"THE CONGRESS REFUSED TO LISTEN to the voice of the country." In defiance of a conservative legislature that had steadily diminished his powers, Boris Yeltsin declared a "special order of rule" in a nationwide broadcast Saturday night. He announced that a referendum would be held April 25, in which Russians, weary of endless political infighting, would be asked whether they have confidence in him and whether they approve a new constitution. Yeltsin warned that the meeting of Congress two weeks ago was a rehearsal for "the restoration of power of the communist nomenklatura." Yeltsin's move drew immediate criticism from some prominent...
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