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Respect Should be The Goal of Our National Policy
 
By Grigory Yavlinsky
Mir Natsionalnostei magazine , page 3,
December 16, 1999

The potential for national conflicts may represent the main danger that we face today, owing to attempts to make nations confront each other on a national or religious plane. These trends have been increasing.

Attempts to make Russia confront one of the most humanistic and largest religions in the world - Islam - present an obvious trap for Russia. The policy of national conflicts in Russia, the policy of confrontation with Islam and other confessions is suicidal for our country. This is the most important thing that we wanted to draw people's attention to today.

In these circumstances the Yabloko party proceeds from the principle of absolute compliance with human rights, when resolving any ethnic/political conflicts. The goal of national policy in Russia may be expressed by a single word - respect - respect for other nationalities, other religions, regions, cultures, different confessions, traditions and history.

The most important condition for reaching such unity concerns coordination of the interests of an individual, civil society, nation and the state, based on a free and socially-oriented market economy. Yabloko sees its role and place as an intermediary and organiser, when arranging such negotiations and achieving mutually acceptable compromises.

In addition to state executive authorities and ideologically close political associations, Yabloko's strategic allies, when resolving ethnic conflicts, include enlightened religious associations, which advocate protection of common human values.

We consider the elimination of armed criminals to be an indisputable task, together with a reduction and significant restriction in their actions as well as a curbing of unemployment. Russia extends to those boundaries, where people consider themselves citizens of Russia.

Once again we draw attention to developments in many Russian cities, especially in Moscow, related to registration of citizens. We believe that the existence of acts issued as "secrecy documents", which regulate registration in Moscow, is inadmissible. The targets of the registration campaign - terrorists and extremists - normally do not need to register. We would like to declare that the principle of unity in diversity constitutes the fundamental principle of the Russian Federation as a multinational state.

ei Stepashin on Grigory Yavlinsky's proposals