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Trip of the First Lady to Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Russia, and Ukraine, November 9-8, 1997 (Laura) [Binder][5]
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Trip of the First Lady to Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Russia, and Ukraine, November 9-8, 1997 (Laura) [Binder][5]
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Noa Meyer's Files
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Withdrawal/Redaction Sheet
Clinton Library
DOCUMENT NO.
SUBJECT/TITLE
DATE
RESTRICTION
AND TYPE
001. reports
bios (10 pages)
c 10/1997
P1/b(1)
COLLECTION:
Clinton Presidential Records
First Lady's Office
Speechwriting (Noa Meyer Subject Files)
OA/Box Number: 13007
FOLDER TITLE:
The Trip of the First Lady to Kazakhstan, Kyrgystan, Uzbekistan, Russia, and Ukraine,
November 9-18, 1997 (Laura) [Binder] [5]
2012-0869-S
kc964
RESTRICTION CODES
Presidential Records Act - 144 U.S.C. 2204(a)]
Freedom of Information Act 15 U.S.C. 552(b)]
P1 National Security Classified Information [(a)(1) of the PRA]
b(1) National security classified information [(b)(1) of the FOIA]
P2 Relating to the appointment to Federal office |(a)(2) of the PRA]
b(2) Release would disclose internal personnel rules and practices of
P3 Release would violate a Federal statute |(a)(3) of the PRA]
an agency [(b)(2) of the FOIA]
P4 Release would disclose trade secrets or confidential commercial or
b(3) Release would violate a Federal statute |(b)(3) of the FOIA|
financial information [(a)(4) of the PRAJ
b(4) Release would disclose trade secrets or confidential or financial
P5 Release would disclose confidential advice between the President
information [(b)(4) of the FOIA]
and his advisors, or between such advisors [a)(5) of the PRA]
b(6) Release would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of
P6 Release would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of
personal privacy |(b)(6) of the FOIA]
personal privacy |(a)(6) of the PRA]
b(7) Release would disclose information compiled for law enforcement
purposes |(b)(7) of the FOIA]
C. Closed in accordance with restrictions contained in donor's deed
b(8) Release would disclose information concerning the regulation of
of gift.
financial institutions [(b)(8) of the FOIA]
PRM. Personal record misfile defined in accordance with 44 U.S.C.
b(9) Release would disclose geological or geophysical information
2201(3).
concerning wells [(b)(9) of the FOIA]
RR. Document will be reviewed upon request.
BIOS
Russia
President
Boris Yel'tsin
MOSCOW
(reelected July 1996)
Key Ministers and Other Government Representatives
Chairman
Viktor Chernomyrdin
Date of Independence: 24 August 1991
First Deputy Chairman
Anatoliy Chubays
Population:
approx. 149 million
First Deputy Chairman
Boris Nemtsov
Deputy Chairman
Ramazan Abdulatipov
Deputy Chairman
Maksim Boyko
Minister without Portfolio
Yevgeniy Yasin
Deputy Chairman
Vladimir Bulgak
Chairman. Federal Securities Market Commission
Dmitriy Vasil'yev
Deputy Chairman
Viktor Khlystun
Director. Federal Security Service (FSB)
Nikolay Kovalev
Deputy Chairman
Anatoliy Kulikov
Chief. State Protection Service (SGO)
Yuriy Krapivin
Deputy Chairman
Valeriy Serov
Director. Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR)
Vyacheslav Trubnikov
Deputy Chairman
Oleg Sysuyev
Director, Federal Border Service
Gen. Andrey Nikolayev
Deputy Chairman
Yakov Urinson
Head. Government Apparatus
Vladimir Babichev
Minister of Agriculture & Food
Viktor Khlystun
Chairman, Central Bank of Russia
Sergey Dubinin
Minister of Civil Defense. Emergencies. & Natural Disasters
Sergey Shoygu
Central Currency & Export Control Service
Oleg Pavlov
Minister of Cooperation with Member States of the CIS
Anatoliy Adamishin
Chief. Government Press Service
Andrey Nikolayev
Minister of Culture
Natal'ya Dement'yeva
Ambassador to the US
Yuliy Vorontsov
Minister of Defense
Igor Sergeyev
UN Perm Rep
Sergey Lavrov
Minister of Economics
Yakov Urinson
Minister of General & Vocational Education
Vladimir Kinelev
Key Legislative Officials
Minister of Finance
Anatoliy Chubays
Minister of Foreign Affairs
Chairman, Federation Council
Yevgeniy Primakov
Yegor Stroyev
Minister of Foreign Economic Relations & Trade
Mikhail Fradkov
Duma Speaker
Gennadiy Seleznev
Minister of Fuel & Energy
Boris Nemtsov
First Deputy Duma Speaker
Vladimir Ryzhkov
Minister of Health
Tat'yana Dmitriyeva
Deputy Duma Speaker
Mikhail Gutseriyev
Minister of Internal Affairs (MVD)
Anatoliy Kulikov
Deputy Duma Speaker
Artur Chilingarov
Minister of Justice
Sergey Stepashin
Deputy Duma Speaker
Svetlana Goryacheva
Minister of Labor & Social Protection
Oleg Sysuyev
Deputy Duma Speaker
Sergey Baburin
Minister of Nationalities Affairs & Regional Policy
Vyacheslav Mikhaylov
Deputy Duma Speaker
Mikhail Yuryev
Minister of Natural Resources
Viktor Orlov
Chairman. Duma Security Committee
Viktor Hyukhin
Minister of Railways
Nikolay Aksenenko
Chairman. Duma Budget. Taxes. Banking.
and Finance Committee
Mikhail Zadornov
Minister of Science & Technology
Vladimir Fortov
Chairman, Duma International Affairs Committee
Vladimir Lukin
Minister of State Property
Maksim Boyko
Chairman. Duma Defense Committee
Lev Rokhlin
Minister of Transportation
Nikolay Tsakh
September 1997
Power Ministers
Withdrawal/Redaction Marker
Clinton Library
DOCUMENT NO.
SUBJECT/TITLE
DATE
RESTRICTION
AND TYPE
001. reports
bios (10 pages)
c 10/1997
P1/b(1)
COLLECTION:
Clinton Presidential Records
First Lady's Office
Speechwriting (Noa Meyer Subject Files)
OA/Box Number: 13007
FOLDER TITLE:
The Trip of the First Lady to Kazakhstan, Kyrgystan, Uzbekistan, Russia, and Ukraine,
November 9-18, 1997 (Laura) [Binder] [5]
2012-0869-S
kc964
RESTRICTION CODES
Presidential Records Act |44 U.S.C. 2204(a)]
Freedom of Information Act - 15 U.S.C. 552(b)]
PI National Security Classified Information |(a)(1) of the PRA]
b(1) National security classified information |(b)(1) of the FOIA]
P2 Relating to the appointment to Federal office [(a)(2) of the PRA]
b(2) Release would disclose internal personnel rules and practices of
P3 Release would violate a Federal statute |(a)(3) of the PRA]
an agency [(b)(2) of the FOIA]
P4 Release would disclose trade secrets or confidential commercial or
h(3) Release would violate a Federal statute [(b)(3) of the FOIA]
financial information [(a)(4) of the PRAJ
h(4) Release would disclose trade secrets or confidential or financial
P5 Release would disclose confidential advice between the President
information |(b)(4) of the FOIA]
and his advisors, or between such advisors [a)(5) of the PRA]
b(6) Release would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of
P6 Release would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of
personal privacy |(b)(6) of the FOIA]
personal privacy |(a)(6) of the PRA]
b(7) Release would disclose information compiled for law enforcement
purposes |(b)(7) of the FOIA]
C. Closed in accordance with restrictions contained in donor's deed
b(8) Release would disclose information concerning the regulation of
of gift.
financial institutions [(b)(8) of the FOIA]
PRM. Personal record misfile defined in accordance with 44 U.S.C.
b(9) Release would disclose geological or geophysical information
2201(3).
concerning wells |(b)(9) of the FOIA|
RR. Document will be reviewed upon request.
MAPS
EVENTS IN
YEKATERINBURG
Yeltsin orders tsar's bones to Moscow for tests
RTw 11/4/97 4:04 PM
Copyright 1997 Reuters Ltd. All rights reserved.
The following news report may not be republished or redistributed,
in whole or in part, without the prior written consent of Reuters
Ltd.
(Adds details, quotes from governor's spokesman)
By Adam Tanner
MOSCOW, Nov 4 (Reuters) - Russian President Boris Yeltsin on
Tuesday ordered the transfer of the last tsar's bones from the
Urals city of Yekaterinburg to Moscow for final identification, the
Kremlin said.
The order would move all remains of Nicholas II and the royal
family from Yekaterinburg for the first time since they were dug up
in 1991, officials said. Scientists have previously sent small
fragments abroad for tests.
A Kremlin statement said the remains of the royal family,
executed in 1918, would return to Yekaterinburg after experts came
to their conclusions. It said Yeltsin would make a final decision
on the time and venue of their burial in 1998.
The decision upset local officials including Governor Eduard
Rossel, who want to bury Nicholas, Empress Alexandra and their
children at the site of their execution.
"The governor today sent Yeltsin a telegram in which he
expressed his categorical opposition to such a plan," spokesman
Alexander Levin said. "It's forbidden to remove the remains, he
said, to bar, God forbid, even the slightest doubts later on that
they swapped the bones."
The belief among a growing number of Russian Orthodox
Christians that the tsar should be canonised adds further symbolic
value to the bones, which one church splinter group already
considers holy relics.
Levin said the governor would fulfil a presidential decree and
transfer the bones despite his objections. The remains are now kept
in plastic cases in a special room of the town morgue under lock
and key.
The Kremlin statement said the president announced his
decision during a meeting with First Deputy Prime Ministers Anatoly
Chubais and Boris Nemtsov, who chairs a government commission
deciding what to do with the royal remains.
"The president ordered B.E. Nemtsov to move temporarily the
remains of the royal family to Moscow under strict control of the
general prosecutor's office for final identification," the
statement said.
It gave no date for the removal.
A series of tests performed in Russia and abroad have left
little doubt about the authenticity of bones dug up near
Yekaterinburg in 1991.
"On the genetic molecular level, our scientists studied the
remains of the tsar and have reported today a certainty of 99.9
percent that these are the remains of Nicholas II, the tsarina and
the children," Nemtsov told reporters after the commission met on
Monday.
"But we nonetheless need to carry out what I'd call a small
additional test that will take about two months.'
Nemtsov said Yeltsin would decide what to do with the remains
after the commission's final recommendations in January.
Yekaterinburg, St Petersburg and Moscow are vying for the
right to rebury them, but the status and nature of the ceremony of
burial have not been decided.
"Later the remains will be returned to Yekaterinburg and the
president will make the final decision about the time and venue of
their burial after an appropriate commission completes its work in
January 1998," the Kremlin statement said.
REUTERS
PAGE
2
1ST STORY of Level 1 printed in FULL format.
Copyright 1997 Southam Inc.
The Ottawa Citizen
November 5, 1997, Wednesday, FINAL EDITION
SECTION: NEWS; Pg. A12
LENGTH: 453 words
HEADLINE: Russians debate burial of last czar
BYLINE: ALAN PHILPS; THE DAILY TELEGRAPH
DATELINE: MOSCOW
BODY:
The bones of the last czar, Nicholas II, are at the centre of an unseemly
tussle among Russia's regional bosses. Each wants the right to provide a burial
place, which is certain to attract many pilgrims and tourists.
The bones of the czar, his wife, children and servants are lying in the
morgue of the Urals city of Yekaterinburg, where they were murdered by the
Bolsheviks 79 years ago and then buried in an unmarked grave.
