Russia – a Society based on Patronage and Patriarchy:

Pavlovsk Park near St Petersburg in Autumn

I have tried to explain here before how Russian society works and how the system always requires and generates a strong leader, who is generally accepted and supported by the majority of the population, regardless of how they may act.

Sometimes an anecdote or a practical example is the best way to explain something so I hope the following tale may make some sense of the current situation. I have many good friends in both Russia and Ukraine. Many of the people I know in both countries were mutual friends but unfortunately the invasion of Ukraine by Russia has seen most of these friendships sundered. Most of the people I know in Russia are secretly and quietly appalled by this war but are powerless to do anything about it. This is because the powerful and the privileged, almost universally male, are collectively beholden to the current power structure. Let me explain – a Russian friend of mine, who has done well for himself and is now wealthy, was asked by a mutual friend of ours, a Ukrainian, to condemn the invasion and reject the Russian regime. His response was one of mild amusement. He said, ‘how can I oppose a regime which has given me all I have? Everything I have, I gained during the period Putin has been in power.’ What the man was saying was that if he in any way openly condemned the regime, he would quite possibly lose everything he has, if not worse. He could well be arrested. Having previously lived in a similar regime, our Ukrainian friend even understood.

To take this a stage further, one of the first words I learned in Russia was ‘Krisha,’ which means roof. The reason the word is so common is because everyone needs a roof. Every business, every undertaking, must have patronage from some person more powerful than themselves. The businesses I worked with were in the main connected to the State so the roof was inbuilt. However, I did work for other organisations whose roof was ‘partners,’ in other words, powerful people well connected within the power structure.

The definition of a patriarchal society is one controlled by males. One based on privilege is defined as an unequal society where the more powerful have privileges not available to the masses and patronage is best described as protection or position or favour offered by the more powerful in society to those that are weaker or less privileged than them. All of the ‘roofs’ I ever encountered or were beholden to were males. That’s just the way this society works. People at the bottom of the triangular power structure are beholden to those who are a rung above them on the power ladder. These people will know someone who is a little bit higher, and so on, until ultimately the power structure leads to the very top and the President. I’m not saying this is exclusive to Russia. It’s not – far from it. Many will have heard the expression, ‘it’s not what you know, but who you know.’ There’s a certain amount of that in every society – well connected people can bestow their patronage on others in terms of employment, benefits or privileges. But in some societies it is all pervasive and in Russia it is the very basis of how society exists.

To show how it works and how serious it is, the following tale is a perfect example. A former colleague of mine (we will call him Sergey) was sitting at home in his apartment one evening when his son arrived home in a state of distress. Apparently he had been driving home from work when he had had a minor car accident. He had been driving a Lada and had been hit by a Mercedes. There hadn’t been much damage and while he was adamant that the accident was the fault of the other driver, he stated that he had already been put under pressure to pay $5,000 damages. Within an hour, there was a knock on the door and a number of large dark suited gentlemen called to the apartment. They were very polite but insisted that Sergey or his son must come up with the money by the following evening. There was no direct threat but there didn’t need to be; it was implicit in the demonstration of power. Sergey didn’t have $5,000 at that time so he didn’t know what to do. Thoughts of borrowing the money from friends and relatives was his first thought. Now, bear in mind that there was no legal process here to determine who was at fault in the car accident. The guy with the Mercedes was powerful and Sergey’s son was not – end of story. Efforts to raise $5,000 did not go well – bear in mind, this was the 1990’s and this was a considerable amount of money in Russia at that time, when the economy was still based on a very weak rouble.

Sergey suddenly had an idea. Having spent his entire life in Russia, he knew how the system worked. He thought, who do I know that is wealthy or powerful? After a while, he recalled an old school friend whom he thought had prospered. After phoning a few people, he obtained his old friend’s number. He called and related the tale and asked his friend if he could either (a) lend him the money or (b) intercede on his behalf with the man who had demanded payment. The friend’s reaction was to laugh uproariously. He stated, ‘that clown; that is no way to behave to a decent person; I know the idiot; leave it with me.’ Within a further hour, there was another knock at the door. The dark suited men were back, but this time they had completely changed their tune. They apologized profusely for the ‘misunderstanding’ and stated that on reflection that their boss had realized that the accident had been his fault and that he wanted to pay my colleague’s son $5,000. It was presented in a large envelope and despite protests, they insisted he keep it.

So, as Sergey reflected on his evening’s work, he realised he was $5,000 wealthier as he could get his son’s car repaired for a small amount. The man he had called was obviously far more powerful or higher up the ladder than the one who had demanded the cash. His overriding concern though was, ‘what have I done?’ In other words, he was now beholden to his former school friend and he did not know if the man would want him to return the favour at any time. Anyone who has ever seen The Godfather or similar movies will understand. In the event, he never did make a demand and he reassured my colleague that the favour was as nothing in the greater scheme of things. I subsequently met this man and we spoke about the incident. He explained to me that Russian society is largely based on power and influence but his view was that it was largely benign – he said it was important not to abuse your power or privilege. Fair enough perhaps, but I believe many do.

It brings home to us how potentially difficult it is to live in a society like this. I have heard numerous other stories similar to this one, some of which didn’t have as fortunate an outcome. The key thing to be aware of is, the wealthy and powerful or those in any position of authority are untouchable and the higher you go in the pyramid, they become completely and utterly out of reach; they can only be displaced or censored by those higher than themselves or by the one at the very top.