The ruling ‘United Russia’ party organized the first meeting of the Committee for inter-ethnic and inter-confessional relations in Moscow. Experts discussed ways to overcome conflicts and differences as well as pointed out the specific character of such interactions in the capital city. The Head of Student regional association and deputy chairperson of the Russian Congress of the Peoples of the Caucasus, Kantemir Khurtayev shared his opinion on the matter with a VK correspondent.
- What is the role of the current event? What results do you expect?
- I believe that communication between representatives of various national nongovernmental organizations and the authorities is important. We have to establish effective dialogue between participants of interethnic relations and conflicts. However, existed communication is not unique. The communication already exists between them. Today our target is positive work with young people, I mean common people, not with elites, who have gathered today, but with direct participants of interethnic conflict. I think the current meeting is the first step in establishing contacts and development of certain projects, aimed at positive work with young people. We should move from words to action. Young people do not know each other, they are victims of various stereotypes and myths. That is why sometimes they behave inadequately. I think it is the first step in work with young people.
- What tools of work with young people have you already used in practice?
- A lot of them. For example, our nongovernmental organization the Union of Student Communities holds youth forums, where people of various ethnic groups are gathered and get know each other. We organize meetings at universities, acquaint students with intelligence of the Caucasus. They see that the Caucasians are not barbarians, who are presented by the media as lower creatures. These are people, who actively participate in establishing of Russian statehood. On the other hand, we have preventive talks with the Caucasian youth and explain them that even though the city is big, we have social control of them, and their relatives will know all their deeds. It works, they behave responsibly. We carry out various festivals of national cultures, festivals of humor, where young people get acquainted and some interethnic disputes through humor become less tense.
The projects exist, they are implemented by our organization, for example. We deal with it. The thing we need is scaling-up. I mean we do not need to invent a bicycle. Nothing is new under the moon. We always try to find out a new technology, which can solve all our problems immediately. No, we need system work. Today the youth policy covers only 5-10% of the youth. We should involve 70-80% of young people, like it was in the Soviet Union, and there will be no problem. Even if these 5-10% are leaders, we cannot solve the problem of interethnic relations through them only.
- And the last question. Today it is discussed that a wedge is artificially driven between Russians and people, who come from the North Caucasus. What steps should be taken to avoid it?
I have already said about it. Alive relationships. A wedge is driven by imposing of myths and stereotypes about each other. People learn from the media that the Caucasians are bandits and barbarians, thus, the negative impression is formed. The way out is one: alive communication. We held the forum in Dambai this summer, where representatives of various ethnic groups gathered, including, representatives of constructive Russian nationalists. In general we have similar ideas, we have little difference in minor questions, but we all want to live in one big and strong country, we want to live well, we want to respect rights of other people. However, conflicts still exist. It is obvious we are split artificially. Alive communication is the recipe of all problems.
By VK. See video
