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RFE/RL Newsline, Vol. 5, No. 187, 01-10-03Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty: Newsline Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty <http://www.rferl.org>RFE/RL NEWSLINEVol. 5, No. 187, 3 October 2001CONTENTS[A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA
[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE
[C] END NOTEKAZAKHSTAN[A] TRANSCAUCASUS AND CENTRAL ASIA[01] RUSSIAN ARMY CHIEF OF STAFF MEETS WITH ARMENIAN PRESIDENT, DEFENSE MINISTERArriving in Yerevan on 2 October on a two-day visit, Russian army Chief of General Staff General Anatolii Kvashnin said Moscow has no objections to Armenia's allowing the U.S. to overfly its territory during preparations for possible air strikes against terrorist bases in Afghanistan, Noyan Tapan and RFE/RL's Yerevan bureau reported. Kvashnin met later with Armenian President Robert Kocharian to discuss military-technical cooperation, the Russian military base in Armenia, and measures to counter international terrorism, ITAR-TASS reported. He also met with Armenian Defense Minister Serzh Sarkisian to review the implementation of the schedule for joint military activity. LF[02] LIBERAL DEMOCRATS ENDORSE INCUMBENT FOR 2003 ARMENIAN PRESIDENTIAL POLLRouben Mirzakhanian, the leader of the Ramkavar-Azatakan Party of Armenia (HRAK), announced in Yerevan on 2 October that his party will back the candidacy of incumbent President Kocharian in the 2003 presidential poll, according to Armenian National Television, as cited by Groong. Kocharian announced last month that he plans to seek a second term (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 10 September 2001). LF[03] SHARP FALL IN FOREIGN INVESTMENT IN ARMENIAForeign investment in the Armenian economy during the first seven months of 2001 totaled $62.5 million, which is 41.9 percent less than during the corresponding period last year, Noyan Tapan reported on 3 October. LF[04] ARRESTED AZERBAIJANI DEMONSTRATORS DENIED MEDICAL HELPPolice in Nakhichevan have refused to allow doctors to tend to persons who were injured by police during an antigovernment demonstration on 29 September, Turan reported on 2 October (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 2 October 2001). Nor will they allow family members to bring them medications. Nineteen people arrested during the protest remain in detention; two of them suffer from diabetes. LF[05] RUSSIAN PRESIDENTIAL AIDE RULES OUT ATTACK ON GEORGIAN TERRITORY...Speaking at a press conference in Moscow on 2 October, Russian presidential aide Sergei Yastrzhembskii denied that Russia is planning to launch a strike on Georgia's Pankisi gorge where Russian officials believe several hundred Chechen fighters may be ensconced, Interfax reported. But he did not rule out the possibility, suggested on 19 September by Georgian Border Guard Commander Lieutenant General Valeri Chkheidze, that Russian and Georgian forces could mount a joint action against Chechen fighters in Pankisi (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 20 September 2001). But during talks in Moscow last week, Georgian Interior Minister Kakha Targamadze ruled out any such joint action in Pankisi, affirming that Georgia can control the situation there without outside help (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 1 October 2001). LF[06] ...BUT INSISTS ON EXTRADITION OF DETAINED MILITANTSYastrzhembskii also said on 2 October that Moscow expects Tbilisi to hand over 13 North Caucasians detained in June after crossing the Georgian border illegally, Interfax reported. He said the men are wanted on suspicion of involvement in terrorist attacks in several Russian cities. Georgian officials had earlier refused to hand over the men on the grounds that their identities had not been established (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 14 and 19 September 2001). But on 2 October Interfax quoted an unidentified Georgian source as saying that the Georgian Prosecutor's Office will probably agree within the next few days to hand the 13 over. LF[07] KAZAKHSTAN'S PRESIDENT VISITS GERMANYVisiting Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbaev met with Federal Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder in Berlin on 2 October to discuss bilateral relations and also the situation in Central Asia and the rising tension in Afghanistan, RFE/RL's Kazakh Service