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Andrew Jameson Chair, Russian Committee, ALL Languages and Professional Development 1 Brook Street, Lancaster LA1 1SL UK Tel: 01524 32371 (+44 1524 32371) ---------- From: Transitions Online <[log in to unmask]> To: [log in to unmask] Subject: New at TOL Date: 28 August 2000 21:29 Transitions Online (TOL) (http://www.tol.cz) is the leading Internet magazine covering Central and Eastern Europe, the Balkans, and the former Soviet Union. If you aren't already a member, fill out our registration form at <http://www.tol.cz/trialsubscr.html> to receive your free two-month trial membership. If you'd like to become a TOL member right away, go to <http://www.tol.cz/member.html>. And if you're a citizen of a post-communist country, FREE annual memberships are still available at <http://www.tol.cz/trialsubscr2.html>. This weekly update from Transitions Online is provided for your information only. If you have not requested this information and are uninterested in any further updates, please accept our apology and send an email to <[log in to unmask]> with the word 'UNSUBSCRIBE' in its subject. ******************************************************* NEW AT TOL: WEEK IN REVIEW (Free Access) http://www.tol.cz/week.html Azerbaijanis Mourn Death of Former President Russia's Main Television Tower Goes Up in Smoke Latvia Gets New Language Regulations Kyrgyz Linguistic Commission Bans Two More Presidential Hopefuls Bulgaria Expels Foreign Bad Boys Kosovar Serbs Erupt in Fury Over Recent Deaths Slovak Roma Under Attack Tajiks Continue Crackdown on Mysterious Islamic Party Political Faux Pas For Polish Presidential Candidate American Millionaire Seeking Sunken Ferry Secret Our Take: Living With The Lingua Franca A TOL editorial http://www.tol.cz/ouraug28.html The full text of this article also appears below. FEATURE: Operation Foreigner by Russell Working http://www.tol.cz/frartic/specr08008.html (Free Access for a Week) They want their goods, but not their people. In an aggressive effort to stop Chinese "tourists" in Russia's Far East from illegally staying on as construction workers, restaurateurs, roadside shoe repairmen, and traders, police are conducting raids, rounding up those without documents, and shipping them home. FEATURE: Out-of-Work But Not Up-in-Arms by Lubos Palata http://www.tol.cz/frartic/specr08009.html (Free Access for a Week) Twenty percent unemployment nationally--even 40 percent in some counties--numbers unseen in any Central European country in the last 10 years. In spite of the dire situation in Slovakia, social calm predominates, with no waves of strikes or mass demonstrations. Most labor experts agree that the main factors behind the lack of unrest are the extensive amount of so-called "black labor"--undocumented and untaxed work--and the reality that Roma comprise many of the unemployed, but aren't likely to protest and push for change. As part of this month's "In Focus" sports package: Survival of the Fittest IN FOCUS: New Blood for the Sumo Challenge by Nomin Lhagvasuren http://www.tol.cz/frartic/newblood.html (Free Access for a Week) To a great extent, being a sumo wrestler means being Japanese. To eat Japanese, to fight Japanese, to look Japanese, and to act Japanese. And for foreigners, entering the strict, ancient, and very traditional world of Sumo or "rikishi" wrestling is especially challenging--since 1962, the sport has been a cornerstone of Japanese culture and customs. But of late, outsiders, most notably Mongolians, have proven they have what it takes as well. BOOKS: A How-To Guide for Russian Newspapers by Laura Belin http://www.tol.cz/frartic/bkaug002.html (Free Access for a Week) In "A Newspaper for All Russia (Gazeta dlya vsei Rossii)," by Lyudmila Resnyanskaya and Irina Fomicheva, two Russian journalists examine the country's print media readership, and what it takes to run a successful paper. Belin argues that, unlike many studies of contemporary Russian media, the book is not about who bought whom for how much--but rather seeks to answer more pertinent and probing questions. As an accompaniment to this article, in "Dallas is Dying," Peter Rutland looks at how Russian cinema is looking for a "Field of Miracles" to launch a comeback amid devastating financial conditions. http://www.tol.cz/books/bkaug003.html The following article is part of TOL's series of Annual Surveys for 1999: exclusive overviews written for TOL by top local and Western analysts and edited by regional specialist Professor Peter Rutland of Wesleyan University. These valuable resources follow the fine tradition established by the OMRI/East-West Institute Annual Surveys. Both sets