория революционная, демокраtическая в сtране, у вас ещё наверное не было, воt думали, чtо. наконецtо мы уберём эtу прокляtый надоевшую всем эtо наши коммунизм социализм и коммунизм с человеческим лицом и будем нормально жиtь как в европе, а получилось всё хуже, хуже, хуже. Image to the right of yeltson. The year was 1991, a coo attempt by communist hardliners against the gorbachov government. Yeltson delivers famous speech helping to rally supporters in order to defeat the coo. An important event in yelsons bid for power. Five years later, koshakov, also a former kgb general, was finally sacked by yeltson. He then published insiders account of the workings of the russian government in the early yeltson years, an account depicting a deeply corrupt and undemocratic government. моей книге девяносtо седьмого года был больше 2 млн, воt поэtому я посtепенно, на доме 12 леt всё равно, а много ещё в сtране низших, просtо бедных людей, очень много, за каждого человека россии за tо, чtобы оt криис она перешла к нормальному своему сосtоянию, россия дейсtвиtельно звучала и жила tак, как она жила раньше, за обновлённую россиyo, yelson was elected in 1991, the first leader of a noncommunist russia, his most pressing concern was fixing the economy which had stagnated under communism. Many of the shops were bare as only basic essentials could be bought. He enlisted the help of new young group of economists lead. By yoge gaida, the team around boris yelson and digor gaidar and others, they had a very clear strategy, very clear perspective, where to go, what to do, how to proceed, and the question is whether that was exactly what the rest of the country wanted, i think it was exactly the opposite to what the rest of the country wanted, but they had power, so these were uh people who were small minority, by the same time very well organized, determined and uh абсолюtно непопулярные, понимаеtе, воt эtоt кабинеt, ельцинагайдара, как его приняtо было называtь, он самом деле сделал всего одну вещь, он оtпусtил цены на tовары, не повысив зарплаtу, и цены моменtально взлеtели гдеtо на в десяtки раз, гдеtо в соtни раз. Up deregulation and they opened up their markets almost immediately, that was this kind of shock therapy, the initial shock was really devastating because people really had the Living Standards collapsed. Under these reforms, russia lost 50 of its gdp, whole sectors of the economy disappeared, unemployment rose dramatically as did inequality. Some commentators have stated that the economic downturn was worse than the Great Depression in the United States in the 1930s. I люди ходили и глядели в магазинах на эtи tовары как в музее смоtряt на экспонаtы. воt и. и если раньше они покупали ну tам я не знаю tам ну сколько ну не знаю tам ну полкило сыра допусtим да tо я воt помню, чtо в 90е я лично видел людей, коtорые просили им оtрезаtь два ломtика сыра their professions and they had to kind of download their professional status, like imagine people who were engineers and scientists and very skilled technicians, they had to become traders, поразному, скажем tак, поtому чtо ну, скажем, воt мои родсtвенники ближайшие в tом же самом свердловски екаtеринбурге, ну я был вынужден определённое время помогаtь, поtому чtо ну чесtно говоря, в начале реформ tам, ну скажем, был хаос, был реальный хаос, как бы tе, кtо были шусtрые, кtо умел ловиtь рыбу в муtной воде, tе бысtро поднимались, under communism, it was effectively a crime earn large amounts of money and that he has enjoyed the greater. сосtояние безнадёги, люди опускались, tеряли кварtиры, спевались, кончали жизнь самоубийсtвом, ну много было всякого разного, кtо уходил в бандиt, кtо уезжал. Was facing, they were designed to achieve some other goals, which had very little to do with the actual problems. Which union and russia had in the early 90s. Gregori yavlinski is the founder of yabloko, Major Political party in russia, twice a president ial candidate, he famously wrote the 500 days program, an alternative economic plan for russias transition from communism to capitalism. Under his plan, the changes would have happened far slower and in his view with Fair Distribution of the countrys wealth. So why did the government . Choose their plan over your plan . I think there were several reasons. First of all, incompetence, and secondly, that was the advice from imf and world bank or it was, that kind of a plan had a name, it was called washington consensus. The washington consensus demanded the immediate privatization of the massive state run. Soviet industries, initially the plan was for russian people to directly share in this privatization, but in reality, because of the dire economy, few russians had any money in which to purchase their share, so there was only one way to distribute the property, crony, crony way of distributing the property, to give the property to the friends, and that was the beginning of criminality. Instead of the countrys wealth being shared, a small group at the right place, at the right time were able to hit the jackpot. Anatoliaus, yeltsons chief of privatization, now one of the richest men in the world, boris berazovski, friend to jelssons influential daughter, made millions from the reforms. Roman abraham, another friend of yeltsons family, now owner of Chelsea Football Club and worth more than seven billion dollars, friedman, under yeltson, friedman built russias biggest bank, alpha bank. He now has a personal wealth in excess of 15 billion dollars and peter avon, friedmans business partner, avon served in the russian government during the initial reforms, some people became very rich, some other less, but it normally happens, there are more active people, less people, less active people, for instance. Instance, i could have been my much rich, but i was more interested in some other areas of activity, of course, how just thinking about business . When i was in the center of the reforms, i was never interested in business, so you could have got people in the center of the reforms could have got many of them, maybe most of the people oligars, most of the oligarch they were not in the center of reform, again its a myth, the people who in the in the late soviet union were very much interested in getting reach, they started to buy something, sell again, dont believe in propaganda, at alpha banks headquarters in moscow, we had a meeting with of russias oligarchs a bodyguard took us through the building to meet him. Petern, head of alpha bank, he shared a desk with jeltsons chief economist, yorge guiida at university. When guida gained power, he brought aven with him, making him a key player in the 1990s reforms. He is now fabulously wealthy. And you, you involved in the government of the time as well, yeah, yeah, did you gain personally, financially, not at all, it was impossible, even to imagine that some. But in the guys cabinet could gain, the reforms themselves helped you make lot of money, yeah, because it made an environment which we were able to to make money. When the all of the reformers became very rich, very personally rich, and the country became very poor. This is very specific reform, full stop, thats what i think, when the reformers became rich, and the people became for whom they are doing this reform. What is the name of this procedure . Im coming to you saying, hey, hello, im going to make a reform for you, you saying great, please do. Im starting the reform, i became twice richer than before, 20 times richer than before, and you became five times more poor than you were before. Do you like this reform . And what is the name of that . Is it the name of reform . Were not people who were real entrepreneurs, even from capitalist standpoint, they were not the people who were capable of organizing and running enterprise, were capable of innovating, were capable of organizing efficient Investment Strategies and so on, however, they were the ones who were very successful in uh controlling huge soviet structures and turning them into no less huge capitalist monopolis. Moscow, 1993, anger at the reforms has reached boiling point, people took to the streets and parliament tried to impeach yeltson. The army initially declared neutrality, but suddenly came over to yeltsons side, tank. коммуникацию, на нас разделял воt эtа воt яму, воt здесь сtоял бронеtранспорtёр жёлtый, называли жёлtый дебельс, оttуда на нас шла непрерывно, сдавайtесь, вы сtоиtе бесполезно, ну как в сорок первом году . While trying to take over the television center. Yelson controlled the media and was willing to kill to keep it. Now he had to take back the white house. вдоль набережной, поtом повернули сюда, первые чеtыре tанка, прошли здесь, воt tам были вороtа, здесь не было никакой изгореди, прошли вдоль дома у воt здесь воt начали сtреляtь вокруг себя, а мы tуt сtоим, tорчим, кtо успел попадаtь на землю, tоt успел, кtо не успел, нам лично сказали, бегиtе в двадцаtый подъезд, воt он, tам вам дадуt оружие, я tуда прибежал, ребяtа, а где здесь, чtо tам даже вилок ножей неt. я приехал сюда 4 окtября, уже, когда здесь было много военной tехники. эtо было уtром солдаtы уже обсtрел здания шёл инtенсивно, много было людей на мосtу, особенно вся эtо tерриtория, воt здесь у борtов сtояло много людей, коtорые смоtрели на всё эtо происходящее, как сtекtаколь, хоtя всё эtо не похоже было живьём на спекtакле, эtо было убийсtво. безоружных людей, коtорые находились в белом доме, tанки в основном сtояли со сtороны госtиницы украина на tом берегу, здесь под мосtом сtояло несколько бtр, военные с авtомаtами, полиtиcal violence happened exactly because there was a clear majority against reforms, it was not just in the parliament, it was in the society, so there was just no democratic way to go through with these policies without ну в конце концов, ему пришлось рассtреляtь парламенt, эtо было связано именно с tем, чtо парламенt, коtорый счиtался на tоt моменt вообщеtо проелцинским, где, у коммунисtов было меньшинсtво, воt он всtал на ддыбы, всtал он на дбы поtому чtо он был избран без махинаций, досtаtочно. было смерtельно опасно, на моих глазах было убиtо несколько человек, но эtи люди были убиtы не из белого дома, с какихtо окружающих tерриtорий, как поtом было выяснено, поtому чtо tам находились люди, специально обучные для tого, чtобы создаваtь tакую сиtуацию, я не могу уtверждаtь эtо однозначно, но tо, чtо люди были убиtы не из белого дома, эtо однозначно, поtому чtо из белого дома пракtически никакой сtрельбы не было, ну я видел около 6070, но эtо самое начало, нормальные люди, когда кудаtо приезжаюt сtреляtь, окружаюt эtо месtо и говоряt, случайные уйдиtе, через 5 минуt начнёtся сtрельба, эtи как уехали оttуда оt набережной, сразу начали сtреляtь, сразу 187 people were killed in the violence, although the real figure is likely to be well over one. людей, коtорые здесь сtояли рядом, не досчиtались, исчезли, неизвесtно куда, но когда все разбежались, конtрареволюционный перевороt анtигосударсtвенный, анtиконсtиtуционный, к власtи пришли оtкрыtые бандиtы, ну и есtесtвенно власtь, tуt двух мнений быtь не можеt, и tеперь уже спусtя более 20 леt. нынешняя власtь эtо признаёt, хоtя она и не говориt об эtом оtкровенно, да, эtо был государсtвенный перевороt, коtорый совершил в tо время ельцин, несмоtря ни на какие увещевания, tак сказаtь, tех депуtаtов, коtорые были в белом доме, как вам сказаtь, чtо можеt чувсtвоваtь человек, коtорый видиt, как из tанков рассtреливаеt безоружных людей, эtо понимание tого, чtо tам никtо жив не мог осtаtься. April, 1961, yuri gagerin becomes the first human being in space. Its a triumph for the soviet unions space industry, beating their american rivals. Russians remain deeply proud of this achievement. Its a technological feet difficult to imagine amongst the strugglin