reported. During talks on 1 October with German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer, Nazarbaev argued that the UN should play an "important role" in efforts to stabilize the situation in Afghanistan, according to the "Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung." Nazarbaev and Fischer agreed that the international reaction to the terror attacks in the U.S. must not precipitate a war either between civilizations or between religions. Nazarbaev expressed appreciation on 2 October of the fact that "Germany does not equate terrorism with Islam." Nazarbaev and Fischer also discussed trade and economic cooperation and the situation of the remaining ethnic Germans in Kazakhstan. LF[08] KAZAKHSTAN, KYRGYZSTAN DEPORT TAJIKSInterior Ministry officials told RFE/RL's Kazakh Service on 2 October that in a concerted effort to prevent Afghan refugees from entering the country, since 21 September over 1,000 illegal immigrants, primarily from Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, have been intercepted and deported. Many of the Tajiks did not have valid travel documents; most of the Kyrgyz were engaged in trade or small-scale commerce (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 25 and 26 September 2001). In Bishkek, Deputy Interior Minister Omurbek Egemberdiev told RFE/RL on 2 September that over the last week police detained and expelled more than 300 foreign nationals who did not have adequate documentation. Most of those were Tajiks, but they also included some Afghans. The Bishkek office of the UNHCR on 2 October estimated the number of refugees from Afghanistan currently in Kyrgyzstan at about 1,500, of whom only half are officially registered. LF[09] TURKEY DELIVERS MILITARY-TECHNICAL AID TO KYRGYZSTANTurkey delivered a planeload of $300,000-worth of military-technical aid, including uniforms, night-vision instruments and infrared sights for sniper rifles, to Kyrgyzstan on 2 October, RFE/RL's Bishkek bureau and Interfax reported. Turkey has supplied Kyrgyzstan with military equipment worth $1 million annually for the last three years. LF[10] EBRD TO PROVIDE LOAN FOR MODERNIZATION OF TAJIK TELECOMMUNICATIONS SYSTEMThe board of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) approved last month a $13 million loan to Tajikistan to modernize the telecommunications networks in Dushanbe, Khujand, and Qurghon Teppa, Interfax reported on 2 October, quoting an EBRD press release. Fewer than four out of 10 Tajiks have a telephone, Asia Plus-Blitz on 3 October quoted EBRD telecommunications specialist Izzet Guney as saying. LF[11] UZBEKISTAN RAISES PRICES FOR BREAD, GASOLINE, PUBLIC TRANSPORTUzbekistan increased the price of gasoline and public transport on 1 October by 16 percent and between 20-60 percent respectively, Interfax reported the following day. The price hikes were second in three months; prices rose by 35 percent and 25 percent on 1 August. Bread prices were also raised on 1 October by an average of 20 percent. LF[B] SOUTHEASTERN EUROPE[12] AID CONFERENCE FOR MACEDONIA IN JEOPARDYFrancis Leotard, the EU's special envoy to Macedonia, said in Skopje on 2 October that a donors conference for Macedonia scheduled for this month may not take place because of the Macedonian parliament's delays in passing key provisions of the peace plan, AFP reported. Leotard, referring to the fact that the country's new constitution has not been discussed and that a package of reforms granting ethnic Albanians broader rights has not been passed, said "no vote, no money." He added that "Macedonia is no longer the priority today, and the risk of international isolation exists." The donors conference is scheduled for 15 October. Under the Ohrid agreement signed in August, the new constitution was to have been adopted by 27 September. EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana and EU Commissioner for Foreign Affairs Chris Patten are due in Skopje on 4 October for talks with Macedonian politicians. An unnamed NATO diplomat told Reuters that nationalist Macedonian leaders have become "cocky" since the ethnic Albanian rebels disarmed last week and said the politicians may advocate a return to fighting rather than make the legislative changes that were agreed to in the peace plan. PB[13] MACEDONIA WANTS CROATIAN SUPPORT FOR ANTITERRORIST ALLIANCEMacedonian Foreign Minister Ilinka Mitreva said during a visit to Zagreb on 3 October that she is seeking Croatia's