of reports, old and new, can be found in our expanded Country Files <http://www.tol.cz/links1.html> along with links and maps for the 27 countries in the post-communist world. NATO's War for Kosovo By Andrew Cottey http://www.tol.cz/countries/yugar991.html One of the defining events of 1999 was NATO's intervention in Kosovo. For its supporters, NATO's action averted a catastrophe and set an important precedent for humanitarian intervention. For critics, NATO's intervention only intensified the appalling plight of the Kosovar Albanians, further destabilized the already unstable Balkans, and set a dangerous precedent for unilateral military intervention. ******************************************************* BEGGING WITH DIGNITY TOL desperately needs a computer upgrade. Used or new models welcome. If you can help, please contact Luke Allnutt at [log in to unmask] ******************************************************* RUSSIAN LIFE MAGAZINE -- Subscribe to the 43-year-old magazine of Russian culture, history, travel and life. Each bimonthly issue is a colorful, objective window into the reality of Russia, past, present and future. To start a subscription, visit: <http://www.russian-life.com/store/moreinfo.cfm?Product_ID=4242&aff=5> To visit the rest of our website, where we sample stories from the magazine, back issues of our FREE weekly e-mail newsletter, plus some great resources (like a worldwide events calendar and directory of Russophile-related businesses), simply go to: http://www.russian-life.com ******************************************************* Please visit our partner sites: We would like to call your attention to the launch of EurasiaNet--a leading Internet news service, covering the countries of Central Asia and the Caucasus, as well as Afghanistan, the Middle East and Mongolia. EurasiaNet (http://www.eurasianet.org) is a website that provides exclusive news and analysis on political, economic, environmental and social developments. The website also offers a variety of other features including: hundreds of links; an extensive research database; book reviews; newsmaker interviews and a discussion forum. The International Press Institute (http://www.freemedia.at/index1.html) is a global network of journalists, editors and media executives, dedicated to promoting freedom of the press and improving the standards and practices of journalism. Central Europe Review (http://www.ce-review.org) is the weekly Internet journal of Central and East European politics, society, and culture and the winner of the NetMedia 2000 Award for Outstanding Contribution to Online Journalism in Europe. The Network of Independent Journalists of Central and Eastern Europe (NIJ), a weekly service run by the Croatian-based STINA press agency. To subscribe to STINA's NIJ weekly service, giving you timely news of events in the region, send an e-mail to: [log in to unmask] ******************************************************* ADVERTISE HERE! As part of its efforts to become self-sustainable and serve as a model for other nonprofit organizations, Transitions Online has begun offering interested advertisers the possibility to reach thousands of readers through our weekly electronic mailings and on our site. Check out our newly redesigned media kit (http://www.tol.cz/mediakit/) and find out how to instantly reach a diverse, international audience with a demonstrated interest in the post-communist world--people guaranteed to want to hear what's new in products and services dealing with the region--and increase your company or institution's exposure by targeting the English-speaking elite in all of the 27 countries we cover. ******************************************************* A Czech nonprofit dedicated to promoting independent journalism, TOL is based in Prague and uses a network of local correspondents to provide unique, cross-regional analysis. We encourage you to visit our site and become part of a dynamic new media project dedicated to building independent journalism in Central and Eastern Europe, the Balkans, and the former Soviet Union. ******************************************************* Our Take: Living With The Lingua Franca Once again, language is in the news. Last week, the Latvian parliament passed amendments to a language law that the international community and the country's large ethnic Russian minority claim is discriminatory. In Kyrgyzstan, two more presidential candidates were barred from running, after failing a Kyrgyz-language test: That provoked criticism from some politicians that tough language requirements were engineered by circles around President Askar Akayev with the aim of getting rid of rivals. Although in some