Obituary: Vasily Selyunin

Vasily Selyunin, economist and historian, died 27 August, aged 66. The first Russian economist to criticise Lenin publicly, in Novy Mir in 1988; he accused Lenin of economic ineptitude, drawing parallels between his policies and Gorbachev's. Forced to conceal his views, he worked for many years on factual reports for Soviet journals. When the climate became more liberal, he advocated radical reform, and served as a deputy in the State Duma.