support in joining a regional "antiterror alliance," dpa reported. Mitreva said after talks with her Croatian counterpart Tonino Picula that the alliance would be a part of the global antiterrorist coalition being put together by the United States. She gave no further details on the purpose of the regional grouping. Mitreva also met with Croatian Premier Ivica Racan, who stressed Zagreb's support for the territorial integrity of Macedonia. Racan added that "Our vital interest is peace and stability in the region." PB[14] HAGUE TRIBUNAL INDICTS FORMER YUGOSLAV NAVY CHIEF FOR SHELLING OF DUBROVNIKThe former chief of the Yugoslav navy, along with three other former commanders, have been indicted by the war crimes tribunal in The Hague for civilian deaths in the 1991 shelling of the Croatian port of Dubrovnik, Reuters reported on 2 October. Milan Zec, 58, who retired as head of the navy in January, was indicted along with former navy commander Miodrag Jokic and former Yugoslav army officers Pavle Strugar and Vladimir Kovacevic. The indictment had been under seal since February, but was made public at the request of chief prosecutor Carla Del Ponte. Del Ponte blasted Yugoslav, Serbian, and Montenegrin authorities, who "have had at least seven months to carry out the arrest and transfer of the four accused. In view of the Yugoslav authorities' failure to comply with these obligations, there is no reason to keep this indictment under seal any longer." DW[15] KOSOVA ELECTION CAMPAIGN KICKED OFF WITH CALLS FOR PEACEThe head of Kosova's international administration, Hans Haekkerup, kicked off the campaign for the first province-wide elections since the UN took control with calls for a violence-free campaign, AP reported on 2 October. "Democracy and violence don't go together," he said. The 17 November elections are to elect a 120-seat parliament, with 10 seats reserved for Serbs, and 10 seats reserved for other minorities. Ibrahim Rugova, who heads the ethnic Albanian Democratic League of Kosova, said he hopes the elections will be peaceful and "all ethnic groups will participate." He added, "A lot will be done to make sure there is full freedom of movement for the Serbs, both in the enclaves and other places." DW[16] KOSOVAR LEADER EXPRESSES HOPE THAT ELECTIONS WILL LEAD TO INDEPENDENCEKosovar Albanian leader Ibrahim Rugova said on 2 October in Oslo that he hopes the November parliamentary elections will lead to independence for the southern Serbian province, AP reported. Rugova, the head of the Democratic League of Kosova, said that "the position of the people of Kosova is for independence as soon as possible as a means to calm down the region." He added following talks with Norwegian Foreign Minister Thorbjoern Jagland that he hopes the elections will be peaceful and that "all ethnic groups will participate." PB[17] BOSNIAN SERB PARLIAMENT APPROVES WAR CRIMES TRANSFER LAWThe Bosnian Serb legislature on 2 October passed a long-delayed law to allow for the arrest and transfer of suspects to The Hague-based UN war crimes tribunal, Reuters and other agencies reported. The legislation is seen as removing another obstacle to the capture and extradition of the tribunal's two most wanted fugitives, former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic and his military commander, Ratko Mladic, Reuters added. "Now that the Republika Srpska has passed this law, which we have always asserted was unnecessary, we would like to see concrete signs of cooperation," Reuters quoted a tribunal spokesman as saying. Bosnian Serb Prime Minister Mladen Ivanic said the parliament showed maturity in passing the law, which has been under discussion for months, but he sidestepped a question on whether Mladic and Karadzic would now be apprehended, Reuters reported. Milorad Dodik, a former prime minister and current chairman of the Party of Independent Social Democrats, said his party did not support the legislation because it aims to "shift political responsibility" for cooperation with The Hague "from the government to other institutions," according to SRNA news agency. AH[18] EXHUMATION BEGINS AT MASS GRAVE NEAR CANCARIForensic experts have begun exhuming a mass grave near the eastern Bosnian village of Cancari that may contain the bodies of hundreds of Muslims killed toward the end of Bosnia's 1992-95 war, AP reported on 2 October. A member of the Muslim Commission for Missing Persons, Murat Hurtic, noted that the