The Russian government decided on Monday to transfer the bones to Moscow for
a final examination which is supposed to remove the last trace of doubt as to
their authenticity.
-
it Eduard Rossel, the governor of Sverdlovsk province, which includes
Y
rinburg, said he was "categorically opposed" to letting the bones leave
hi. Serritory, apparently fearing he would lose his claim to provide the site
for their final burial.
If any tests should be done, he said, the experts should go to Yekaterinburg
1,610 kilometres east of Moscow. Mr. Rossel proposed that the Imperial relics
should be buried on July 19 next year in a memorial church, to be called the
Church of the Spilt Blood, 80 years and two days after the murder at the hands
of the Bolsheviks.
He said he feared the bones might be substituted for fakes during their
removal but the real reason seems to be fear that the ambitious mayor of
Moscow, Yuri Luzhkov, would grab them once they reach the capital.
Mr. Luzhkov has offered as final resting place the newly rebuilt Cathedral of
Christ the Saviour, an imposing but soulless edifice that badly needs some top
quality relics.
The third contender for the site is St. Petersburg, where the other Romanov
czars are interred in a vault in the St. Peter and Paul Cathedral. This is the
most popular option, but Mr. Rossel pointed out that the czar had forfeited the
right to burial in the Imperial vault by his decision to abdicate.
The bones of martyrs are held in Orthodox tradition to be miracle-working
but, in the case of Mr. Rossel, the desire to keep these relics owes more to his
desire to place his industrial city on the cultural map.
PAGE
3
The Ottawa Citizen, November 5, 1997
Exhaustive genetic testing in Britain and the U.S. has already established
that the bones found in the 1980s are indeed those of the Imperial family.
e Russian first deputy prime minister, Boris Nemtsov, said experts were
"99.9 per cent' certain of the authenticity of the remains".
Only the Pussian Orthodox Church, which is split on the question of whether
to declare the royal family martyrs, remains to be convinced and is asking for
more tests.
These should be completed in January, when it will be up to President Boris
Yeltsin to decide where, when and how to carry out the burial.
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH
LOAD-DATE: November 6, 1997
Tour Bonum Center
NGO Town Hall Meeting
10-31-97 16:05 From:Amembassy Moscow MCA
+7095
T-663 P.02/08 Job-392
Yekaterinburg TOWNHALL
PARTICIPANTS FOR TOWN HALL ON "WOMEN'S ISSUES IN RUSSIA"
1. Galina Karelova, Deputy Minister of Labor (Russian
Federation), and former State Duma Deputy
Ms. Karelova was the first President of the Urals Women
Association and is one of the most prominent women politicians in
the Urals.
2. Svetlana Gvozdeva, Deputy of the State Duma of Russia.
Ms. Gvozdeva She was the chief accountant aL the one of the first
commercial banks in Yekaterinburg, "Gold Platinum Bank.' Six
years ago, she was elected to the Oblast Duma and became Chair of
the Finance Committee. Two years ago, Ms. Gvozedeva was elected
to the State Duma. She has been to the US under a USIA program.
3 Vera Sokolkina, Excoutive Director, Urals Women Assoclation
and Former President, Pervouralsk Association of Business Women.
Ms. Sokolkina founded the "Success" Center in Pervouralsk to
assist unemployed women acquire the business skills to start
their own businesses. She previously served as the Pervouralsk
City Administration lawyer and continues to lobby for city
programs to support women's entrepreneurship. She has traveled
to the UC under - UGAID P+Y96811
4. Nadezhda Golubkova, Deputy of the City Duma, and President of
"Yekaterina" Center.
Ms. Golubkova is a former teacher of mucic who decided to enter
politics to promote her views on education, After serving in her
local district administration, Ms. Golubkova won her seat in the
City Duma by defeating six other candidates, all men. There are
28 members in city Duma and only 4 of them are women.
5. Natalya Vetrova, Head of the Sverdlovsk Oblast Department of
Culture and former Deputy Speaker of the Oblast Duma.
Ms. Vetrova is a member of "Preobrazheniye Urala" political party
(affiliated closely with Sverdlovsk Governor Rossel). She is a
close advisor to the Governor. She has been to the US under a
USIA program.
6. Galina Kovalyeva, Head of the Department of Finance at the
Sverdlovsk Oblast Government.
Previously. Mr. Kuvalveya was a professor It the Umale Death
Economic University
7, Yelena Korotkikh, Executive Director of "Yokaterina" Center
and Director of the Center of Social Support for Women.
10-31-97 18:08 From:Amembassy Moscow MCA
+7095
T-883 P.03/08 Jub-392
Yelena is an economist by profession and has effectively found
resources to build the activities of the Center in difficult
economic times, She recently received a grant from TACIC to buy
computers to teach women ontrepreneurs how to work with
computers.
8. Tamara Alayba, Vice President of the Urals Women Association
and Rector of the Institute of International Relations.
Tamara is one of the earlist activists of the Urals Women
Association and the first women in Yekaterinburg to head a
university-leve institute She has been to tho UC under a UOAID
program.
9. Valentina Deryabina, Vice President of Urals Women
Association.
Sho io in charge of social welfare direction at the Urais Women
Association and works with women veterans and pensioners.
10. Lyudmila Yermakova, Press Secretary for the Urals Women
Association.
Lyudmila is an independent journalist who has established the
reputation of the Urals Women Association in the press. Lyudmila
will be responsible for a new program on abuse within families.
She has been to the US under a USIA program.
11. Yelena Goncharova, owner, publisher and Chief Editor of the
women's magazine "Mariya" and "Partner" magazine.
12. Larisa Leonova, Director of the "World Family" Center. The
center deals with family issues.
13. Svetlana Kornilova, Staff member of the Governor's
Information Department and member of the Urals Women Association.
she has a degree in political science. She has been to the US
under a USIA program.
14. Yevgeniya Barazgova, President of "Women of Russia" Research
Center. She is a professor of sociology and the initiator of a
budding women's studies program at the State University She has
been to the US under a USIA program.
15. Yelena Tishchenko, Head of the Regional organization
"Christian Women.' Yelena unites women from different religious
confessions and works for prisoner's, particularly women
prisoner's, rights. She is also the Head of the Religious
Council of Trustees for the Methodist Church, "Return" in
Yekaterinburg. "Return" has a sister church relationship with
Pulaski Heights Methodist Church in Little Rock.
16. Dina Salokhina, Chairperson of the Yekaterinburg Committee of
Soldier's Mothers. She participates in the Presidential
10-31-97 16:07 From:Amembassy Moscow MCA
+7095
T-663 P.04/08 Job-392
Commission for the release of Urale prisoners of way. Many of
the soldiers who have fought in Chechnya are from the Urals.
17. Yelena Maksimova, Director of the "Stone Crafts" jewolery and
souvenir shops. She started this private business in 1992
despite serious economic obstacles.
18. niga Zinovyeva, Director of "Gold Marzipan" bakery. Olga
donated her own apartment for the bakery to get a start. They
are now starting their own production line.
19. Valentina Samsonova, Director of the Womens Entrepreneurship
Support Fund. This private fund assists businesswomen. The most
recent project was & Liade falr, "Women in Business" (October 26-
29. Yekaterinhurg) Several dozon companies were represented.
20. Irina Varganova, Director of "Style" company. She started
her clothing business in 1992 with a small bank credit with a 120
percent annual interest rate, but has overcome the obstacles to
create one of the more successful local clothing marketero.
21. Oksana Volgina, Director of design studio "T". Oksana worked
as a scientific researcher at the Technological Insitute, but
resigned four years ago because of the low and irregular pay.
She started her own clothing manufacturing business despite not
having any business experience. Her firm now employees 30 people
in manufacturing their trademarked material and designing
clothes. Their products are marketed in the Urals, Siberia and
Moscow.
22. Natalya Bykova, Director of "Mariya" supermarket. "Mariya"
was one of the first large supermarkets to open in Yekaterinburg.
Natalya has opened several related businesses such as a fast food
rafe. 2 resfaunant and a 04 hour food mail.
23. olga Katayeva, Director of "Ideal Service" trade firm
24, Tatyana Kukovyakina, Director of the City Center "Success",
Pervouralsk, Sverdlovsk Oblast
25. Tatyana Belanova, Director of the Informational Analytical
Center "Success", Pervouraler, Swerdlovok Oblast
26. Natalya Guseva, President of the League of Business Women,
Chelyabinsk
27. Galina Volgina, City adminiotyation smployee, Seronc
Sverdlovsk Oblast
28. Lyudmila Novikova, member of the Urals Women Association,
Verkhnyaya Pyshma, Sverdlovsk Oblast
20. Galina Bessonova, President of the Business Womens
Association in Revda, Sverdlovsk Oblast. Ms. Bessonova is also
10-31-97
16:08
From: Amembassy Moscow MCA
+7095
T-663 P.05/08 Job-392
the Director of the Rehabilitation Center for Women. She ran for
Mayor of Revda last year.
30. Yelena Perelygina, Vice President of Business Women
Confederation and Director of the Urals College of Economics.
Opening of USIA Exhibit
YEKATERINBURG: FINE ARTS MUSEUM
SCENESETTER
The First Lady will arrive with Mrs. Yeltsin and the Governor
and be greeted by the Museum Director. A brief tour of the
exhibit will follow, including the highlights of the Museum's
permanent collection. The First Lady will say a few words to
open the "Tamarind Impressions" exhibit.
The Fine Arts Museum is Yekaterinburg's most well-known museum.
It is a modern glass and concrete building located in
Yekaterinburg's so-called historical square on a river bank
across from the site of the city's first mint. The Museum is a
two-minute drive from the city's central square.
BACKGROUND
The Fine Arts Museum is known for its collection of cast iron
sculptures unique to the Urals region. The sculptures are made
at the Kasli factory in the city in the city of Chelyabinsk
about two hours drive south of Yekaterinburg. The most
prominent exhibit is the large "Kisli Pavilion," which was shown
at the 1900 World Exhibition in Paris. The Kasli Pavilion is an
elaborate, cube-shaped frame covered by a series of decorative
cast-iron panels painted black and gold. It is over one story
tall and provides one of city's most recognizable backgrounds
for a photo-op.
The U.S. Exhibit "Tamarind Impressions" consists of 39
lithographs by 22 American artists. Eight of the artists are
women and two are Native Americans. The eclectic collection
contains colorful lithographs depicting abstract and realistic
subjects. All of the lithographs are original works of art.
The purpose of the exhibit is to showcase the creativity of a
unique American workshop, the Tamarind Institute, where artists
and printers collaborate to produce works of art. The Tamarind
Institute has been a driving force in the revival of American
lithography since its opening in 1960 in Hollywood. California.
It is now located in Albuquerque at the University of New
Mexico. The USIA-funded traveling exhibit has also been
displayed in Vladivostok.
PARTICIPANTS
TBD
2
TALKING POINTS
I am pleased to see that friendship between our two countries
is thriving on many levels. The cultural exchange that is
represented here is a clear indication of this new
understanding. This is the second noteworthy exhibit of U.S.
art displayed here, and I am sure that it is not the last.
The number of cultural opportunities available to Russians and
Americans alike a manifold in a climate of political openness.
Indeed, art reflects the openness of a society: when freedom
of expression is not hindered, the desire to express oneself
can be fulfilled and art forms flourish.
It is wonderful to see the images of one on America's most
beautiful regions, California and the Southwest, displayed in
one of Russia's most beautiful.
