Alexandra Ochirova, member of the Public Chamber of of Russia, President of the International Women's Foundation "Women of Russia":
I think that women in the Caucasus are a very interesting topic. On the one hand, this topic is related to the cultures of the peoples who traditionally live in the Caucasus, and on the other hand, to the democratization of society, with education, with a woman's rights in the family. You know, I was in the Caucasus at a difficult time, in 1993-1995, when I was given the honour to be a deputy of the Parliament. I do not see any difference between women of those nationalities which live there and myself. I felt very comfortabe. I think there are some incidents happening there that should concern everybody. For example, when we speak of demographic policy, of the problems of birth rates, we can state that it is precisely there, in the Caucasus, that children are being born and families are being preserved. At the same time, there are quite a lot of educated women there. And definitely, there are traditions which indicate the relationships within families, decision-taking, etc. I think these values are different for every nationality, but most importantly, they are similar in those notions which pertain to life and to what women should fulfil, not only in terms of quantitatively increasing population, but also in terms of levelling the contradictions. I want to say the the status of mother is very high in the Caucasus. And I believe the changes are more superficial than essential. Time always plays its role, and certainly the Russian legislation that guarantees social and legal equality is valid for all the regions of Russia. However, I think women in the Caucasus fulfil a special mission of preserving traditional values, which were originally kept by minority peoples on small territories. These cultures were preserved by women, because men had to fight a lot. And maybe what seems strange to us is natural for these women. Perhaps, with time, our information society will bring to it not just fashion (because many women there follow fashion) and education. God forbid the statistics about violence, misanthropy, infanticide, disrespect to elderly people and so on should happen there. What I remember from there is respect for the mother in the family and the attitude to children. And I think that all these inessential differences are being levelled, because we live in an interconnected world, in one country. Human rights for religious, cultural and civil identity concern both men and women. In my view, everybody should deal with this question on one's own. We should accept it with respect and sometimes with admiration, and, at least draw lessons about how to combine all these values and peculiarities into one country which we must preserve for everybody. When I was being elected a deputy, the women of Ingushetia supported me a lot. Men did too, but women accepted me in their organization, and I still have this ID card... I believe I was a good and courageous deputy, because I tried to have the necessary laws adopted. I still like these women. I have very good memories about his romantic time, when I was on the par with men - and in the Caucasus women always, just like men, defended their motherland and their children. They knew how to live and how to die and how to love in all times. I recall old people standing near the mosque when we discussed the agenda of the Ingush people to be submitted to the Parliament. Dear women, I want you to be happy, to be really happy, to be respected by everybody in power, in society, and in family; to be loved and to be made happy by your children (of whom I wish you have many). And I wish you not to have to remember times of ordeals. I love you a lot. Happy spring holiday, happy day of March 8!