location is just a few kilometers from the town of Srebrenica, the site of what is believed to be the worst massacre in Europe since World War II. Meanwhile, the remains of more than 240 Bosnian Muslims were exhumed in September from a mass grave in nearby Kamensko, dpa reported the same day. The Bosnian State Commission on Missing Persons described Kamensko as a secondary mass grave, meaning the bodies were reburied there after having originally been buried at another site. According to documents and other material evidence found at the Kamensko site, the victims were executed in the summer of 1995, when Bosnian Serb troops entered the Moslem enclave of Srebrenica and massacred up to 8,000 Bosnian Moslem men. AH[19] INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY ASKS BOSNIANS TO PROBE HUMANITARIAN ORGANIZATIONSInternational civil and military organizations have asked Bosnian authorities to provide documentation on humanitarian groups active in the country and on staff members of those organizations as part of the ongoing fight against terrorism, Hina reported on 2 October. There are suspicions that some members of those groups' staffs are linked to terrorist organizations, the agency added. AH[20] INTERPOL SEEKS WARTIME ASSASSINInterpol has issued an international arrest warrant for the man convicted of the 1994 assassination of police chief Josip Reihl-Kir and two of his associates, an event that helped spark war between the country's Serbs and Croats, AP reported on 2 October. Ante Gudelj was convicted in absentia to 20 years in prison for killing the three men, who were on a mediating mission in eastern Croatia at the time. Gudelj was extradited from Germany in 1996 but released under a Croatian Supreme Court decision invoking a newly adopted amnesty law pardoning most criminal activities during the war. The Supreme Court revoked Gudelj's amnesty in March 2001, after reviewing an appeal by Reihl-Kir's widow, the agency added. Police suspect that Gudelj is currently in Australia, where he has acquired citizenship, AP reported. AH[21] CROATIAN REPRESENTATIVE TO COUNCIL OF EUROPE SIGNS THREE CONVENTIONSZagreb's permanent representative to the Council of Europe, Neven Madey, on 2 October signed three conventions on behalf of his country, Hina reported. The documents include a civil law convention against corruption, a 1992 European convention on film production, and a European convention on the protection of archaeological heritage also dating from 1992, according to the country's Foreign Ministry. AH[22] HEALTH OF SLOVENIAN PREMIER IN QUESTIONJanez Drnovsek has undergone medical tests that indicate he may have lung cancer, AP reported on 2 October, citing the premier's website. Drnovsek, 50, had a cancerous kidney removed in 1999 and has been in poor health since then. Drnovsek, Slovenia's prime minister for nearly the entire time since 1992, is extremely popular and is thought to be a prime candidate for president next year. PB[23] U.S. AMBASSADOR SAYS NO EVIDENCE OF TERRORIST BASES IN ALBANIAU.S. Ambassador to Albania Joseph Limprecht said there is no evidence of terrorist training camps in northern Albania despite reports alleging the existence of such camps that have been trickling in "for some months," ATA reported on 2 October. The ambassador said the staff of the U.S. Embassy in Tirana "tried to find them but they have not found any," the agency reported. Limprecht said that if the Albanian government feels an investigation is necessary, it is within its right to demand such a probe, ATA reported. AH[24] ALBANIA PREPARING TO PRIVATIZE OIL SECTOR IN FIRST HALF OF 2002Citing unidentified sources within the industry, ATA reported that Albanian petroleum companies will "prepare for privatization" in the first half of next year. Efforts will include the evaluation of assets of the public companies Albpetrol and Armo in the first six months of 2002, in order to take concrete steps for the privatization of the public companies, the agency reported. The news agency said that "official sources of the controlling associations of petroleum companies" provided the information. AH[25] PRIME MINISTER SAYS ROMANIA 'NOT YET READY' TO FACE EU COMPETITIVE PRESSUREWhile introducing Romania's medium-term plan for preparing for EU accession, Adrian Nastase said on 2 October the country is not yet "prepared to face the competitive pressures of the EU free market," RFE/RL's Bucharest bureau