American
Community Event
YEKATERINBURG: AMERICAN COMMUNITY EVENT
SCENESETTER
The American Community will meet with the First Lady in the Fine
Arts Museum immediately following the opening of the U.S.
exhibit.
PARTICIPANTS
All official Americans (20-25), plus two American
representatives from each NGO, church or business operating in
Yekaterinburg will participate. This would bring the total to
45-60 people.
Reception Hosted by
Governor Eduard Rossel
YEKATERINBURG: GOVERNOR'S RESIDENCE
SCENESETTER
Mrs. Clinton will pay a courtesy call to the newly renovated
Governor's mansion. After a brief private session with Governor
Rossel, there will be a stand-up reception with light hors
d'oeuvres in one of the large rooms in the 19th century mansion.
BACKGROUND
The Governor's residence is a three-story mansion surrounded by
a perimeter wall. It is a two minute drive from the city's
center.
PARTICIPANTS
Mrs. Yeltsin
Governor Rossel
Deputy Mayor
TBD
TALKING POINTS
I am impressed with the intellectual and economic vibrance of
Yekaterinburg.
While in Russia, I have seen numerous examples of what the
Russian and American people can achieve when we cooperate.
I appreciate the efforts you have made to allow U.S. -Russian
contacts to grow in a number of spheres in this region, and
count on your help in making these ties stronger.
Note: The question of where the last Czar's and the Royal
Family's remains should be re-interred and related issues are
very contentious at the moment. It would be politic to stay
away from this subject.
Symphony Opening
Night Performance
YEKATERINBURG: SYMPHONY PHILHARMONIC HALL
SCENESETTER
The evening at the Philharmonic will mark the re-opening of the
newly renovated interior of one of Yekaterinburg's premiere
cultural institutions. The opening was coincidentally scheduled
for the same day as the visit of the First Lady. The governor
would be expected to preside at this opening in his role as the
Patron of the Charity Fund in Support of the Ural Academic
Philharmonic Orchestra.
For this reason the attendance of the First Lady is appropriate
and provides a second opportunity, after the Arts Museum, to
emphasize that the performing arts can prosper in a market
economy and that the opening of Yekaterinburg to the world has
benefited cultural institutions, in particular the Philharmonic,
through expanded contacts with America and the rest of the
world.
The orchestra will be led by guest conductor, Rene Gulikers of
Waddinxvee, the Netherlands. The Kingdom of the Netherlands is
funding his participation. The soloist will be pianist Vladimir
Mishchuk from Moscow. The program will be Bruckner, Ravel,
Piper, in the first half and Beethoven's Symphony No. 8 in the
second half.
The First Lady and the American delegation would arrive together
with Mrs. Yeltsin and Governor Rossel. The audience, expected
to number over 600, will have been seated one hour earlier for a
lecture on the music. Tentatively, we expect the Governor to
use the opportunity to address the audience. The First Lady
will not be expected to make remarks. Journalists will be
allowed to film until the beginning of concert. There will be
an intermission during which the Director of the Philharmonic
will probably invite the First Lady to the guest lounge to offer
a drink and introduce her to the Conductor of the Philharmonic
and other key people. We hope to include four young
Yekaterinburg musicians who toured the United States and Russia
as part of the American-Russian Youth Orchestra in June-July
1997. Mrs. Clinton and Mrs. Yeltsin are the honorary
chairpersons of the Youth Orchestra.
2
BACKGROUND
The Ural Academic Philharmonic Orchestra was founded in 1936 and
is housed in the building of the pre-revolutionary Yekaterinburg
Public Assembly. It is the only professional philharmonic
orchestra in the Urals. The Orchestra developed quickly in the
early 1940's when noted musicians and conductors performed with
the Orchestra during the evacuation of Moscow. The Philharmonic
is now completing a 6-month long, million dollar renovation of
the interior of this historic building and will reopen its doors
November 15. The building was designed in 1914 as a concert
hall for the pre-revolutionary Public Assembly. The Public
Assembly consisted of noted members of society interested in
supporting the cultural and intellectual development of the
city. The building was completed, but never fully occupied and
the Public Assembly was dissolved in 1917. The building was
used as a Business Club until 1936. The building was designed
in classical motifs from the early part of the century. The
foyer includes newly restored murals of communist workers from
the 1920's.
The Orchestra has hosted many famous musicians and composers
over the years including Dmitriy Shostakovich, Khachaturyan,
Oistrakh, Kogan, Rostropovich and Rozhdestvenskiy. Several of
their former conductors have moved on to the leading orchestras
of Russia, including Gergiyev at the Mariinskiy Theater in St.
Petersburg and Chistyakov at the Bolshoy Theater in Moscow.
More than any other cultural institution in town, the
Philharmonic has developed close ties with the United States
since the opening of the city to foreigners in 1991. The
Artistic Director and Conductor of the Boston Opera Company,
Sarah Caldwell, first visited Yekaterinburg in January 1993 as
part of a festival of American music titled, "From the New
World." Ms. Caldwell has returned to Yekaterinburg eleven times
since then for dozens of concerts with many American vocal and
solo instrumental performers.
The American-Russian Youth Orchestra, chaired by Mrs. Clinton
and Mrs. Yeltsin since 1993, has included the Yekaterinburg
musicians in their last two tours. The Philharmonic Orchestra
conductor, Dmitriy Liss, was the ARYO co-conductor for the 1997
tour, performing to a standing room only hall for the final July
1997 concert of the tour in Yekaterinburg. The American co-
conductor, Mark Mandarindo, will return in January 1998 as guest
conductor. In August 1994, the Director of the Philharmonic,
Alexander Koloturskiy, was one of nine Yekaterinburg arts
3
managers to spend a month in the United States at the invitation
of the United States Information Agency to learn more about arts
management in a market economy. As a result, he has introduced
significant changes, including a new season ticket system and a
Board of Trustees.
PARTICIPANTS
Mrs. Yeltsin
Governor Rossel
Guest Conductor, Rene Gulikers of Waddinxvee, the Netherlands
The Director of the Philharmonic
The Conductor of the Philharmonic
Pianist Vladimir Mishchuk of Moscow
Four young Yekaterinburg musicians
Private Dinner
with Mrs. Yeltsin
YEKATERINBURG: PRIVATE DINNER WITH MRS. YELTSIN
SCENESETTER
This will be Mrs. Yeltsin's opportunity to formally welcome the
First Lady to Russia. The meal will be served in the dinning
room of the dacha where Mrs. Clinton will be staying.
PARTICIPANTS
Mrs. Yeltsin
others TBD
TALKING POINTS
My sincerest congratulations on the birth of your new
grandson. Bill and I were delighted to hear that both mother
and son are healthy.
Bill told me about his recent phone call with President
Yeltsin. They have a good, effective relationship. Bill is
sorry that he couldn't join me on this visit to your and
President Yeltsin's hometown.
I am happy to have this opportunity to visit with you in your
hometown and I thank you for taking time with me here.
In his great work "Ruslan and Ludmilla," Russia's national
poet Aleksander Pushkin said "It is here one feels the Russian
soul; It is here one senses the aroma of Russia." This is the
feeling that I have being here in the heartland of Russia.
This visit will give us the opportunity to build on the closer
relationship that our husbands have established and to
highlight other important elements of U.S. -Russian relations.
I particularly would like to call attention to the wonderful
work that Americans and Russians are doing together in
hospitals and clinics across Russia.
These partnerships demonstrate the concern of the American
people for Russians and show the ways that our countries can
work together on the grassroots level.
I know from talking with American participants in these
programs that our side also benefits from these exchanges.
2
Education is another area in which I have seen productive
cooperation, including university partnerships, during my
visit to the region.
President Clinton intends for the United States to participate
actively in President Yeltsin's new multilateral initiative
under which thousands of Russian managers will receive
business training in Russia, followed by internships in
foreign companies.
We have put together a pilot program which will provide
internships in U.S. companies for Russian managers. We are
also proposing to expand this program throughout Russia and
all of the New Independent States in the coming year.
EVENTS IN
NOVOSIBIRSK
Visit
Ethnography Museum
NOVOSIBIRSK: ETHNOGRAPHY MUSEUM
Scenesetter
As your speech on youth and education will take place at the
academic center of "Akademgorodok," we are arranging a visit to
its noteworthy Ethnography Museum. The museum's holdings
include centuries-old artifacts from several Siberian ethnic
groups. These objects shed light on ancient Siberian social
structures, religious beliefs and economies. You will be
greeted by the director of the museum and possibly a university
official, who will then conduct a one-hour tour. The holdings
are divided among several rooms connected by a narrow central
corridor.
Background
The Ethnography Museum, constructed in the 1950's with the rest
of Akademgorodok, was likely originally designed for classrooms
and offices. It is located on one of the numerous side streets
in the academic village. Despite its modest appearance, the
musuem contains several rare artifacts - including a number of
mummified remains that constitute its centerpiece - that were
featured last year in a "National Geographic" article. U.S.
philanthropist George Soros paid a special visit to the museum
in September. While much Siberian lore focuses on ethnic-
Russian pioneers and explorers, this museum concentrates on
indigenous tribes from the Altay region (on the Kazakhstan
border), and the arctic Khanti and Mansi nomads.
Talking Points
This museum documents the existence of the human bridges that
linked indigenous peoples in Asia, Siberia and Europe.
The museum's artifacts contain many clues about the origin of
Native Americans, some of whom passed through Siberia and over
the Bering land bridge.
I am pleased to hear that the important work being done by
this museum is gaining wider recognition, including by the
National Geographic Society.
Speech
at Akademgorodok
The Harriman investments
hemorrhaging money and since 1987
What's it like to do business in Russia?
it has accumulated net losses ap-
proaching $40 million. It plainly stat-
To get a gritty glimpse, ride along with us and
ed in its 1988 10-K that it had difficul-
a load of furniture from Moscow bound for Siberia.
ty meeting its obligations.
Other than by Harriman's gener-
ous cash infusions, Great American
has been funded mostly through
On the road
many small debt and equity under-
writings marketed by bucket shops
like Hibbard Brown, F.N. Wolf and
L.C. Wegard, all identified by FORBES
to Novosibirsk
as Brennan associates.
Great American's share price has
sunk from around $14 in late 1988 to
a recent 12½ cents per share. No
By Craig Mellow
wonder the Harriman heirs are suing.
Did Mulvihill and Brennan go
AT FOUR O'CLOCK on a foggy morn-
man, a 30-year-old former gymnastics
down with the ship? Dumb question.
ing, our Soviet Kamaz 14-wheeler
coach named Anatoly Urusov, pats
Having gotten their own shares for
breaks down. We're nine hours cast of
the pistol-a bulky 9mm Makarov-
pennies, the pair sold out well before
Moscow and seven days from our
under his coat. "Everybody who does
the collapse. At one time Mulvihill
destination, the Siberian city of No-
this [security] work is just trying to
controlled 50% of Great American
vosibirsk, where we're bound with a
survive," he says in the predawn chill.
and Brennan over 20%. By late 1993
load of living room furniture import-
The old Soviet economy collapsed,
Brennan and Mulvihill had apparently
ed from Europe. The nearest truck
in good part, because it never devel-
sold out. Mulvihill, 60, disposed of
stop, if you can call it that, is in the
oped a modern distribution and
over 400,000 shares at prices ranging
muddy hamlet of Nizhny Lom, 300
transportation system. I'm tagging
from 68 cents to $2.50. His 34-year-
miles farther cast along the two-lane,
along on a truck belonging to Dimitri
old daughter, Julia Mulvihill, remains
unlit highway Russians call their M-5.
Sitnov, the entrepreneurial founder of
as the chief operating officer.
