July 29, 2005 - 07:57 AMT
YABLOKO PARTY DEPUTY CHAIR: ARMENIAN GENOCIDE PROBLEM NOT ENLIGHTENED IN RUSSIA
"Armenian Genocide problem not enlightened in Russia" deputy chair of Yabloko party Sergey
Mitrokhin stated in his interview with Yerkramas, the newspaper of Armenians of Russia. He noted that Yabloko was the only party in Russia to issue a special statement on the occasion of the 90-the anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. In his words Yabloko was supporting the adoption of a statement on Genocide by the Russian State Duma in 1995 and he was among those, who promoted the document. "Russia has expressed its attitude towards the issue, but it was in the time of Yeltsin. Now the power has changed and we haven't heard the incumbent touch upon this topic. I think it's very dangerous if not of humanistic considerations but proceeding from political pragmatism. Presently Armenia is Russia's most friendly state in the CIS and among the states surrounding it. For the sake of such a state we should have made some steps Armenia is expecting. In Mitrokhin's opinion, the leadership and opposition in Armenia are Russia-oriented what cannot be said about Belarus, for example, where President Lukashenko's power depends on Russia's support. Sergey Mitrokhin also says it's wrong that the Russian school textbooks lack information about the Armenian Genocide. "Education is degrading in Russia. National motives and distortion of history can be noticed in the history textbooks. The absence of information about the Armenian Genocide and Holocaust is the evidence of degradation", he noted.