Âå÷åðíÿÿ Êàçàíü / ¹ 107 (3257) / Read in English / The last president of Tatarstan (7)

Notes of a press secretary

The last president of Tatarstan (7)

There is nothing to add to the opinion of Lev Zharzhevsky about the architectural merits of Kul Sharif mosque, who wrote that "Kremlin became a garnish to Kul Shrif mosque" ("Evening KAzan", 5.08.2005). Other points of the processes connected to the mosque are more interesting.

Foreign journalists asked Shaymiyev why does the mosque in Kazan Kreml have the name of a man who struggled with Moscow. He answered the following: "The legendary imam was a poet and enlightener. He did not struggle with Moscow, he protected the freedom of a Kazan Khanate which was independent then" ("Argumeny I Fakty", ¹ 26, 2005).

In his speech on the occasion of opening the mosque Shaymiyev spoke about the personality of Kul Sharif in detail: "Kazan’s history saves the memory of the great public and religious figure, imam of Kazan Kremlin mosque Kul Sharif. A poet, a warrior, a thinker, Kul Sharif died, defending the city with his pupils, dervishes and sufis. He wrote in one of his works: "I am not the one who will turn away and leave the battlefield". He died so, as he has written, he did not turn away, he stayed there till the end".

On the press-conference about the opening of the mosque, answering the question of a foreign journalist, who asked how do the authorities of Tatarstan fight against radical extreme flows and organizations in the Republic, Mintimer Shaymiyev answered that "We do not have any here. Sure, there could be many of them if there would not be a politic of good-neighborly coexistence of different people and confessions and social stability, which is important for the heads of the Republic. Extreme organizations were liquidated at the beginning. I have already said once and my opinion did not change: It is not correct to think that religion is separated from the state and to do nothing. Religion is separated from the state, but not from the society. We are the society." ("Tatar-inform", 27.06. 2005).

In July 2005 I was present in the media-center of "Izvestia" newspaper in Moscow. A "round table" meeting called "Religious revival in Russia, terrorism and human rights ". The deputy of the chief public prosecutor of Russia Vladimir Kolesnikov showed his worries about terrorism in Russia. He took Tatarstan as an example, where there were 6 criminal cases in 2004, which all were connected with extremism in a different way. "There will sure be more cases and their geography will be wider - the tendencies are so. "The instability line" from Thailand to Balkan, which Zbignev Bzhezinsky described in 1973, is a reality now ", - Kolesnikov said.

It has to be conserned that Tatarstan has its place in this line. In March 2005 the first deputy of the Minister of the domestic affairs of the Republic of Tatarstan characterized the situation in the Republic the following way: "From all the totalitar sects and extremists organizations in the republic just a net of the Moslem party Hizb-ut-Tahrir was the widest. All the others work secretly, they hide themselves very well. Nevertheless they can prepare terror acts seriously and it is not a theory, but real facts. There are battle groiups, they get money, it is proved that they have weapons, explosive materials, they prepere themselves very good. It is all proved, to my regret. And to my regret I have to say that most of these people are young. Some of theme are even younger than 18. It is a serious question for us" ("Nezavisimaya gazeta ", 22.03.2005).

His fact which the authorities concerned only in 2005 was not a secret in 1999 for Farid Salman, imam of Kazan Bulgar mosque. He raised the alarm, showing his fears about coming of Wahhabism ideas into the Tatar moslem sphere. He wrote a letter to Shaymiyev that these ideas are propagated according a plan, the literature is easy to find. Farid Salman said also about joingn Wahhabism to nationalistic organizations, about adding religious extremism to the national one.

The leaders of the Religious Moslem Administration had to confirm the presence of the problem: Wahhabism is popular among the young people... Vice-mufti of the Republic of Tatarstan Valiulla-hazrat Yakupov said in 1999. To my regret we get the fruits of Perestroika’s romantism, as people found everything, connected to religion, very good" ("Argumenty I Fakty. Region", ¹ 40, 1999).

Yet to find a problem does not mean to get rid of it. It was easier to get rid of those people who spoke about it. Farid Slaman was evicted from Tatarstan. He became a head of a council of the Central Moslem Administration of the Russian Federation and mufti of Khanty-Mansy autonomy district. He spoke about Wahhabism during the already mentioned "round table". He meant that Wahhabism is not Islam, yet there are more and more Wahhabits."

The plan of bringing Wahhabism to Russia was known for Special Services very well. The first step is to learn young people, to help, to build mosques, religious schools and other establishmrnts. The second step – to find and bring more people to the mosques of the Republic. The third step is to make them leaders of schools, mosques and so on. The fourth step – having strong finance base and support of these people Wahabbits could become a political movement. The first step – mass disorders and coming to the power.

Dagestan was in the fifth step in 2006. Tatarstan is far from it. The deputy of the State Duma of Dagestan, the deputy of Defence Committee Mamma Mamayev during the same "round table" said that the main reason of the situation in his republic is the fact that religion is too close to the power. And potential base of extremism is social environment in the opinion of the deputy.

Seeds of extremism grow in Tatarstan and in Dagestan. On Kaspi there are many examples of terrorism, which hides behind the mask of Islam. Terrorist show their power quite rare. Yet.

Irek MURTAZIN.

Continuation. Read the beginning in ¹ 98, 101, 102, 103, 105, 106.

(To be continued)