Our driver, Vladimir Afonin, works
a three-year-old trucking firm, to get
And, top this: In mid-1990 Harri-
under the Kamaz's hood by the light
an idea of how things are going as this
man adviser Rich, a former Morgan
of his cigarette, while our security
vast country grows new tentacles of
Guaranty trust officer, reportedly be-
gan to threaten Mulvihill with litiga-
tion. But Rich's attorneys apparently
persuaded Rich to agree to let the
dispute be mediated by, guess who:
Robert Brennan.
Was Clark Clifford as unknowing as
he claims? Maybe, but it's interesting
to note that BCCI-controlled First
American Bank lent $5.5 million to
Great American in 1990 while the
Harriman money was being pumped
into the resort. First American got its
money out in November 1990, after
Mulvihill and company sold the re-
sort's 27-hole golf course to Japanese
investors for $20 million.
Clifford was extremely close to
Harriman: It was at a party at her
Washington mansion that Clifford
drew laughter and ensuing liberal
plaudits for labeling ex-President
Ronald Reagan "an amiable dunce."
Dunce himself or culpable, Clifford
let his old friend down. Can we hope
that in negotiating with the French on
behalf of the U.S. Pamela Harriman
shows better judgment than she did in
picking financial advisers?
44
Forbes # January 2, 1995
Reproduced
of
OWNER.
reproduction
prohibited.
transport. Vladimir Belyayev, who
daughter. His personal vehicle is a
you keep driving, day or night." Uru-
was commissioned to design a nation-
1993 Mitsubishi Pajero 4x4.
SOV probably enjoys scaring a foreign-
al depot system, estimates that ship-
If things can go wrong for Sitnov
er and, besides, he must justify his job.
ping costs represented over 30% of the
and Onyx, they usually do. Early in
People who know the roads say they
total cost of a product in the U.S.S.R.,
November, Onyx had two trucks
are not as bandit-infested as some of
roughly three times what it costs in a
loaded for Lithuania. Then the owner
the wilder stories would have it.
capitalist economy.
of the goods suddenly disappeared.
When the truck reaches the Siberi-
The old state-owned transport mo-
Soon thereafter a deal to move metals
an badlands, Urusov will get support
nopolies had no incentive to worry
to the Latvian border fell through.
from his older brother, Alexander,
whether a cargo made it in good shape
Why? Replies Onyx's enterprising
who'll be riding shotgun with his
to its destination-or made it at all.
marketing manager, Andrei Dvore-
Remington 12-gauge on another kus-
The markets of Almaty, in Kazakh-
chensky: "We don't really like to asso-
tarniki truck. At $41 a day each, the
stan, might be full of beautiful apples,
ciate with criminals."
brothers are among Russian trans-
and the people of Moscow might be
The rig I was riding in arrived for its
port's cheaper security options.
starving for apples. Let the apples rot
load of Spanish living room sets in late
Heavier firepower can be hired direct-
in Almaty. Nobody much cared.
November. But the agent for the
ly from the Interior Ministry at $150
The corrupt, couldn't-care-less
customer noticed the tarpaulin had
to $200 a day-nearty a month's
state trucking monopolies are now
gaping holes. In the old days the
wages based on official figures and
being driven off the road by what
trucker's customer would have had
current dollar/ruble rates.
Russians call kustarniki, or cottage
two choices: shrug and accept that
By dawn Afonin has repaired the
industrialists. The truck I rode in
half the stuff would be ruined on the
fuel lines, and we're on the road again.
belongs to Dimitri Sitnov's Onyx
way, or let it sit for weeks or months
Watching him, I think of Humphrey
Trucking, one of these kustarniki.
until another pickup could be sched-
Bogart and George Raft in They Drive
Educated as a geologist, Sitnov
uled. Even then, no guarantee. The
By Night, the part where Bogie falls
worked during school as a driver and
next tarp might be worse.
asleep at his truck's wheel, goes over a
mechanic. In 1991 he bought three
But this was postcommunist Rus-
cliff and loses his arm. But Afonin is
army surplus trucks; a year and a half
sia. The agent demanded a new tar-
used to tough hauls. Five hours later
later he traded up to big Kamaz rigs,
paulin. By the time a new tarp could
we rattle into Nizhny Lom, a dreary
the top Russian long-haul vehicle.
be secured, the warehouse had closed
pit stop where Afonin gorges on
Flourishing, Sitnov bought a two-
for the day. Onyx driver Afonin re-
steaming cabbage soup, goulash and
room apartment on Moscow's out-
turned the next day and sat around for
kasha, buys five packs of L&MS from a
skirts, where he lives with his wife and
several hours before his load, which
store that stocks little else, and de-
now included me and Makarov-tot-
cides to catch a couple hours' sleep. I
Left, Onyx Trucking
ing Anatoly Urusov, could set out on
hop a ride in an automobile back to
driver Vladimir Afonin and
the eight-day trip to Novosibirsk. An
Moscow.
security man Anatoly Uru-
American outfit operating like this
Later I hear the rest of the story.
SOV; owner Dimitri Sitnov
would be bankrupt in a week.
The most direct route to Novosibirsk
Afonin can handle the
As Afonin repairs the clogged fuel
passes briefly through the northwest
vigo and Urusov the has
lines, Urusov tries to reassure me this
Kazakhstan. There our driv-
dits, but Sitnov most
close to Moscow we're probably safe
er was halted by customs authorities
needs defending against
from bandits. "It gets dangerous far-
intent on shaking him down. Two
bankers and Russia's
ther out, in Siberia," he says. "There,
days later Afonin was still there, await-
highway bureaucrate.
if you don't know a safe place to stop,
ing a letter proving he was merely
passing through the republic.
For all this Afonin will earn around
$156-about $10 a day, including
the return trip. He has a shot at doing
better if he can hustle up a load to
bring back to Moscow. This is unlike-
ly, says marketing manager Dvore-
chensky, because the Siberian compa-
nies still tend to use the old state-
owned truckers.
Onyx charged 6.8 million rubles, a
little less than $2,200 at current ex-
change rates. In the U.S. such a
round-trip would cost $3,500, but of
course current exchange rates don't
reflect purchasing power parities. In
purchasing power terms, the Russian
load cost many times what an equiva-
Forbes January 2, 1995
45
Russian trucking
lent U.S. load would cost.
For-profit DeVry offers a college education for about
Dimitri Sitnov has big ambitions.
This September he took ten of his best
half what taxpayer-subsidized state universities charge.
drivers to Holland and returned hap-
Does that constitute unfair competition?
pily with ten slightly used Mercedes-
Benz rigs, which he bought for
$650,000 in borrowed money. The
Benzes mean access for Onyx to inter-
national shipping: Kamazes and other
Competition?
Russian-made trucks beich too much
exhaust to be allowed west of Poland.
When he returned from Holland, Sit-
Heaven forbid
nov brandished a contract to carry
regular loads of mayonnaise from
Düsseldorf to Moscow.
Sitnov's happiness was short-lived.
For two months the Benz trucks have
By Leslie Spencer
sat idle on Sitnov's Moscow lot be-
cause he cannot obtain licenses from
ROUGHLY 27,000 high school gradu-
apparently want to follow. Its June
the GAI, or State Auto Inspection,
ates attend one of DeVry's 13 cam-
1994 fiscal year net profit was $12.2
puses scattered throughout the U.S.
million, up 30% from the previous
and Canada to carn associate and
year, on revenues of $211.4 million.
bachelor of science degrees in fields
Net income was up 21% in the first
like electronics engineering technol-
quarter, ended September, from last
ogy, computer information systems,
year's first quarter.
business operations, accounting and
Chicago Corp., an investment
telecommunications management.
bank, managed DeVry's second pub-
Another 3,000 students carn their
lic offering last year, offering 1.8 mil-
M.B.A.s or other graduate degrees at
lion shares at $22 a share (the stock is
the 17 sites that are maintained by the
now 28%). Chicago Corp. analyst
associated Keller Graduate School of
Steven Saltzman boasts: "DeVry has
Management.
done nothing but meet or beat our
But DeVry isn't just another uni-
estimates."
versity. It is a publicly traded company
The educational establishment has
(Nasdaq: DVRY) charging $3,000 a
long thrown roadblocks in the way of
semester in tuition, or $24,000 for a
B.S. This is almost half what a B.S.
costs at some big state universities and
about a third what it can cost at a
DeVry is criticized for its
private college. Yet DeVry has shown
lenient admissions policies.
Security man Anatoly Urusov
solid earnings and steady growth
Up against crooked bureaucrate.
since going public in 1991.
When public colleges do the
DeVry is not beloved of many in the
same thing they are praised
educational establishment. At a time
Russia's notoriously corrupt highway
when both state and private colleges
for "open admissions."
police. The idle Benzes cost Sitnov
are constantly dunning the public and
about $20,000 a month in financing
alumni for more money, DeVry un-
costs, much more than Onyx can carn
derprices them and is entirely inde-
for-profit schools by withholding ac-
from its Kamaz fleet. And Sitnov's
pendent of tax subsidies and private
creditation-the seal of approval re-
bank is said to be the kind that settles
donors.
quired for a school to receive student
delinquency by more direct means
DeVry Inc. may not be unique for
loans and grants. Any school seeking
than Russia's creaky courts of arbitra-
long. Apollo Group is parent compa-
to make a profit was automatically
tion. If Sitnov isn't careful the bank
ny to the for-profit University of
denied the seal. That rule was
will simply grab his trucks.
Phoenix, which focuses on adults who
dropped, and in 1977 DeVry's Keller
"Things are very complicated right
need to complete degrees or get new
Graduate School of Management was
now," the ever optimistic Sitnov ad-
skills. Apollo filed for an initial public
accredited. Accreditation for DeVry
mits. He means for Onyx Trucking,
offering in September. ITT's educa-
followed in 1981. But even now,
but it's true for all of Russia. You
tion division, which offers technical
accreditation remains a key hurdle for
don't turn a totalitarian nation into a
associate degrees, is also thinking
any new school attempting to enter
free one simply by changing the guys
about a public offering soon.
the post-secondary market.
in the government ministries.
DeVry has set a standard the others
Many schools that operate for-
46
Forbes . January 2, 1995
Reproduced with permission of copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited.
cries. Call it backlash? I call it a cry for help. Who has the
sand more yawns. It is time to study congregations that
courage to hear them?
work, theologians who neither rehash what has already
In the year ahead I think we will see that the domina-
been said nor reach for postmodern clevernesses which do
tion of sexuality panels by those speaking for suffering
not touch where most people live. I am glad that my col-
minorities and their interest groups will be challenged.
leagues are dedicating some of this magazine's energies to
There may be no "normal" and "normative" set of human
locating such places and listening to such people, in the
arrangements, but the vast majority of people are in, or
spirit of-you guessed it-realistic hope.
cherish, rather traditional husband-wife, parent-child
Martin E. Marty
arrangements and they want and need help in them. They
feel threatened when what they regard as the "nonnor-
mal" and "nonnormative" attracts the bulk of the church's
interest. They will more likely act generously and expan-
sively toward those who are different if they sense sup-
A Church Takes Root
port for who and where they are.
