No. 8, 2002
Editors’ column
Dear friends!
Since time immemorial, the opinion of the older generation was of a decisive significance. The founding of a Council of Elders of the “Yasavey” Association is necessary and appropriate.
What functions should this council fulfill, who is eligible to be a member there are many questions waiting for a reply.
The movement kindly requests that the inhabitants of the NAO express their opinion on this issue and address their proposals to Yasavey.
TTP Seminar
Yasavey with the support of the World Bank (Program for small-scale grants) will hold a seminar in Naryan-Mar from November 28th to December 3rd, 2002 with a theme on “ Traditional Territories for nature use (TTP) in NAO”.
The management (representatives) of the Movement’s structural divisions has been invited to the seminar. During the seminar, meetings with representatives of oil companies, government officials and local self-government shall take place. The goals of the seminar are the following:
A. To examine existing federal and regional legislation on traditional territories of nature use.
B. To discuss topics related to adopting the TTP law on NAO territories and to practice the organization of TTPs on NAO territory.
C. To apply in practice laws safeguarding one’s own laws.
D. To examine general questions concerned with activities of structural divisions within NAO settlements.
Lectures at the seminar will be read by V.V. Peskov - president of Yasavey, P.V. Sulyandziga - first vice-president of RAIPON, O.A. Murashko - member of the Board of IWGIA, G.P. Federova - Advisor of the Committee on nationalities of the State Duma RF, L.V. Laptander - deputy head of NAO Administration of peoples in the North, Z.A. Agapova chairperson of the committee for Nenets and other peoples in the North of the NAO, N.P. Chuprova chief specialist of the department of the Ministry of Justice RF, A.E. Belugin executive director of Yasavey.
Seminars in Moscow
From November 18 19, 2002 a “Russian-Canadian seminar on the exchange of educational experience and the management of territories of indigenous peoples of Canada and the Russian Federation” was held in Moscow. The goal of this seminar was the following, namely: Becoming acquainted with the experience obtained by the Government of Canada and the First Nations of the Yukon territory, preparing and concluding agreements concerning traditional territories of indigenous peoples, examining various examples for permitting land claims, the possibility to adapt the Canadian methodology to establish traditional territories under the conditions of the Russian Federation.
At present the Association is taking part in preparing proposals on introducing amendments and supplements into the given Federal law according to the recommendations made by the Commission on demarcating objects of conducting and authorization between governmental authorities RF, governmental authorities of subjects RF and local self-governmental bodies under the president of the Russian Federation.
The meeting was also attended by the leaders of RAIPON, representatives of executive and legislative officials of northern territories, academics, leaders of federal ministries and departments: Ministry of economic development and trade RF, Ministry of Justice RF, Ministry of natural resources, federal services of land cadastres, ia., deputies of the State Duma and members of the Council of Federations.
(picture “A.E. Vyucheiskij”)
During November 20 to 21 an “International seminar on co-management of natural resources and conscientious governmental directing” was held in Moscow. New and innovative mechanisms for managing natural resources were elaborated on at the seminar, thus creating conditions for a more effective movement leading to stable development.
One of the tasks at the seminar was to search for regions in Russia most compatible for implementing a pilot project on co-directing natural resources.
Representatives of governmental bodies (federal and regional) were invited to the seminar as well as extracting companies and indigenous peoples.
Participating actively in both seminars was Alexandr E. Vyucheiskij on behalf of Yasavey and vice-president on traditional types of economic activities
News in Brief
From October 23 to 27 in the town of Kiruna (Sweden)a regular meeting took place of the WG on indigenous peoples of the Barents Eurasia Region (BEAR). The executive director of Yasavey, A. Belugin participated in its work.
Some of the items on the agenda comprised the following questions:
Program of activities for indigenous peoples in BEAR (2004-2008);
E. Widening the concept of twinning for cooperation;
F. Planning a celebration in honour of the 10th anniversary of Barents cooperation.
G. Health care program for indigenous peoples in BEAR;
H. An office for indigenous peoples in the city of Murmansk;
I. Projects for indigenous peoples in Sapmi, NAO and in the Vepsk oblast
A meeting took place with Pekka Alhojärvi, manager of a project in the Centre for economic research and development of the Commercial Institute in Turku, Finland and Natalia A. Demidova, deputy director for research FGU “Northern Institute for Science and Research of timber economy”. The goal was to become familiar with the activities of Yasavey.
In St. Petersburg a seminar for youth was held. Students from the northern regions of the RF were among the participants attending higher institutes of learning in the city.
For the New Year students from Usinsk (NAO) will have finished their oral part of the course. Following vacation they start the practical part of their studies.
Yasavey has plans to establish a Council for senior citizens. The first meeting dealing with this subject will take place on December 3, 2002.
RAIPON published a “Legal guidebook for communities of RAIPON”. This work gives an overview of federal laws and standardization decrees of the RF which guarantee the rights of the IPN.
News from St. Petersburg
Dear people from the North,
Dear colleagues and friends!
It is time to pay special attention to your language and cultural background of each group of people. Thereby safeguarding its uniqueness and this requires our active participation.
A voice from the tundra and the taiga, a reindeer herder, an academic, teacher and student, the brush of a painter and the word of a poet, old songs and new tunes, love for your own corner in the world and consideration for the people living in it, in other words everything capable of uniting people who are not indifferent but also passionate, ready to serve a mighty purpose for one’s people and its future. All this will find its place here in our newsletter.
“I am attached to the people Ogdo Aksenova a poet said about herself. My spacious world, my light my North has measured us only with time”. Time, my world spacious distances from the White Sea to the Bering Straits. From Taimyr to Altai and my people that once constituted the contents of a wonderful magazine of the past “Taiga and the Tundra”.
It is not a coincidence that the magazine’s editorial Board was in the Institute of the peoples from the North founded on the basis of the faculty for peoples of the Far North of the Russian State University on September 1, 2001.
The northern faculty of the LGU, then the FNKS RGPU is considered as the “alma mater” of many tens of teachers and academics working in the field of national education. There are even more from the North to whom Leningrad offered a trip into life itself. And if Leningrad-St. Petersburg is considered to be the Northern capital of the country, what meaning must it have for those from the North, who graduated from the establishments of higher learning or work as colleagues from Leningrad, this city the original capital of the North, the one who forged its national workers. Gave them hope and fate. How many northerners are attached from the North to Leningrad through happiness, a city soon to be 300 years old!
The North and Leningrad Petersburg. Such are the contents of the first edition of the magazine to which we invite everyone to participate that wants to express themselves and in Leningrad and in Petersburg. To say something about their relatives and close ones who brought memories of this city and its people to the North, about friends and happenings. Your memories and photographs, even possibly documents and also just thinking about the relationship between Petersburg and the North today and best wishes for the future, all this will find their place in various columns of the magazine.
With your help by combining creative power of the Far North, Siberia and the Far East, the magazine “Taiga and Tundra” will become a broad platform for presentations by learned people, writers, poets, artists. Those who stand behind their people in particular schools for the young because the future of the North depends on them.
We are expecting your reactions, material, letters and articles at the following address:
198097 St. Petersburg
pr. Stachek-30
Institute for peoples of the North RGPU
A.I. Herzen Faculty for paleoasiatic languages
Editorial Board of “Taiga and Tundra”
For Chuner M. Taksam