It will not stop with Crimea. Georgia, Ukraine, Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania have each suffered enslavement, poverty and genocide under Russian oppression and expansionism. Their languages, cultures and national identities were the target of subjugation by Stalin from the mid 1920’s, and the focus of an aggressive policy of russification from the end of WWII until the collapse of the soviet system in the late 1980’s to early 1990’s. Russia does not allow ethnic districts or communities such as a “Chinese Quarter” or “China Town” within Russian territory, yet stresses her right to establish Russian districts in other countries. Ethnic Russians demand that the Russian language and culture are fully adopted within “Russian” districts of other countries. This occurs at the expense of the national language and culture of the host nation. Under the soviet system, ethnic Russians were encouraged to accept the citizenship of the other country while retaining and maintaining their Russian nationality. For the sake of harmony and national stability it is important for all citizens to know and converse in the national language of the country of which they are citizens. Russian is the language of Russia and Russian citizens are proud to speak Russian. Georgian, Ukrainian, Latvian, Estonian and Lithuanian are the national languages of each of those sovereign states. It is important that the citizens of Georgia, Ukraine, Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania take pride in knowing and speaking each of their respectivenational languages. Because of the Stalinist model of russifying the USSR, the largest ethnic minority in Georgia, Ukraine, Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania is Russian. As a bloc, ethnic Russians petition for the Russian language to have equal status with the national languages of now sovereign, former soviet states. Please not, this essay is not about making it criminal to speak Russian outside of Russia – there should be no discrimination against any language in any culture! This is about foreign nationals adopting and respecting the language, traditions and culture of the nation of which they are citizens. With the encouragement of the Russian government and military, treasonous Ukrainian citizens of ethnic Russian heritage forcefully arranged the annexation of a vast area of Ukraine’s sovereign territory. This action was carried out in a manner deemed illegal under international law, and condemned by every nation bar the Republic of Serbia. This action was reminiscent of the primary incursions into the Republics of both Georgia and Chechnya, and their subsequent appropriation by the Russian Federation. Indeed, the swiftness with which the government of the Russian Federation embraced the usurpation of the Ukrainian territory of Crimea, supports the belief that Mr Putin’s intention is to continue, systematically, in finalising Stalin’s policy of russification, and reclaim the territories of the former USSR as part of a new Russian empire.
Posted on: Tue, 25 Mar 2014 11:52:35 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015