The murky affair: to be continued…

Our portal follows attentively how the situation in Kyrgyzstan develops where there are big disputes concerning the history textbook of the native land for ninth-graders which was written by Marat Imankulov. Let's remind that Russia is called as the colonialist there and there is no tolerance… The Russian Unifying Union of Compatriots opposed the defective and one-sided interpretation of events of the past. The authorities of the republic were compelled to pay attention to this problem. That was farther is told in the material of journalist Christina Ubaydullayeva:

MURKY AFFAIR

In Bishkek the disputes concerning the history textbook of Kyrgyzstan for the 9th class under Murat Imankulov's edition proceed.

The paragraph devoted to national liberation revolt of 1916 caused questions and complaints most of all. These events are a “painful” point in the Kyrgyz-Russian relations and the candidate of pedagogical sciences Imankulov only added fuel to the fire, colourfully, having in details and in expressive way described the sufferings of the Kyrgyz people from Russian “colonialists”. The round table took place in the Kyrgyz Academy of Education during which the historians, teachers and public figures decided the destiny of the provocative textbook.

As a whole the book discussion was in the court session more where the author Murat Imankulov acted as the respondent and the chairman of the Russian Unifying Union of Compatriots Alexander Ivanov was the claimant who demanded to withdraw Imankulov’s work from system of school education. Imankulov's opposition and the Russian Unifying Union of Compatriots lasts since 2006, that is since the ill-fated textbook appeared on school desks of ninth-graders at schools with the Russian language of training. The children got to know from it that “Kyrgyzstan is a colony of the Russian Empire” and that “the colonial authorities in every possible way interfered with creation of conditions for cultural development of the Kyrgyz people”, that the Russian peasants immigrants “were allocated with the best lands which were taken away from the local population” and a set of other facts absolutely not promoting an interethnic consent., Imankulov didn't agree to recognize in any way that such history can affect the weak mentality of teenagers in an unpredictable way and therefore persistently continued to insist on the correctness, being protected by reliability of the facts.

— I accept all claims, but prove that I wrote about it by first. Even the Soviet historians wrote about revolt of 1916, I don’t think it up by myself. Therefore I demand that mister Ivanov gave all the arguments in court and proved that I made mistakes and caused damage to an interethnic consent, he declared.
Imankulov noted that during the work on the paragraph he was guided by works of domestic historians D. Junushaliyev and V.Ploskikh and also by the historical documents. Besides, according to him, something in the description of the tragedy of 1916 should also be softened by him.

— In many official documents the word “mobilization” was replaced with the term “requisition” as if the population is cattle, told the author. I didn't begin to specify it in the textbook.

But Imankulov described the losses of the Kyrgyz in detail and eloquently (without a mention of victims of other nationalities) and “genocide” of the Kyrgyz people, having called it as the historical truth which the strategic ally can't hide to please.

— As they say, the people who don’t remember the past, have no future. And Ivanov wants to take our past and to deprive us the future, summarized Murat Imankulov.

Alexander Ivanov, in turn, reminded the author that acts not as the certain citizen, but as the representative of the Russian Unifying Union of Compatriots organization and the claims concern not so much reliability of historical events, as a form of their statement:

— From the conclusion of scientists of the National Academy of Sciences of the Kyrgyz Republic follows that in the textbook under Imankulov's edition there is an excessive emotionality and overlaps, however distortion of historic facts in the pre-revolutionary period is absent. Such is the official reply of the Prosecutor General's Office to our first address. I am not a historian and I can't argue on reliability of those “sick” moments. The truth can be different, and we now speak about material giving. Children of 14-15 years get to know from this textbook that “certain Poltavsky complained with regret: “While I pierced that Kyrgyz, I broke a new pitchfork”. Doesn’t it sow discord even in classes? Besides, the material moves one-sidedly. Victims only from the Kyrgyz party are specified for some reason. About other nationalities including the Russians who suffered too, wasn’t said something. We consider that this textbook for children of the 9th class won't do at all. If we put such “truth” in the heads of children with weak mentality, we won't be able to grow up the tolerant generation.

In the performance Alexander Ivanov mentioned that if the words of the fluent president Kurmanbek Bakiyev were used in the preface to the textbook, so at least for this reason the book is obsolete. However, “technical malfunctions” of the textbook aren't limited with Bakiyev's parting words. The human rights activist Toktaiym Umetaliyev also was confused by a book cover with the image of nowadays dismantled Bishkek monument “Erkindik”.

— This geopolitical image imposed by America is impossible to all our values and causes a loss of the Kyrgyz mentality, she declared. Traditionally it is considered a damnation when the woman holds tunduk. The image of any semi-female semi-bird was specially started that all men were killed. Already because of this image the textbook has no right to existence.

