MOSCOW -- The statue of Soviet secret police chief Felix Dzerzhinsky loomed before KGB headquarters for years, inspiring Communists and terrifying human rights activists until it was toppled by euphoric pro-democracy protesters in 1991.
Some lawmakers want to raise him up again.Seven years after Russia became a democracy, the Communist-dominated parliament approved a measure Friday calling for the resurrection of the statue that had been a major Moscow landmark since the 1940s.
The measure passed 255-102 after two heated debates that reflected the chasm between those who championed the Soviet collapse and the Communists and other hard-liners who view the Soviet era fondly -- and bitterly lament Russia's post-Soviet decline.
The document says the restored statue would be a "symbol of the fight against crime in Russia."
Crime has become a major problem in post-Soviet Russia, with official corruption, organized crime, murders and violent robberies a pervasive part of life. Russians of all persuasions are deeply unhappy about the lawlessness, and several political parties have tried to harness that discontent.
"Replacing the statue will reassure the nation," Nikolai Kharitonov, leader of the Communist-allied Agrarian Party, said when the measure was proposed Wednesday.
Russia's beleaguered reformers see Dzerzhinsky as a criminal himself.