reported. Nastase said, "It is pointless to play with illusions," and added that the government's plan is based on a "realistic radiography of the state of the Romanian economy." He said the plan's main objectives are "to stabilize the economy and to reduce the gap between Romania and mid- developed EU countries." MS[26] HUNGARIAN PARLIAMENTARY SPEAKER IN ROMANIAVisiting Hungarian parliamentary speaker Janos Ader on 2 October discussed with Chamber of Deputies Chairman Valer Dorneanu and Premier Nastase the Hungarian Status Law, and each side reiterated positions that have been rejected by the other, RFE/RL's Bucharest bureau reported. Dorneanu complained that the law infringes on Romanian sovereignty and that it is discriminatory, while Ader said the law is in line with EU legislation. Nastase and Ader were said to have "exchanged opinions" on the law's opportunity and necessity. They also discussed bilateral economic relations, and Ader said Hungary is backing Romania's efforts to join NATO and the EU. He also met with Hungarian Democratic Federation of Romania (UDMR) Chairman Bela Marko. MS[27] ROMANIAN CHAMBER OF DEPUTIES REJECTS STATE-FINANCED HUNGARIAN UNIVERSITY DRAFTSThe Chamber of Deputies on 2 October rejected two separate drafts by UDMR deputies providing for the setting up of a Hungarian-language university financed from the state budget, RFE/RL's Bucharest bureau reported. UDMR Chairman Marko said he "regrets" the decision, but that the move was "not unexpected," as the UDMR agreement with the ruling Social Democratic Party makes no provision for such a measure. Marko added that the agreement runs out at the end of the year and the UDMR will then have to weigh "its achievements, but also its failures." He said that the launching of the private Sapientia Hungarian-language university on 4 October "is proof that a state-financed university will also come one day." The 4 October event will be attended by Hungarian Premier Viktor Orban, who will be visiting with Oradea "privately." The Romanian Guard and Security Service said it will "take the necessary measures" for Orban's protection despite the visit's private character. MS[28] ROMANIAN FOREIGN MINISTRY CRITICIZES COJA LETTERThe Foreign Ministry on 2 October said it is "unequivocally rejecting" the letter sent by extreme nationalist politician Ion Coja, who protested the appointment of Michael Guest as U.S. Ambassador to Romania, RFE/RL's Bucharest bureau reported (see "RFE/RL Newsline," 2 October 2001). The ministry said Coja's letter was a display of "intolerance" and an infringement on the "right of every individual to private life, regardless of sex, ethnicity or social origin." It said the attitude displayed by Coja was "nonrepresentative, irrelevant, and in contradiction with the traditional welcoming Romanian attitude to foreign guests." MS[29] MOLDOVAN PRESIDENT SAYS TALKS WITH SMIRNOV 'POINTLESS'President Vladimir Voronin, speaking on Moldovan television on 2 October, said it is "pointless" to try to negotiate with separatist leader Igor Smirnov, as he is serving the interests of "the local mafia, which does not want the conflict solved," RFE/RL's Chisinau bureau reported. Voronin said he hopes the next "presidential" elections in Transdniester will signal a needed change. He also said the separatist leadership has responded with "two pages of remarks" to a short paragraph proposed by Moldova as a formulation for granting a special status to Transdniester. Voronin also accused Tiraspol of meddling in relations between Chisinau and the Gagauz- Yeri Autonomous Republic. He said he intends to respect the promise made to Gagauz leaders to bring Moldovan legislation in line with the region's special status, but added that things "cannot be solved in just a few months." Voronin confirmed the intention to go back to the former administrative territorial structure, saying the changes introduced in 1999 by the former government had not been well thought out and merely aimed at reintroducing the structures that had existed under the Romanian administration. MS[30] RUSSIAN DEPUTY FOREIGN MINISTER IN MOLDOVAVisiting Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Vyacheslav Trubnikov met on 2 October with Voronin to discuss bilateral relations and the conflict in Transdniester, RFE/RL's Chisinau bureau reported. Trubnikov said Russia will stand by its pledge to withdraw its forces from Transdniester by the end of 2002. He also