As recommendation Umetaliyeva noted that textbooks for schoolchildren have to be written by the group of authors:

— The personal position, internal state of one person shouldn't be reflected in materials of the textbook according to which our children will study. I see a geopolitical situation in own way, others — differently. If everyone writes the history from the point of view of own geopolitical interests, we will create “nuclear bomb”, a reason for the infinite conflicts. Schoolchildren have to study on the basis of the academic canons. It is necessary to create the new textbook with the assistance of Imankulov with better giving of a material.

The teachers expressed the opinion too. The teacher of history Elizabeth Shapovalova noted that the textbook is written rather difficult and isn't calculated on 15-year-old teenagers in any way who just enduring the awkward age.

— When the new textbook is written, there has to be an approbation of each paragraph, thus it is necessary that reaction of children to this or that material was watched by the psychologist, explained Shapovalova. We went in cycles in events of 1916 and after all it is also an intergeneric problem, a South and North question. On this soil sometimes there are collisions among children – Kyrgyz too. I am the skilled teacher and will be able to explain the separate moments to children and how the young teachers will work with a class according to this book? Therefore giving of a material has to be sparing, tolerant, not defiant the conflicts. Yes, we can’t forget the event of 1916, but other people, including the Russian immigrants suffered from it too. Neighbours had nothing to divide, the Kyrgyz hid the Russian neighbours and vice versa. Besides there was an end of this conflict, the certain rehabilitation — the Soviet power recognized this problem. Why it wasn’t told about? We speak about polycultural space, about tolerance and it has to be reflected in the textbook.

The teacher of the Kyrgyz-Russian Slavic University, the historian Pavel Dyatlenko admitted too that couldn't leave to multinational audience with such book.

— The textbook is called “History of Kyrgyzstan”, but everything is reduced generally to the history of the Kyrgyz. It isn't considered neither multiethnic structure of the population, nor the interethnic relations. Thus there are a lot of politicized and being opposed terms — that the journalists call as “hostility language”. Historians can operate with them, but teachers try not to use such terms or to work with them very carefully. Especially, before the audience from 12 to 17 years, after all teenagers are aggressive by the nature. This textbook needs serious processing, and only then it can be transferred to schools.

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“This history for the Kyrgyz I wrote that each people gets to know about the Kyrgyz” - such is Imankulov's epigraph to the textbook. If the author, emotionally stating the subjective vision of history of Kyrgyzstan indeed was guided by good intentions, he should be followed by the nobility where they bring. Not in vain the first secretary who was present at a meeting of embassy of Russia in the Kyrgyz Republic Victor Kharchenko remembered Dudaev's books which calculated on a certain layer of the Chechen youth and have entailed known events.

— If we give such books to children (I will beware to call them as the textbook), what we will receive at the end? , Kharchenko took an interest. We, the adult ,cultural people having the higher education and long-term experience can conduct heated disputes and then shake hands each other and to work together. But children whom are allowed to read similar books and don't explain some nuances, will have other relation to each other.

In turn, the deputy head of department of ethnic, religious policy and interaction with civil society of the Presidential Establishment of the Kyrgyz Republic Nurzhigit Kadyrbekov invited the conflicting parties to a meeting that those came to the compromise solution in dispute about the textbook.

—The commission on development of historical science is created according to the decree of the president. Within activity of this commission we analyze all history textbooks of Kyrgyzstan, Kadyrbekov reported. It is impossible to forget that such books influence the formation of the personality. The truth is truth, but not always it is necessary to present it to teenagers in detail.

The majority of the present agreed that the history textbook for the 9th class under Imankulov's edition doesn't suit for use in that form. It was decided to create the group of authors which will be engaged in development of recommendations for writing of the new textbook. For now it won't be created and won't pass all stages of careful check and coordination, schoolchildren will study formation of the Kyrgyz-Russian relations in the most unattractive interpretation.

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At the request of our portal the situation was commented by the chairman of the Russian Unifying Union of Compatriots Alexander Ivanov:

- Now the shorthand report of action is preparing about which there is a speech in article. As soon as it will be ready, it is planned to develop the plan of measures which will be carried out by republican Academy of Education. After all there was an inquiry about it from Administration of the President of the republic therefore it is impossible to ignore a situation. The purpose is defined: to analyse all textbooks of history from 5 to 11 classes.

I will remind that the Russian embassy suggested to carry out a joint round table with participation of local and Russian scientists. It would be right, as many archives are in Russia, and these materials would help to clear up the questions interesting us.

You know about the proposal of the president of Russia Vladimir Putin to develop the united history textbook. We came to the similar conclusion: it is necessary to develop united approach, a view of country history and to write textbooks recognizing that the different volume of information is necessary to fifth-graders and eleventh-graders!

We will surely continue the work; we aren't going to stop at all. Mister Imankulov tells us one thing and agrees with us and then gives interview where approves already the other things. And we have a firm position and we will defend it!