The church-and-state front is hard to analyze. The
in Ekaterinburg
Supreme Court sends out contradictory messages. It is
ready to limit free exercise as in the case of Native
American sacraments, while it also seems ready to
T
HIS PAST September I witnessed the consecration
of the first legal new church in Russia since the
move toward establishment-like privileging of religion
Bolshevik Revolution. The story of the church's birth is
and religions. We will watch the next couple of deci-
like Acts revisited. Dwight Ramsey, pastor of Broad-
sions closely.
moor United Methodist Church in Shreveport, Loui-
As for movements: "spirituality" will still be the code
siana, arrived in Sverdlovsk on a peace exchange in July
word covering everything from profound quests to
1990. He stayed in the home of a man named Paul.
warm tingles between the toes. The New Age has gotten
Through the interpreter assigned by the government, he
old, but the ghostly notion that Energy and Connected-
spoke of his faith and his dream of starting a church,
ness make gods out of us all will remain marketable
and he offered Bibles in Russian. He became acquainted
under any number of names, especially in hard times.
with Lydia Istomina, who, like the Lydia in Acts, "lis-
The New Religions have lost their lustre, and 1992 will
tened eagerly to what was said" and became a believer.
not shine them up. Expect more disappearances and
Others listened also. The head of a medical institute lis-
bankruptcies among what used to be named "cults."
tened because over the years his most compassionate
Pentecostalism will continue to surge around the world,
doctors had confided that secretly they were believers.
but the charismatic movements inside mainstream reli-
Some people had always experienced a void and wanted
gion will not offer the earlier-advertised promise or
to hear more. Others recognized something that they
threat. Evangelicalism has lost its coherence, but not the
sensed in their hearts but did not know how to express.
momentum of many of its parts. Listen to a Hispanic
Still others dared to reveal for the first time in their lives
Pentecostalist of unquestionable evangelical heritage
that they were already believers. Ramsey touched that
trying to find herself in the "mainstream evangelical"
spiritual center out of which a redefinition of identity
discourse that contains the cadences of 19th-century
could be born.
Princeton propositionalism, and you can get some sense
Rather than going underground, the believers wanted
of the disarray, ferment and creative possibility in evan-
to proclaim their new identity. They wanted a symbol-a
gelicalism. Celebrity televangelism will continue to be
visible legal congregation. The leaders and Ramsey met
more a joke than a scandal. And more of its exemplars
with the City-Soviet of People's Deputies (City Council)
will go broke.
to obtain permission to establish a United Methodist
Organized religion, as the counterorganizers call it,
church. The deputies required a petition with 20 signa-
will endure and perform in ways that often get over-
tures before considering the request. Signing the petition
looked. Expect another year of debate on the mega-
took courage, for this was two months before the Soviet
church and church growth movements. Curiously. some
Parliament approved the law that would guarantee free-
in very traditional denominations are among those most
dom of conscience and prohibit government interference
eager to throw away even what is vital in their traditions
(which had meant arrests, beatings and imprisonments)
while they take "how to" lessons on growth. I would not
with religious activity. Some of the believers feared they
be surprised to see a few megas go bankrupt, along
would be sent to Siberia if they signed. But Istomina
with the malls with which they share an ethos and a mar-
signed: "I used to be afraid. Now I am a believer! I am
ket. They will remain an option for a (huge?) "few,"
not afraid." Others began to sign, including Ramsey's
while the many will remain in less dramatic, less audi-
interpreter. The screech of the pen on that paper was not
ence-centered, more communal and congregational
without cost, for some signers lost their jobs. Yet after
forms.
months of deliberation the City-Soviet granted their
The Protestant-Catholic-Jewish mainstream? One more
request to form the church and provided a site for a
explanation of What Went Wrong will induce only a thou-
future building.
4
The Christian CENTURY
Ramsey returned to Sverdlovsk for the third time in
for apartments. They have known hardship, hunger, sus-
September 1991, accompanied by Bishops William B.
picion and persecution. One of the new Christians spoke
Oden and Hans Växby and members of Broadmoor
about all the years of being duped by the government-
United Methodist Church. On the first day of the visit
of being told that their sacrifices were worth it because
about 500 people gathered for worship in the park. We
they were better off than people in other countries, and
stood under red and gold leaves, amid bicycles, strollers
believing it because they had no access to accurate
and wandering dogs. I was stunned by the realization
information.
that to these people everything in the service was new.
The church offers not only a spiritual center but also a
Except for the very elderly, who had distant childhood
way to take responsibility for the future. One of their
memories, Christian worship had been entirely missing
dreams is of a church building where they can gather for
from their lives. After five centuries of Czarist rule fol-
study and weekly worship, for their primary focus is spir-
lowed by seven decades of communist rule and official
itual growth. They also dream that the building will have
atheism, they were experiencing the birth of freedom
an educational wing to house a school based on religious
and the rebirth of religion. The chief deputy of the City-
ideals rather than on communist or atheist philosophies.
Soviet brought greetings, and a boys choir sang special
They have begun an after-school program three days a
music. Bishop Växby preached. Toward the end of the
week with volunteer teachers. They also sponsor a class
service all of us knelt to pick a blade of grass, and we
for hearing-impaired children. Another dream, arising
held it high as the bishops consecrated the site for the
from the general fear of the poor quality of hospital care,
new church on this ground. Russian ground. Holy
is to add a medical wing to the church.
ground.
While the Soviet system crumbles, the new congre-
gation is growing in spirit, mission and numbers. Mem-
O
N THE SECOND day the Louisiana delegation and
bers share their new faith with others, care about devel-
leaders of the new church met with the City-Soviet.
oping a holistic ministry and proclaim fervently: "I am a
Its response was tempered by the upcoming elections, a
believer!"
novel event for them. This meeting occurred during the
Marilyn Brown Oden
same hour that the Soviet Parliament in Moscow was vot-
ing to restore the city's prerevolutionary name, Ekaterin-
burg. Also, on this day the new church gratefully
received the blessing of Archbishop Melkhisedek of the
Russian Orthodox Church. In the evening people packed
SBC Schools
the Philharmonic Hall for another worship service, and
62 children were baptized, with their parents taking the
Resist Conservatives
associated vows.
On the third day the church leaders arranged meetings
T
HE MODERATE-FUNDAMENTALIST conflict
with top officials in education and medicine for recipro-
ravaging the Southern Baptist Convention has
cal discussions with representatives in those fields from
moved from the national to the state level. Several
our delegation. People crowded once more into the Phil-
schools operated by state Baptist associations fear that
harmonic Hall for evening worship. The bishops com-
conservative leaders will impose doctrinal restrictions on
missioned Istomina to be the local pastor, named Ramsey
faculty hiring and teaching. Last fall, conventions in
her supervisor and baptized 133 adults, who took mem-
Texas, South Carolina, Florida, North Carolina, Mis-
bership vows into the new church.
souri, Tennessee and Georgia all signaled the depth of
The events of these three days are remarkable. Less
the discord.
than five years earlier President Mikhail Gorbachev was
In Texas, where the direction of Baylor University in
still mandating an "uncompromising struggle against
Waco is in dispute, the convention grew melodramatic.
manifestations of religion." Just prior to our visit, mem-
A month before the Texas convention, Joel Gregory, the
bers of the church had persuaded the City-Soviet to pass a
conservative pastor of First Baptist Church of Dallas,
special resolution exempting the worship services from
sent Texas's 5,000 SBC pastors copies of a videotape of
the 150-person restriction on assemblies.
himself preaching against Baylor. In that sermon Grego-
The new congregation faces struggles and uncertain-
ry challenged Baylor officials to "produce a shred of
ties. Its members are diverse-artists, architects, Soviet
evidence there is an organized effort to take over the
police officers. teachers, doctors, city officials, students,
university."
pensioners and KGB officials. Uniting them is their
Contradicting this apparent denial, a few weeks later
hunger for spiritual expression and their desire to make
Paige Patterson, president of Criswell Bible College and
up for lost time. They were intently interested in learn-
a leader of the conservative takeover of the denomina-
ing about our experience of Christianity, and many took
tion, announced on an Austin Christian radio-station that
time off from work to be with our delegation. They
fundamentalists have had for some time plans to take
have patience and perseverance born of waiting for
over Baylor. The statement exacerbated tensions between
hours in long lines for bread and for years on long lists
Patterson and Gregory.
January 1-8, 1992
5
Ser
The Christian
6
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JAN 1992
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SAMUEL K.
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Russia's
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Jocks for Jesus
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JAMES A. MATHISEN
Fight Back
WOMEN: Changing Roles
Bearing the 'Double Bur in Russia
Underrepresented in positions of power
and overrepresented in low-paying jobs,
women in Russia are still far from attaining
equality with men. Economic necessity
means that many women have little choice
but to play the multiple roles they first
acquired in the Soviet era
by PENNY MORVANT
N THEORY. WOMEN IN THE SOVIET UNION
I
enjoyed full emancipation; in practice, however, they
bore the "double burden" of child care and household
chores on the one hand and full-time employment on
the other. A never-ending demand for labor drew more
and more women into the work force. while early
attempts to shift domestic responsibilities onto the collective
came to naught and traditional values regarding the division
of labor within the home continued to hold sway.
In the 10 years since Mikhail Gorbachev took over as
MEMORIAL 10 MAMAEV KURGAN IN VOLGOGRAD VLADIMIR HAK
general secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet
Union, tremendous changes have occurred in all areas of life
in the Russian Federation. How have women, in particular.
been affected by these upheavals? The constitution of the
Russian Federation, adopted in December 1993. proclaims
ential political figures. and women have played an active part
the equality of the sexes. and Russia has signed international
in the formation of all manner of public. political. and com-
agreements pledging to eliminate all forms of sex discrimi-
mercial organizations. Against the backdrop of the Chechen
nation: in practice. however, the lot of women remains an
war, one of the most prominent groups this year has been the
unenviable one.
soldiers' mothers' movement. which has organized countless
As in the Soviet era. women continue to be paid less than
protests against the war and the extension of the military draft.
men and are underrepresented in senior positions, despite
having, on average, a higher level of education. They are
THE CONTINUING 'DOUBLE BURDEN
often the first to be made unemployed and frequently face
In line with Marxist-Leninist theory. the Bolsheviks
discrimination in the workplace. Reports of sexual harass-
viewed gender equality in terms of absorbing women into
ment are not uncommon, and violence against women in all
socialist production. socializing child care and housework in
areas of society has been increasing. The first years of pere-
order to fully integrate women into the productive economy.
stroika saw increased nostalgia for traditional female roles
and establishing a "socialist camaraderie" between the
centered on the home and family. but financial constraints
sexes. In the 1930s. the women's department of the
and the increasing number of single women and single moth-
Communist Party was closed and the "women's question"
ers mean that only a small proportion of women are genuine-
declared resolved.
ly free to choose whether or not to work outside the home.
