Crimean news 75.

(Mass Media review for 11-17 September 2000).

Articles are abridged.

 

 

We need a new decree about land.

Skirmish before a fight.

Kurultay will be held in November.

Every third Simferopol resident is a pensioner.

Specialists' diagnosis: unemployment in Crimea has got a stagnant character.

Doesn't unemployment have a woman's face?

Happy birthday, city-hero!

Rainbow for everyone.

"Antique pattern".

"Clay patterns" exhibition.

 

Politics.

 

We need a new decree about land.

On September 5, the widened sitting of Bakhchisaray regional Mejlis was held. The main issue, which has already become a political one, to be discussed was allotting land to the Crimean Tatars. This issue is extremely urgent in the region.

The chairman of Republic Committee of Land, who came out at the sitting claimed that he had no right to violate legislation, and this issue wasn't even worth discussing. The only implication he put forward was taking Crimean Tatars' rights, who had worked in agriculture complexes, into account when dividing land plots. But this implication has already been rejected by the government of Ukraine.

The chairman of regional mejlis and the deputy of the head of Bakhchisaray district administration, I.Umerov explained that the government and deputies had passed a decision to create a commission from the deputies of local Councils and mejlis members, who would find a certain number of Crimean residents willing to return a part of their land plots for the sake of the Crimean Tatars that have remained without any land at all. However, it later turned out to be a hopeless decision. The sitting participants reached an agreement that it was necessary to demand that the President should adopt a new Decree on land, which would take into account Crimean Tatars' demands.

In result, the sitting participants adopted a statement, which, in particular, said: "… Although the President of Ukraine gave the following commission at the sitting of the Council of Crimean Tatars' representatives yet on May 11: "find some variants of solution to this problem under the frameworks of the current legislation", no department proposed a single variant. And the letter of Bakhchisaray district administration addressed to S.Kunitsyn mentioning the necessity of re-division and possibility of solving this problem using reserve lands was negatively responded saying it was impossible to re-divide the lands.

Everywhere in Crimea, including Bakhchisaray district, reserve lands are being actively distributed among the newly accepted CAE* members, instead of searching for variants and discussing them.

If real ways of allotting land to the Crimean Tatars are not found soon, they'll again have to find ways out of this problem themselves using extreme methods.

The partial attitude of the Office of Public Prosecutor towards Crimean Tatars' cases was also emphasized. The sitting participants were cited the statement of the district Prosecutor insulting people's honor and dignity. "For me the Jewish, the Crimean Tatars and b…es are the same thing". There has been no reaction as for the demand that the Prosecutor should be fired.

Leylya Alyadinova, "Golos Krima", #38 (357), 15 September 2000, p.1.

Our information: *CAE stands for Collective Agriculture Enterprise.

 

Skirmish before a fight.

The closer the opening of the sixth session of Crimean parliament comes, where the issue of dismissing the government will arise again, the more aggressive the skirmish of VR* speaker, Leonid Grach and the PM, Sergey Kunitsyn, to which the representative of the President, Anatoliy Korneychuk has joined, becomes. Grach made a speech on television, and on the next day his two opponents made a response fight with him. We can distinctly observe the main issues, which will be discussed for a long time.

The issue number one: The Council's of Ministers recent decision to increase the tariffs for public utilities

Leonid Grach: "This is a political provocation  <…>  I recommend that the government should decline its decision itself. The Parliament will abolish it anyway  <...>

Sergey Kunitsyn: "The VR cannot abolish government's decision. It can only be abolished in case if it contradicts the legislation. But it doesn't, it is lawful. The price of public utilities hasn't been increased for three and a half years. Communal enterprises are about to go bankrupt. Their workers haven't got their salaries for 10-12 months. Together with families they make up 75 thousand people. L.I.** used different phrases about political provocations. We mustn't increase the tension of this issue".

Anatoliy Korneychuk was struck by the fact that "for some reason this campaign was being developed under the slogan of protecting indigents. Moreover, he emphasized that "the autonomy cost us a pretty price that day": 4,7 million grivnas*** have been foreseen for keeping hundreds of people in the apparatus of Supreme Council of Crimea, and for fifteen VR members - 2,3 more million grivnas!"

Will the government be dismissed on October 1?

Leonid Grach: "We have passed a decision to dismiss the government. On October 1, the current membership of the government is obliged, I repeat - is obliged to step down. The problem is: will the parliament use services of the current government on October 2?"

Sergey Kunitsyn: "There is a Constitution of Ukraine, and the President is its guarantor, there is a conclusion of Judicial Ministry that VR's decision to dismiss the government was not legitimate. And on this ground, the resolution of dismissing the government has been recognized unlawful. If the President agrees upon the dismissal, as it has to be according to the Constitution, we will step down <…>

A "lyric" topic.

Recent victory in the contest for the best text of the Crimean Tatar national anthem, organized by the wife of Minister of Culture, Olga Golubeva and her husband's simultaneous proposal to allocate 18 thousand grivnas**** to the authors of music and text each, and 150 thousand grivnas for recording the anthem, couldn't leave anyone indifferent.

Leonid Garch: "This is very important for Crimea. We really need to say all about the importance and value of Crimea <…> we need something that would unite us, and I thing it has already happened".

Sergey Kunitsyn: "I have read the anthem. I will not vote for it. I came out against the submitted estimate for the anthem by the Minister of Culture. It turns out that Olga Golubeva will get a 3650 grivnas royalties for each word. We will go against any rule of ethics if we allocate 150 thousand grivnas for the anthem under the conditions of an urgent deficiency in the autonomy".