expressed Moscow's concern over the impasse in negotiations between Chisinau and Tiraspol and advised that "there is no alternative" to renewing those negotiations. MS[31] BULGARIAN PREMIER'S PARTY ENDORSES STOYANOV FOR PRESIDENTThe ruling National Movement Simeon II decided on 2 October to endorse incumbent President Petar Stoyanov for a second term in the presidential elections scheduled for 11 November, international agencies reported. Prime Minister Simeon Saxecoburggotski made the announcement in Stoyanov's presence. The premier said the decision "guarantees national unity" and "shows consistency in the foreign policy priorities of achieving EU and NATO membership." Stoyanov, who is running as an independent, has already been endorsed by the opposition Union of Democratic Forces. The minor coalition partner Movement for Rights and Freedoms (DPS) refused to back Stoyanov. DPS Chairman Ahmed Dogan said that "Bulgaria needs a new president." MS[32] EU OFFICIAL VISITS BULGARIAEneko Landaburu, the head of the EU Commission's Enlargement Directorate, on 2 October met in Sofia with Premier Saxecoburggotski and parliamentary speaker Ognyan Gerdzhikov, during which they discussed Bulgaria's progress in accession talks, BTA reported. He said he is "intrigued" by the cabinet's ideas pertaining to economic reforms and that "a lot of effort" will be needed to reform the judiciary and public administration. Landaburu said he thinks it is "realistic" that Bulgaria could open for negotiation all of the remaining chapters in the acquis communautaire during the Belgian EU presidency, which expires in 2001. Landaburu also said that during accession talks, Bulgaria must not merely change or harmonize legislation with that of the EU, but also create new structures to implement that legislation. He said he advises Bulgaria not to rush, as this may compromise the process and meet with public resistance. MS[33] BULGARIA EXPECTS HIGH PRIVATIZATION REVENUESEconomy Minister Nikolai Vasiliev on 2 October said he expects at least $600 million in proceeds from privatization next year, BTA reported. He said this figure includes the revenues from the sale of Bulgaria's Telecommunications Company and from the Bulgartabac tobacco holding. Vasilev said that by the end of 2002, Bulgaria will complete the privatization process, keeping in state hands only the Kozlodui nuclear power plant, the Air Traffic Control Authority, railway infrastructure, and a few other companies. MS[C] END NOTE[34] BUREAUCRACY CREATES OBSTACLES TO EMIGRATION OF RUSSIANS FROM KAZAKHSTANBy Nonna Chernyakova and Russell WorkingWhen Valentina Nikitina came to the gates of the Russian Embassy in Almaty seeking citizenship, she was hoping to quickly fill out the forms necessary to immigrate to the Russian Federation, where she has relatives in Altai Krai. But others waiting told her that there are more than 2,000 people on the list, and it will take up to four years before she can pack her bags for Russia. Nikitina's family is among the 5 million ethic Russians who make up a third of Kazakhstan's population. They are typical of the 20 million Russians living throughout the former Soviet republics of Central Asia. Cut off from their ancestral homeland by the breakup of the Soviet Union a decade ago, many now want to emigrate. But although the Kremlin says these potential immigrants would help offset Russia's shrinking population, officials have entangled would-be migrants in a thicket of red tape and worn down their resolve with endless delays. Yet those tactics run contrary to the wishes of applicants and the stated goals of the federal government. And those wishing to immigrate to Russia suffer from unemployment, poverty, and sometimes overt discrimination. For generations, Russia has been gripped by a growing demographic crisis. The Soviet Union lost an estimated 20 million lives in World War II. Tens of millions perished in Stalin's gulag camps. More recently, the falling standard of living, a high abortion rate and an increasing number of one- child families has left the Russian Federation with a population that is falling by some 2,500 people per day. Russian officials say they are trying to reverse that trend. Aleksander Blokhin, the minister for federation affairs, nationalities, and migration, said in July that President Vladimir Putin has approved a plan to attract ethnic Russians from neighboring countries. Blokhin said some 4 million ethnic