Under Stalin. the initial emphasis on the liberation of
Women also continue to be in the minority in positions of
women and the freedom to divorce and have abortions came to
power, particularly in the executive branch of government. In
the legislature, after an initial sharp drop in representation
I Data on the situation of women in the Soviet Union are taken from
Annette Bohr. "Resolving the Question of Equality for Soviet Women
following the breakup of the Soviet Union, the position of
Again." Report on the USSR. no. 14. 7 April 1989. pp. 10-16: Archie
women improved largely because of the unexpected success
Brown. Michael Kaser. and Gerald S. Smith. eds.. The Cambridge
of the Women of Russia movement in the December 1993
Encyclopedia of Russia and the Former Soviet Union (Cambridge. New
York. Melbourne: Cambridge University Press. 1994). p. 450; Richard
elections. But women still constitute only 10 percent of
York
WOMEN: Changing Roles
an end, and stress was once again laid on the family as the pri-
Yet many women appear not to want to confine their
mary social unit. The envisioned "socialization of housework."
activities to the home. Tamara Afanaseva, the author of
which never really got off the ground. was forgotten. and
numerous books on the family. argues that childbearing has
women were once again charged with bringing up children. At
become less important in families and that when faced with
the same time, the demands of rapid industrialization. collec-
unemployment. "women, used to independence and eco-
tivization. and the deficit of males - due to the huge losses the
nomic hardships. took on new forms of activity: engaged in
Soviet Union incurred during World War II - drew more and
trade. became agents for Herbalife "6 The trend toward
more women into the labor force. In 1970, women accounted
lower birthrates, which was slowed temporarily by pere-
for 51 percent of the working population. Studies of the result-
stroika, had been apparent since the 1960s, probably reflect-
ing "double burden" of a full-time job and homemaking
ing a change in values similar to the one that has occurred in
showed that women were often working a 13- to 15-hour day,
the West: greater emphasis is placed on self-realization
with little help from their husbands on the domestic shift.
through work. leaving less time for child care. (Owing to a
In the 1970s. the Soviet leadership became increasingly
variety of factors. birthrates in Russia fell to unprecedented-
concerned about the low birthrate most urban families had
ly low levels in the 1990s. dropping to 9.4 per 1,000 popu-
only one or two children and it increased child-support
lation in 1994 from a high of 17.2 in 1986-1987. A series
payments and the length of maternity leave in an attempt to
of annual surveys conducted in European Russia for
encourage women to have more children. Birthrates and fer-
OMRI's Audience and Opinion Research Department sug-
tility rates rose in the mid-1980s. prompting the authorities to
gests that attitudes toward women and employment are
continue to encourage women to stay at home. In the more
becoming more liberal. Whereas in 1992. 21 percent of male
relaxed atmosphere of glasnost. the issue of what role women
and 12 percent of female interviewees disagreed with the
should play in contemporary society received considerable
statement that women have the same right to and need for a
coverage in the press. with many articles suggesting that it
professional life. in 1994 only 14 percent and 8 percent.
MEMORIAL TO KURGAN IN VOLGOGRAD HAK
was somehow "unfeminine" for a woman to be active pro-
respectively. disagreed.
fessionally or politically.
While it is unclear how many women would prefer not
Following the collapse of the Soviet Union and the
to work, few are genuinely able to choose becasue of
introduction of radical economic reform in Russia, the
financial constraints. Official statistics currently show that
demographic imperative behind "returning women to the
47 million people. or just under one-third of the popula-
home" was reinforced by a new factor: the specter of unem-
tion, are living in families whose average per capita
ployment. The belief was widespread that women had no
income is below the poverty line.⁸ According to a survey
business working if there were men without jobs. Asked in
conducted among women in the military-industrial com-
1993 about strategies for tackling the high female unem-
plex. 54 percent said they would have been happy to stay
ployment. Labor Minister Gennadii Melikyan replied.
at home and devote themselves fully to the family. but
"Why should we employ women when men are out of
only about 3 percent were in a position to do so.⁹
work? It's better that men work and women take care of
The decline in living standards that accompanied the
children and do housework. I don't think women should
freeing of prices and decentralization of the economy means
work when men are doing nothing."
that many families need the income of both partners to make
art
Exhausted by their labors. many women were not averse
ends meet. while in better-off households. both often work
n-
to the idea of giving up work that was often badly paid and
in order to guarantee that the standard of living will not
en
monotonous and devoting their energies exclusively to the
fall. 10 Against a backdrop of growing unemployment.
he
home and family. Nina Gabrielyan, the feminist writer and
reduced working hours, and frequent delays in compensa-
CSS
editor of the magazine Preobrazhenie (Transformation).
tion, women may well be reluctant to withdraw from the
ft.
argues that large numbers of women responded positively to
labor force for fear that their husbands' employment status
the "replacement of the socialist pseudo-egalitarianist
may deteriorate. In practice. only women whose partners
mythology" with the "old patriarchal" one. because they
enjoy high incomes can afford to stay at home for an extend-
iks
were tired of the "pseudo-emancipation" that left them torn
ed period.
ito
between work and home. In 1988, the sociologist and aca-
Because of an increase in the number of divorces. a drop
in
demician Tatyana Zaslavskaya estimated that 40 percent of
in the number of marriages. and a rise in the share of chil-
ny.
working mothers in the Soviet Union would give up their
dren born out of wedlock, there are more and more single
the
jobs if their husbands earned enough money to support their
women and mothers reliant solely upon their own earnings.
the
families adequately.⁴ In an August 1994 survey by the All-
As state child allowances and unemployment benefits are
n"
Russian Center for the Study of Public Opinion (VCIOM),
67.5 percent of respondents said that the best way for the
Delovoi mir. 27 May 1995. p. 9.
7 Demograficheskii ethegodnik Rossiiskot Federatsii. 1993 [Demographic
of
state to help families would be to ensure that the salary of
Yearbook of the Russian Federation. 1993] (Moscow: Goskomstat. 1994). p. 37.
to
one spouse was increased considerably to enable the other to
Radio Rossii. 28 June 1995. citing Deputy Prime Minister Yuru Yarov.
stay at home; only 42 percent had favored that in 1989. 5
⁹Cited by Galina Sillaste. "Zhenskie elity V Rossii i ikh osobennosti"
[Female Elites in Russia and Their Peculiarities]. Obshchestvennye nauki i
sovremennost. no. 1. 1994, pp. 112-121.
2 Anastasiya Posadskaya. "Demokratiya minus zhenshchina - ne
10 E. Baskakova, "Sotsialnaya zashchita zhenshchiny-materi
demokratiya!" [Democracy Minus Women Is Not a Democracy]. Ogonek,
usloviyakh transformatsii obshchestva" [Social Protection of Women-
no. 38. 1993. pp. 8-9.
Mothers in Conditions of the Transformation of Society]. in the Russian
3 obozrenie. 4 July 1995.
Academy of Sciences' Institute for Ethnology and Anthropology's
TASS
ne 1988. cited in Bohr. "Resolving the Question
Zhenshching syoboda [Woman and Freedom] (Moscow: Nauka. 1994).
WOMEN: Changing Roles
low, these women have little choice but to work if they can.
Table 1: Proportion of Women in Enterprises and
In 1993. the marriage rate per 1,000 population was 7.5. down
Organizations, by Branch of the Economy
from 10.5 per 1.000 population 10 years earlier, while the
(in percentages)
divorce rate rose from 4.1 to 4.5 over the same period. 11
1980
1990
1993
The proportion of illegitimate children also grew marked-
ly in the 1980s. as prejudice against single mothers
Total
52
52
51
declined and knowledge about and the availability of con-
Industry (production personnel)
49
48
46
traceptives remained low. In 1992, 17.2 percent of all
Agriculture
42
40
38
births were to unmarried mothers. From 1987 to 1992, the
number of children born in wedlock fell by 44.3 percent.
Lumber
20
18
20
while the number born out of wedlock dropped by only
Construction
29
27
25
14.2 percent. 12
Transport
25
25
26
The lot of working mothers is made particularly oner-
Communications
71
71
70
ous by the deterioration in the network of child-care ser-
Trade and public catering; supply,
vices. Some have been closed, as there is no money to
marketing, and procurement
80
80
77
maintain them. Privatized factories oriented toward prof-
Informational-calculating services
71
82
75
it-making, for example, cannot afford to pay for the
child-care facilities traditionally attached to them. In 25
Communal housing and
areas surveyed between January and September 1992. a
consumer services
54
52
46
total of 1,500 preschool facilities (4.4 percent) were
Health, physical education,
closed.
13 Other nursery schools have been commercial-
and social services
85
83
84
ized, making them too expensive for many families to
Education
78
79
80
consider.
Culture and art
70
71
73
Household appliances that would reduce the amount of
Science and scientific services
52
53
53
time women must devote to housework are now widely
Credit, finances, and insurance
87
90
81
available - but at prices many Russians cannot afford.
Government apparatus
69
67
Moreover, women may now have even less time to devote
68
to domestic responsibilities, as working hours in new, pri-
Others
53
47
41
vate companies tend to be longer. For similar reasons.
they may also receive even less help from their husbands.
Source: Rossiiskii statisticheskii ezhegodnik [Russian Statistical
Yearbook) (Moscow: Goskomstat, 1994). p. 64.
As a result, most women continue to face the "double bur-
den" of a job, household chores, and child care.
BELOW-AVERAGE WAGES
tors still receive the lowest salaries; moreover, their wages
In the Soviet era. women tended to predominate in sec-
have been increasing more slowly than those in other
tors where pay was low, such as health care, education.
branches of the economy. In sectors such as education and
culture, and financial institutions (see Table 1), and to
health, the average wage has fallen definitively below the
have more monotonous, less responsible jobs than men. In
subsistence minimum. 16 The standard of living of women.
general. women earned about one-third less than their
therefore, tends to have deteriorated more than that of men
male counterparts, although more women had a complet-
during the economic transition.
ed secondary or secondary specialist education or higher
Women's dissatisfaction with both falling living stan-
education (see Table 2). Women are still earning less
dards and the continuation of the "double burden" is
today: earlier this year, for example, men earned 50 per-
reflected in survey data. In polls conducted by VCIOM, a
cent more than women in health care and 40 percent more
majority of respondents said that the position of women in
in engineering and textiles. 14 In a February survey of
the family has deteriorated in comparison with that of
some 1,500 Muscovites regarding average earnings, car-
men. 17 In this spring's OMRI poll, women expressed
ried out by VCIOM, women predominated in groups with
greater dissatisfaction than men with their standard of liv-
incomes of less than 300,000 rubles (about $70) a month,
ing and were considerably more worried about the future.
while men were the most numerous in groups with
Asked how satisfied they were with their own standard of
incomes between 300,000 and 500,000 rubles (the average
living, 45 percent of female respondents said they were
monthly income of the respondents was 377,000
"not at all satisfied," in comparison with 40 percent of
rubles). 15 In general, employees in the "feminized" sec-
men. Similarly, 58 percent of the women thought that their
personal economic situation was now somewhat or much
11
Demograficheskii ezhegodnik
p. 98.
worse than a year before, as opposed to 51 percent of the
12 Valentina Bodrova, "Reproductive Behaviour of Russia's Population in
men. Thirty-five percent of the female interviewees
the Transition Period," Berichte des Bundesinstituts fuer ost-
viewed the 12 months to come with worry; only 22 percent
wissenschaftliche und internationale Studien, no. 15, 1995, p. 6; G.A.
Bondarskaya, "Vnebrachnaya rozhdaemost V Rossiiskoi Federatsii:
of the men gave the same response.
dinamika i perspektivy" [Illegitimate Births in the Russian Federation:
Dynamics and Prospects], Zhenshchina i svoboda, pp. 151-159.
13 Baskakova, "Sotsialnaya zashchita
14
Interfax. 6 March 1995.
16
I!
May
1995
D.
2.