places--as the Kyrgyz example shows--language is still a tool in politicians' power games, many governments in the region are thinking differently about language politics. States are abandoning "language purity" and leaning toward more pragmatic, diverse policies that take into account their relationship with Russia, the wishes of the international community, and the economic realities of the region. Latvia's language law--passed in 1989--was a reflection of identity-building measures that emerging nations embraced in the dying days of the Soviet Union. Such policies were understandable given years of Soviet repression and linguistic Russification. Many Latvian and ethnic-Russian experts agreed that in the 1980s the survival of Latvian as a language was severely threatened. Across the region, more austere language policies tended to be motivated by nationalism and retribution rather than virtues of democratic pluralism. Those in power had an opportunity to get back at their former oppressors and remove traces of the past. But try as nationalists might, shaking off Russian colonialism and hegemony was--and is--no easy task. Political and intellectual elites throughout the region tend to speak Russian. Most countries not only have large ethnic-Russian minorities (over 25 million outside Russia and dotted around the former Soviet Union) but also have non ethnic Russian minorities who speak Russian as a first language. In Ukraine and Belarus many politicians speak better Russian than their native languages. Another Kyrgyz presidential contender, Felix Kulov, attempted to address his supporters in Kyrgyz last year, but no one could understand him so he was asked to switch to Russian. Efforts to increase the usage of Kyrgyz have run up against a variety of stumbling blocks: limited terminology and technical vocabulary, the unpopularity of Kyrgyz-language media, and the reluctance of the non-Kyrgyz minority to speak it. Added to the fact is the popularity of the Russian-language television station ORT, which broadcasts across the former Soviet Union. Moreover, about 95 percent of teaching material in Kyrgyz schools is in Russian. Latvia has the right idea. Not only will the amendments--which provide guidance for the use of foreign languages for official seals, application forms, and on language-proficiency tests--go some way in appeasing the country's ethnic-Russian minority and the international community, but they will also placate Moscow. Russia tends to get a little haughty over the treatment of its kin abroad. Recently, after the death of a Ukrainian musician in Lviv--allegedly in a fight with a group of Russophones--Ukrainian authorities barred Russian music from public places, much to the chagrin of Russian officials. On 19 July, the Russian State Duma passed a resolution, accusing Kyiv of discriminating against ethnic Russians and the Russian language in Ukraine. States wanting to cozy up to the Russians have passed legislation to benefit their Russian populations. Kyrgyzstan and Belarus have both raised Russian's status to a second state language. There are plenty of incentives on the table. Russian President Vladmir Putin has told the Moldovan government that if it elevated Russian to a second language it would cease its support for Transdniestrian separatists. The Russian government has used the situation in Lviv as a bargaining chip in difficult negotiations over Ukrainian debts for Russian gas. It isn't just foreign policy concerns or minority rights (a good way of winning brownie points with organizations like the OSCE) but also a matter of economics. Economically, the region needs Russian. Language is the bread and butter of economic progress. Make a deal with a taxi driver in Riga, or a gold trader in Bishkek, and more than likely you will speak Russian. Like it or not, Russian is still the region's lingua franca. Despite then-British Foreign Secretary Douglas Hurd in 1990 saying in triumphalist vein that English would replace Russian, at most levels of communication across the region, Russian still rules. Enthusiasts seeking a new common language for the region, like Esperanto, remain the trainspotters of the linguistic world. But despite the progress, some remain disgruntled. Citing Russia's "post-imperial hangover," some Latvian officials have expressed concern that Moscow is not willing to give due recognition to the country's efforts. Other officials have charged that the OSCE has singled out Latvia in pushing the changes. It seems that sensitivity and compromise are much needed. In an ethnically diverse region, bi-lingual coexistence is the only way to go. %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%