Russians in the former Soviet republics are now seeking to immigrate, and perhaps as many as 20 million could be encouraged to do so in the future. But Blokhin appeared to be unaware that many would-be immigrants are discouraged by Russian officialdom itself. In Almaty, applicants must line up outside for months in the hot sun or subzero cold before they are even allowed to enter the embassy with their papers. Many feel the Russian Embassy in Kazakhstan has ignored Blokhin's ministry's plan. In August, no citizenships were granted, applicants complained. Individual predicaments sometimes read like parodies of Russian bureaucracy. Flyora Azhnakina, 56, became a Russian citizen in 1995, but officials forgot to put a stamp in her son's birth certificate. The boy has turned 14, and now she can't take him to Russia. "Now they say he should become a Kazakh citizen first, when he turns 16, and then change it to Russian citizenship," she complained. "So we'll have to sit here for four years." Even Russian citizens have trouble helping relatives stranded abroad. Galina Saratovtseva, a Moscow resident, came to Almaty to help her only remaining relative obtain Russian citizenship. Her uncle, 82-year-old Ivan Shevchenko, is a World War II veteran and an invalid who has lived in Kazakhstan since 1948. She has spent four months gathering his papers. "I want to take him with me because here in Kazakhstan nobody cares about war veterans," Saratovtseva said. "All the benefits they had before have been cancelled. My uncle fell down in the market and broke his legs, and for three weeks he couldn't get medical help. Only his neighbors came and helped him." The Russian Embassy wasn't much help, either. The law states that citizenship might be granted for special merits, "but they told me that being a war veteran is not a special merit," Saratovtseva said. Vyacheslav, a 28-year-old driver who asked that his last name not be used, decided to leave Kazakhstan because all his relatives have already left for Moscow and he doesn't think life will improve for Russians in Kazakhstan. "I've got the impression that this year, more Russians have left than in the last five years," he said. "All because there are no jobs." Tsarist troops first conquered Kazakhstan in the early 1700s, and by 1959 Russians, Ukrainians, and Belorussians made up over half the population. The emigration of Russians started in earnest in 1993, soon after the fall of the Soviet Union, and reached its peak the next year, when 300,000 Russians left. In 1998-99, about 250,000 left each year, officials say. The Russian Migration Service estimates that 2 million Russian have left Kazakhstan, though the real numbers may be higher. One of the most pressing reasons for the mass emigration of Russians from Kazakhstan is the status of the Russian language, applicants say. While Kazakh is preserved as the state language, there is no law granting Russian any official status. While most Kazakhs also speak Russian, the list of government professions and positions for which Kazakh is required grows every year. Since the start of 2000, the government has required that all office work be conducted in Kazakh. Another obstacle for Russian workers in Kazakhstan is the rebirth of conservative Islam there, particularly for Russian women, according to ethnographer V.A. Tishkov. In his report, "Russians in Central Asia and Kazakhstan," published in the Moscow journal "Studies on Applied and Urgent Ethnology," Tishkov suggests that "Strengthening the Muslim traditions in some Central Asian countries...will hamper the activity of Russian teachers and artistic intelligentsia... The spread of Islam might reflect on the population's attitude toward women's labor. Russian women who live in other ethnic environments are the most vulnerable." Tishkov added that in Kazakhstan, the situation is better for Russians where Muslim traditions are weakest, as in cities such as Almaty. Nevertheless, thousands of Russians are desperate and want to leave Kazakhstan, where they lived comfortably for decades. "I worked as an engineer in a refrigerator plant," said Nikitina. "Now I can't find a cleaning lady's job. I am still young; I can work. But here we live like beggars." Nonna Chernyakova and Russell Working are freelance journalists based in Vladivostok. 03-10-01 Reprinted with permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
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