Alexey Nezhivoy, Kira Ivanova, "Krimskoye Vremya", #170 (1037), 15 September 2000, p.3.

Our information: *VR stands for Verkhovna Rada - the Parliament of Crimea.

**L.I. stands for Leonid Ivanovich - speaker of Crimean parliament and the head of Crimean communists.

***1 US$=5,4 grivnas.

****Average salary in budget organizations accounts 120-150 grivnas.

 

Kurultay will be held in November.

On September 12, the first sitting of organizational group on preparing for the third session of Kurultay 3 was held in Mejlis. The group consists of 10 members.

In the course of the sitting they distributed obligations on the issues of preparing mandates of Kurultay delegates, invitation cards, making the lists of Kurultay delegates and guests, making the timetable of goings out to conferences in regions, expenses estimates, and also mounting of the premises. Holding of the third session of Kurultay 3 is planned for the end of November.

Leylya Alyadinova, "Golos Krima", #38 (357), 15 September 2000, p.1.

 

In the mirror of statistics.

 

Every third Simferopol resident is a pensioner.

According to the data of July 1, 2000 the population of Simferopol is 360169 people. Of them 296569 are adults, 63600 are children who are less than 16. The able-bodied urban population accounts 210100 people. Practically every third resident of Simferopol is a pensioner. Of the total number of pensioner some 16 thousand residents get minimum and social pensions that equal 46 grivnas.

"Krimskoye Vremya", #167 (1034), 12 September 2000, p.2.

 

Specialists' diagnosis: unemployment in Crimea has got a stagnant character.

The average duration of work searches by unemployed Crimean residents last year accounted 9 months, besides the duration of their being unemployed was two times longer - 18 months. Among the main reasons of unemployment, listed by respondents were firings connected with reorganization, liquidation or conversion of production, decreasing the number of personnel, retiring on personal wishes, difficulty to find a job after graduating from an educational institution.

More than a half of so-called inactive population 61,4% - were the able-bodied citizens last year. The number of unemployed residents aged from 15 to 70, who have stopped their job-hunting, because of losing a hope to find one, equaled 36,7 thousand last year.

Unemployment in Crimea has got a stagnant character. This problem is especially urgent for the youth. About a quarter of all unemployed Crimean residents (24,7%) are people aged from 15 to 24.

Alla Alyeshina, "Krimskoye Vremya", #168 (1035), 13 September 2000, p.6.

 

Doesn't unemployment have a woman's face?

The death rate in Crimea, according to the results of the first six months of 2000 has exceeded the birth-rate by two times. Statistic indices, characterizing the rate of unemployment are several times higher than those in the center of occupation. It is connected with the fact that not everyone, who loses his job applies for help to this center.

The inflation index for the last year equaled 100 in Ukraine. Among goods, the most substantial was the increasing of prices for meat products - 6% and for petroleum - 11%.

I.Sazonova, "Krimskiye Izvestiya", #166 (2170), 12 September 2000, p.5.

 

History, culture.

 

Happy birthday, city-hero!

Kerch is celebrating its 2600th anniversary these days. A solemn meeting, devoted to this celebration was held in the city.

Celebration measures, devoted to the jubilee of Kerch are still being held in the city.

Natalya Ilyina, "Krimskaya Pravda", #170 (22583), 16 September 2000, p.1.

 

Rainbow for everyone.

"Rainbow" festival was held in the multinational children center "Melevshe" ("Violet"). Unprofessional but very talented children dancing and singing collectives, representatives of all non-governmental children organizations of Crimea took part in the festival. Children demonstrated their singing and dancing art, and the concerts were held with a great success.

"Melevshe" center was created a year ago under the support of International "Soros" fund and the Embassy of Canada to Ukraine. Its duty is to create conditions for a many-sided development of children belonging to different nationalities, and living not in big towns, where almost all the measures are held but in villages.

S.Kiryanova, "Krimskiye Izvestiya", #169 (2173), 15 September 2000, p.4.

 

"Antique pattern".

The decorative-applied exhibition of Crimean Tatars' art in the 18-20th centuries "Eski ornek" or an "Antique pattern" has been opened. The collection, presented by the Republic Crimean Tatar museum of arts, has an artistic and historical value. Its exhibits were collected and preserved during the period of deportation and after a time returned to the motherland to the real connoisseurs of national art.

The exhibition introduces us with the works of Crimean masters, who have an unusually poetic perception of the world and the ability to incarnate their thoughts into highly artistic make - authentic work of art.

R.Eminova, "Krimskiye Izvestiya", #168 (2172), 14 September 2000, p.7.

 

"Clay patterns" exhibition.

On September 17, an unusual exhibition was opened in Simferopol museum of Arts. The works of school-studio "Clay patterns" are presented in it. What makes it unusual is that the works were made by children, who showed the exhibits and told the exhibition guests about their achievements.

In April 1999, International "Soros" fund created a children ceramic school-studio "Clay Patterns" on the basis of Republic Crimean Tatar museum of arts. In the course of this period 100 children of different nationalities have studied there. Children are taught the basic knowledge of painting, modeling and ceramics here.

The instructors of the school-studio are professional artists-ceramists, Seit-Ametov Abdyul and Yakubov Rustem and the leader of the studio - Asanova Fatime have developed the program, which places deep and vital aims - to teach and bring up children. In the basis of their artistic and pedagogical activity are the attempt to develop individuality of an apprentice and a wish to teach him how to work.

Before the solemn opening of the exhibition they held a concert of a children amateur ensemble "Ak-Mechet Yildizlari" ("Stars of Ak-Mechet") from Simferopol, who caused a great deal of applause by their ingenious performance.

Gathered information.

 

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