WOMEN: Changing Roles
Table 2: Breakdown of the Employed Population by
omy. 26 However. there are numerous accounts of discrimi-
Gender and Level of Education, October 1993
nation against women in questions of hiring and firing. In
(in percentages)
"Neither Jobs Nor Justice." a report issued to coincide with
this year's International Women's Day (8 March). the private
Total Men Women
nonprofit organization Human Rights Watch accused the
Total employed population:
100
100
100
Russian government of practicing. condoning. and tolerating
discrimination against women in employment. "Government
with higher education
17.2
15.6
18.5
employers have fired women workers in disproportionate
with secondary
numbers
and refuse to employ women because of their
or secondary
sex." the report said. 27 A survey conducted by the sociologist
specialized education
65.1
63.1
67.3
Galina Sillaste's group Galsi in the first half of 1994 found
with incomplete
that discrimination against women occurred in companies
secondary education
17.7
21.3
14.2
everywhere. whether private or state-owned. although it was
more obvious in large state concerns. 28 The report also noted
Source: Rossiiskii statisticheskii ezhegodnik [Russian Statistical Yearbook
(Moscow: Goskomstar. 1994), p. 66.
that 7.4 percent of respondents had faced discrimination after
rebuffing sexual advances by their bosses. Participants in a
recent conference in Saratov on women and the law noted
that women are often asked in job interviews whether they
FEMALE UNEMPLOYMENT
are married. have children. or intend to have them in the
AND SEX DISCRIMINATION
future. 29 Many job advertisements state "men only." One of
Despite all the gloomy predictions. unemployment rates in
the reasons frequently cited for discrimination against
Russia have remained relatively low. On I July. only 2.7 per-
women in the workplace is the cost to firms. in terms of
cent of the labor force was officially registered as unemployed
money and disruption, of maternity leave and leave for moth-
with the Federal Employment Service. 18 Women. however,
ers with sick children. 30
have been overrepresented in the statistics. Because sectors
such as textiles. the food industry, and other light industry -
VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN
in which large numbers of women are employed - were
The Human Rights Watch report also accused the Russian
among the first to downsize as a result of economic restruc-
government of failing to take reports of domestic violence and
turing, women were also often the first to face redundancy.
sexual assaults on women seriously. despite activists' efforts to
Women constituted 72 percent of the officially registered
bring such abuses to light. According to one official but uncon-
unemployed in 1992 and 68 percent in 1993. 19 In 1994. the
firmed statement. as many as 15.000 women were killed by
share of women fell again, to 64 percent. 20 but in many areas
their husbands or lovers in 1994. 31 In 1993. women were the
they still accounted for more than 80 percent of the jobless. 21
victims of more than 330.000 reported crimes (of which 14.000
es
But according to estimates of unemployment based on
were cases of rape). but countless others went unregistered. The
er
survey data rather than on Employment Service statistics, the
seemingly widespread belief among law-enforcement officials
nd
proportion of unemployed men and women is about equal. 22
that women are partly responsible for sexual assaults. coupled
he
(At the end of June, estimates using that method put the total
with the lack of legislation against domestic violence (in Soviet
in.
number of unemployed at 5.7 million people. or 7.7 percent
times the subject of wife-beating was taboo, and in tsarist
en
of the work force. 23) 23 As a result, although women are more
Russia. the phenomenon was all too common). often dissuades
likely to be registered as unemployed than men. they are not,
women from reporting abuse. 32 But crisis centers have now
in-
it seems, more likely to actually be unemployed. In a survey
been opened in a number of cities, so women have somewhere
is
conducted by VCIOM earlier this year, only 50 percent of
to turn for counseling. The State Duma is currently drafting a
a
those classifying themselves as unemployed or not fully
law to help combat domestic violence. 33
in
employed were women. But of the 24 percent of the total
Commenting on the abuse figures. Social Security
of
number of respondents who said they performed some kind
Ministry spokesman Boris Dolotin said they reflected an
ed
of work, the majority were men. 24 Men were 60 percent
increasingly brutal society. "There is violence today against
iv-
more likely to have a job than were women.
women in all spheres of life," he said, adding that "apart
The fact that women tend to be better educated than men
re.
from family dramas and cases of violence against women at
of
and are more willing to retrain 25 should mean that they are in
work. there is a growing amount of forced prostitution, the
ere
a better position to benefit from the restructuring of the econ-
of
26
Gail Kligman. "Women, Children, and the Feminization of Poverty." in
18 ITAR-TASS. 26 July 1995.
James R. Millar and Sharon L. Wolchik, eds., The Social Legacy of
19 Rossiiskii statisticheskii ezhegodnik [Russian Statistical Yearbook I
Communism (Cambridge, New York, Melbourne: Cambridge University
ich
(Moscow: Goskomstat. 1994), p. 459.
Press. 1994). pp. 252-270.
the
20 Osnovnye pokazateli sotsialno-ekonomicheskogo polozheniya i khodu
27 RFE/RL Correspondent's Report, 8 March 1995.
es
ekonomicheskoi reformy V Rossiiskoi Federatsii V 1994 godu (Basic indi-
28G G. Sillaste. "Evolyutsiya sotsialnykh pozitsii zhenshchin V
cators of the Socioeconomic Situation and Course of Economic Reform in
menyayushchemsya Rossiiskom obshchestve" [Evolution of the Social Position
ent
the Russian Federation in 1994| (Moscow: Goskomstat, 1995). p. 52.
of Women in Russia's Changing Society]. Sotsis, no. 4. 1995, pp. 58-64.
21 RFE/RL Correspondent's Report. 8 March 1995.
29 Zemlya Saratovskaya 7 June 1995. p.3.
22 Richard Layard and Andrea Richter. "Labour Market Adjustment in
30
Komsomolskava pravda, 7 March 1995.
Russia." Russian Economic Trends, 1994, pp. 85-103.
31
Reuters and Interfax. 18 June 1995.
²³ITAR-TASS. 26 July 1995.
³²The Observer. 12 March 1995: RFE/RL Correspondent's Report, X
24 Segodiva. 26 July 1995. 3.
March 1995.
WOMEN: Changing Roles
sale of women as a 'live commodity,' murder for sexual
motives, and SO on. 34 One of the most recent crime trends
in Russia is kidnapping women to sell them to strip clubs. 35
Prostitution in general has escalated since the Soviet
Union's collapse, owing to a combination of factors,
including the freer. more permissive society and the lure of
potentially high earnings at a time of economic hardship.
Prostitution was made an administrative offense in the
Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (RSFSR) in
1987 (before that, its existence was not officially recognized),
but the law has rarely been enforced. 36
WOMEN IN THE PUBLIC EYE
Although women were well represented in state bodies
THE WAY FORWARD- Protests by the soldiers' mothers'
in the Soviet Union, the higher one went up the adminis-
movement (above) highlighted the widespread opposition to
President Boris Yeltsin's policies in Chechnya. Women of
trative ladder, the fewer women there were. Of the 193
Russia, headed by Yekaterina Lakhova (below), has placed
people named to the top-level Communist Party body (the
heavy emphasis on the role of women in politics.
Presidium or Politburo) between 1919 and 1990. only five
were women. Thus. women had little say in the formula-
ber-stamping bodies. while the Federal Assembly today has
tion of policy or party tactics. 37 Women are still virtually
considerable influence. despite the heavily pro-presidential
excluded from the upper reaches of the executive branch.
bias of the constitution. The current proportion of women in
The only female minister is Lyudmila Bezklepina, who
the Russian legislature (10 percent) is slightly higher than
took over the traditional "female" portfolio of social secu-
the world average (9 percent) and the average for countries
rity from Ella Pamfilova. There are just two women of
in transition (8 percent). The average in industrialized states
ambassadorial rank in the diplomatic ser-
is 18 percent. with the Scandinavian countries lead-
vice, and women serve as deputy heads
ing the field. 41 The possibility that in the future. local
of administration in only 28 of Russia's
leaderships may delegate members to the upper
89 republics and regions. 38 Other high-
house of the Russian parliament in place of elections
ranking women include Tatyana Regent,
has prompted a sharp response from women's
the head of the Federal Migration
groups. In a letter to the country's leaders and politi-
Service, and Tatyana Paramonova, the
cal parties. the National Council for the Fourth World
acting chairwoman of the Central Bank.
RUFO
Conference on Women expressed concern about the
The latter appears to have had consider-
small number of women currently in the parliament
able say in the country's economic policy since she took
and said that the proposed change in the way the upper
over from Viktor Gerashchenko in the wake of the ruble's
house is formed risked turning it into a "men's club. 42
crash against the dollar last October.
Apart from Women of Russia. several individual female
Thanks to a system of reserved seats in the Soviet Union,
politicians are influential in the political arena. both within
women generally constituted about half of local soviets and
and outside the Duma. Among the best known are
one-third of republic-level legislatures. Their representation
Pamfilova, Duma deputy Irina Khakamada. head of the
deteriorated markedly in the first multi-candidate elections in
Socialist Workers' Party Lyudmila Vartazarova. the Stalinist
the RSFSR in 1990, in which they won only 5.4 percent of the
Nina Andreeva. and Democratic Union leader Valeriya
seats. prompting women activists to voice concern that the
Novodvorskaya. Commenting on Pamfilova's decision to
new "male democracy" might put an end to earlier legal gains
ally herself with Vladimir Lysenko's Republican Party in the
for women. 39 The situation improved after the December
election campaign, a Moskovskie novosti journalist noted
1993 parliamentary elections. in which the newly formed
that any number of political parties and electoral blocs
Women of Russia won 21 seats in the voting on party lists.
would have jumped at the chance to sign her up. 43 Her pop-
Now, 57 of the 450 deputies in the Duma are women (12.7 per-
ularity among women and pensioners makes her especially
cent) as are nine of the 176 members of the Federation Council
valuable. Presumably because of the success of Women of
(5.1 percent). 40
Russia in the last elections with voters more concerned
Women continue to be poorly represented in proportion
about living standards than politics, there has been increased
to their share of the overall population. But when drawing
interest in women among politicians searching for votes.
comparisons with the Communist era. it is necessary to take
particularly among left-of-center groups. One of the most
into account that the soviets then were little more than rub-
recent to seize the initiative was Yurii Petrov's Union of
Realists. which organized a conference on women, power.
34 Reuters. 18 June 1995.
and politics. 44 Given voters' confusion about and distrust of
35 Interfax. 18 June 1995.
36 Prostitutsiya: zakon i realnost" [Prostitution: The Law and Reality).
Militsiva, no. 11, November 1992, p. 16.
41
Inter-Parhamentary Union. "Distribution of Seats Between Men and
37 Sillaste, "Zhenskie elity
Women in the 178 National Parliaments Existing as at 30 June 1994."
38 Ibid.; Pravda. 26 July 1995. pp. 1-2.
Reports and Documents. no. 18. add. 2. rev. 2. 1994.
³⁹The Cumbridge Encyclopedia of Russia and the Former Soviet Union.
OMRI Daily Digest. no. 148. I August 1995.
p. 450.
43 Moskovskie novosti. no. 39. +11 June 1995.
WOMEN: Changing Roles
political parties in Russia, voting for a women's party
faction has paid particular attention to Children of Russia. a
seemed to offer a clear alternative.
program that encompasses various projects aimed at pro-
In general. women in leading positions have to contend
tecting the well-being of children but has been plagued by
with considerable prejudice. There is a tendency to regard
financial and organizational problems. In the hope of
them as merely "decorative" or as valuable only because of
repeating their past success, Women of Russia will run in
the "softening" influence they exert on policies - or they
the December elections independently. Most commentators
are seen as simply incompetent. 45 In a recent interview,
agree that they have a good chance of passing the 5 percent
Khakamada said it is hard to be a woman politician
hurdle and gaining representation again. 52
because women in government constantly have to prove
Women of Russia has also come in for a fair amount of
that they are not fools. She attributed her split from Boris
criticism. It has been argued that the group's emphasis on
Fedorov, with whom she founded the 12 December parlia-
what have traditionally been regarded as "women's issues"
mentary faction. to his "boorish" attitude. particularly the
- social security, children. invalids - reinforces the
way in which he responded when she criticized his leader-
assumption that those are the only matters that should con-
ship abilities. Instead of arguing the point with her, she
cern women. Gabrielyan opposes the use of the term
said, he remarked publicly: "What does it matter what you
"women's problems." arguing that this implies that there
say, exotic woman! Remarks by Vladimir Tumanov,
are some problems that are global and other, less important
chairman of the Constitutional Court, provide another
issues that only affect women. 53 Pamfilova also argues that
good example of what women have to contend with.
such issues should be regarded as common problems. 54
Commenting on the parliament's questioning of the legali-
ty of the secret decrees issued by the president and gov-
GRASSROOTS INITIATIVES
ernment authorizing the military campaign in Chechnya,
Women have played an active part in the formation of a
he said: "[Federation Council deputy Yelena] Mizulina
civil society in Russia. setting up an array of public and
behaved in absolutely typical female fashion, reacting to
political organizations. There are an estimated 800 grass-
what was going on in an extremely emotional way. ..47 On
roots women's groups in Russia. 55 and in 1993. more than
the other hand. it is surprising that the upper house chose a
100 newspapers and journals appeared for women. 10 times
woman to argue the case in the first place. In society as a
the number in 1980. Nadezhda (Hope). a radio station
whole, the rise of extreme-nationalist groups. which define
whose broadcasts are aimed primarily at female listeners.
the essence of femininity as motherhood and elevate it to a
has also been created. 56
mythical status. gives new significance to traditional patri-
Women have also participated in the establishment of
archal values that severely limit the freedom of women. 48
new economic entities. According to a survey by the Public
Opinion Foundation in 1993. women accounted for 19 per-
WOMEN OF RUSSIA
cent of those involved in entrepreneurial activities. 57
Women of Russia was created in the run-up to the
Alevtina Fedulova, a leading member of Women of Russia.
December 1993 elections by the Russian Union of Women
argues. however. that women bankers and entrepreneurs
(the successor to the Committee of Soviet Women). the
make up only a tiny percentage of all working-age women.
Association of Businesswomen of Russia, and the Union of
She also says that it is more difficult for women than men
Women in the Navy because they believed that other parties
to obtain credit and buy property. 58 Commenting on
were not paying enough attention to issues that primarily
women's participation in public life in general. she noted
affected women. One of the movement's main aims was to
that the military operation in Chechnya has jolted women
increase women's participation in politics. 49 Its program
into action and that they have been more active in seeking
emphasized social issues and practical solutions - a recipe
ways to influence the formulation of policy.
that appealed primarily to older women. the less educated.
and professional groups such as teachers and doctors, who
SOLDIERS' MOTHERS
voted for it in number. 50 Women of Russia won more than
Against the backdrop of the Chechen war. the soldiers'
8 percent of the voting on party lists and can now count on
mothers' movement has been one of the most prominent
the allegiance of 23 deputies in the parliament.
campaigners this year. There are two main groups: Lyubov
In the months since the elections. the movement's par-
Lymar's Soldiers' Mothers of Russia and Mariya
liamentary faction, headed by Yekaterina Lakhova, has. as
Kirbasova's Committee of Soldiers' Mothers. Ironically, as
promised, taken an active part in drafting legislation on
President Boris Yeltsin was congratulating women on
social issues such as the new family code, which is coming
International Women's Day, about 100 soldiers' mothers were
up for its second reading. (The existing code governing
chanting anti-war slogans outside the Kremlin. The protest
marriage and family matters was adopted in 1969. ) The
marked the beginning of a planned march to Grozny organ-
CONTINUED ON PAGE 60
45 Wendy Slater, "Female Representation in Russian Politics." RFE/RL
Research Report. no. 22. 3 June 1994. pp. 27-33.
46 Moskovskava pravda, 21 June 1995. p. 16.
52 For data on current support for Women of Russia, see article by Susan
47 Moskovskii komsomolets. 2 August 1995.
Gigli in this issue.
⁴⁸For a discussion of this issue. see Slater, "Female Representation
53 Knizhnoe obozrenie, no. 27. 4 July 1995.
49 Izvestiya, 2 December 1993.
54 Russian Public Television. I June 1995.
50 Matthew Wyman. Stephen White. Bill Miller. and Paul Heywood,
55The Observer. 12 March 1995.
"Public Opinion. Parties. and Voters in the December 1993 Russian
56Sillaste. "Evolyutsiya sotsialnykh pozitsii
Elections. Europe-Asia Studies. no. 4. 1995. pp. 591-614
Sillaste. "Zhenskie elity
Bearing the Double Burden
Continued from page 9
ized by the Committee of Soldiers'
lished in 1989 to protest hazing
made a very poor showing. 61 This
Mothers to draw attention to the "con-
(dedovshchina) and noncombat
year. it may fare better if it can find
tinuing massacre" in Chechnya. Their
deaths in the Soviet armed forces.
strong allies. Thus far. it has
intention was to travel by bus to the
Since then. women have chronicled
announced its opposition to Yeltsin
southern Russian city of Mineralnye
the death of Russian soldiers and
and has ruled out cooperation with the
Vody. with stops for demonstrations
organized numerous demonstrations
Communists. Agrarians, and Vladimir
at several cities along the way. and
to draw attention to issues such as
Zhirinovsky's extreme-nationalist
then to march to the Chechen capi-
Russian fatalities in Commonwealth
Liberal Democratic Party. 62
tal. 59 However, the women were pre-
of Independent States "hot spots."
vented from carrying out the last part
This year. the soldiers' mothers have
THE FUTURE
of their protest by special Interior
also spoken out against a law,
Women. along with men. have
Ministry troops. who, according to a
approved in April. that extends
benefited from the democratization of
group of Buddhist monks who had
mandatory military service from 18
Russia and the overall improvement in
joined forces with the protesters. bun-
months to two years and eliminates
human rights. and they are taking
dled them onto buses and drove them
exemptions for students. They believe
advantage of the new opportunities to
back to Nazran and Mozdok. 60
all conscription should be stopped
participate in public life and the market
Despite that setback, a number of the
and a professional army instituted.
economy. However. they have suffered
committee's representatives have
Capitalizing on its heightened vis-
disproportionately from the decline in
been in Grozny. pushing for the
ibility and the sympathy the move-
living standards that has accompanied
release of prisoners and trying to track
ment attracted during the Chechen
the economic transition. and their right
down missing servicemen.
campaign. Soldiers' Mothers of
to equal opportunities in employment
The soldiers' mothers' movement
Russia. which claims 10.000 members
and to protection from violence are
is not new: a group was first estab-
across the country, has announced its
often violated or denied.
intention to take part in the upcoming
RU95028 10 AUGUST 1995
59Interfax. NTV. and Russian Television. 8
elections. In 1993. it was allied with a
March 1995.
61 lbid.. 22 May 1995.
⁶⁰Russian Television. 29 March 1995.
small ecological group. Cedar. and
⁵²Ekho Moskvy. 29 March 1995.
Agricultural Reform
Continued from page 52
demand. The main potential benefit
Until substantial numbers of farm
ly provided for all their employees'
from decreasing the livestock sector is
workers are reallocated to other pro-
needs housing, health care. educa-
that resources can be transferred to
duction. the Russian economy will fail
tion. and cultural life. If farms reduce
producing other goods and services'
to reap much of the material benefit
their labor force. two other develop-
that people want more, given existing
that should compensate for the welfare
ments must occur to avoid social
prices. Over time, this should help the
loss from declining livestock output.
hardship. First, local government's
Russian consumer.
Continuing economic reform will
will have to take over social services
Because capital investment and
increase the pressure on farms to get
traditionally provided by farms.
material inputs in agriculture have
rid of excess labor. Through 1994,
Second. the government will have to
decreased substantially, some of the
farms were able to avoid extreme
create a welfare safety net that guar-
savings are already being realized.
action, despite steadily declining state
antees a minimum acceptable
However, the main resource - labor
subsidies and son loans from the bank-
income for all individuals. both for
- is being reallocated to a much less-
ing system. This year, however, the
the short-term unemployed looking
er degree. A qualification is that farm
drive to reduce those benefits will
for new jobs and for the long-term.
workers are spending more of their
intensify, particularly given the more
structurally unemployed.
time helping to process output (usually
austere budget and macroeconomic
So far. most farm workers have
on the farm), say, by slaughtering live-
stabilization program established in
united with farm management and
stock, rather than in just primary pro-
agreement with the International
the state agricultural apparatus.
duction. Yet virtually 00 former state
Monetary Fund.
which are also threatened by reform.
or collective farms have yet disbanded
If many workers begin leaving
to defend the existing system and
or gone bankrupt, and farm workers'
farms, most will need time to find
levels of resource use. Social sup-
movement to non-agricultural employ-
new jobs, particularly given the tra-
ports are necessary-IQ reduce farm
ment has been slight. As a result,
dition of labor immobility in Russia.
workers' resistance to reform. Such
although the productivity of material
Some farm laborers (particularly
opposition retards both institutional
inputs in Russian agriculture has
many older workers) are not employ-
reform and economic restructuring in
increased, the small reduction in labor
able elsewhere in the economy.
the countryside, thereby delaying the
in the face of declining output means
Another problem is that former state
long-term benefits of reform.
that labor productivity has worsened.
and collective farms have traditional-
24 1995
Event TBD
Reception Hosted by
Governor Vitaliy Mukha
UNCLASSIFIED
NOBOSIBIRSK: GOVERNOR'S RECEPTION (TENTATIVE)
Scenesetter
Novosibirsk Governor Vitaliy Mukha will likely offer to host a
lunch/reception in your honor. The location is still
undetermined, but is likely to be at the Oblast Administration
building downtown if it is for a large number of invitees, or at
the Governor's suburban residence if for a smaller party. The
governor's office will be receptive to your staff's input on
organizational details of this event.
Background
Governor Mukha is an old-style Soviet bureaucrat who has
gradually come around to reformist principles, such as
supporting the growth of private enterprise and the sale of
land, for instance. Elected governor in 1995 after having been
removed from that office in 1993 by President Yeltsin, Mukha has
developed good relations with the Kremlin and has largely shed
his ties to the local communist establishment. He is one of
Russia's more powerful governors, and currently serves as
chairman of the association of Siberian governors. He has also
traveled extensively in the United States, though he does not
speak English. Novosibirsk does not often host VIPs, but the
Governor and his wife entertained President and Mrs. Yeltsin in
June, 1996, during Yeltsin's last presidential campaign. Mukha
is proud of Siberia's rich assortment of fresh-water fish and
regional cuisine, which would likely feature prominently in any
meal.
Talking Points
I am impressed with the intellectual and economic vibrance of
the Novosibirsk region.
While in Russia, I have seen numerous examples of what the
people of Novosibirsk and the United States can achieve when
we cooperate.
I appreciate the efforts you have made to allow U.S. -Russian
contacts to grow in a number of spheres in this region, and
count on your help in making these ties stronger.
American
Community Event
UNCLASSIFIED
NOVOSIBIRSK PAPER: AMERICAN COMMUNITY EVENT
SCENESETTER
We will organize an informal get-together for you with the local
American community in a convenient downtown location to be
determined. The total community only numbers around 70, with
the largest contingent representing religious workers from a
variety of denominations but also including some students and
business people. The event could be expanded, if desired, to
include foreign representatives of American companies.
BACKGROUND
There had originally been thought of hosting a meeting with only
religious workers to highlight the importance of religious
freedoms in Russia after the passage in September of a new law
on religion. The event has been expanded, however, to include
all local Americans. They will likely wish to share their
impressions of life and work in Siberia, and opportunities for
further cooperation and broader contacts between the U.S. and
the region. One American entrepreneur opened a popular pizza
restaurant several years ago that has now grown to several
restaurants and beverage distributorship. The American Business
Center director (name and point referring to her efforts to be
provided) is another luminary in the local American community
who happens to be near the end of her highly successful tenure
in Novosibirsk.