Introduction

"Probably it was the most free of all seminars we had in Russia so far!! A few weeks before, in a media conference organised and run by the West here in Moscow, all the keynote speakers were told what had to be said and how it had to be said." This remark was made by one of the keynote speakers at the Refresher Programme held last June on "Russia Beyond Myths and Stereotypes: Moral Values, Media and Religion". Several Russian participants admitted at the end of the programme that they could learn more about the peoples and realities of Russia through this unique formation programme.

The event helped analyse the fall of Communism and the rise of capitalism in Russia and Eastern and Central Europe. It was also an occasion for exploration of ways to bring about the peaceful transformation of the region.

In Communist times, journalists and media experts from the West used to come to Russia to "teach" Russians ethics in journalism, "accurate" and "objective" reporting, and in general the "ideals" that every journalist should uphold. But today, the same West goes wild in Russia and even the journalistic events they organise there are no longer aimed at ethics or objectivity but investment in the Russian media for profit and big money. And experts say that the "Wild West" today dictates better than the Kremlin ever did on what is to be reported ­ for greater financial gain.

Some anti-Communist keynote speakers said that during the Communist times, there were some ideas of ethics, values and norms though they were not the best but today there are absolutely no norms or standards. They all agree that the Communist times were not at all good but in the Capitalistic times, things are getting worse. And some of them did not hide their fear and anxiety that Russia could repeat the history of 1917, when the Russian people surprised the world by revolting against oligarchs, monarchs and the extremist capitalists of that time.

Probably these hypotheses are too exaggerated almost hundred years later but they express the most important concerns of common people in Russia and the challenges and difficulties Russia faces today in our more and more globalised world.

And the Refresher Programme held in Moscow enlightened and enriched its participants as they could listen to a great galaxy of keynote speakers from all walks of life, get exposed to Russian realities and life, and encounter with personalities, authorities and common people. The event was able to bring together journalists, other media professionals, experts and authorities of various religious denominations especially the Orthodox and Catholic.

All of them were able to open their hearts and minds without prejudice and fear so that they could together prepare responses for the common challenges they face in almost all fields: economy, culture, religion, morality, and social life. They all realised that what is important in Russia at all times and for all contacts is respect, equality, freedom and friendship.

A Galaxy of keynote speakers

Keynote speakers play clearly a key role in making the event, not only a great success, but also memorable forever because of the great impact they make with first-hand information and live analyse with participants and other resource persons.

The keynote speakers included: Alexei Simonov, Glasnost' Defence Foundation; Vitaly Portnikov, Radio Liberty; Andrei Richter, Media Law Institute; Catholic Archbishop Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz of Mocsow; Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin of External affairs department of Moscow Patriarchate; Archpriest Vladimir Vigilanski of Moscow Patriarchate; Mons. Ante Jozic, of Vatican Embassy in Moscow; Fr. Igor Kowalewski, General Secretary of Russian Catholic Bishops' Conference; Vladimir Oyvin of Baptist Community in Moscow; Sergei Bychkov of Moskowski Komsomolets daily; Alexander Soldatov of "Moscow News" weekly; Galina Lazutina, Journalism Department, Moscow State University; Michael Viatteau, AFP (France) based in Moscow; Xotchiketsal Luna Morales, Mexican journalist based in Moscow; Peter Sakharov, Radio journalist; Pavel Gusev, editor-in-chief of Moskowski Komsomolets daily; Andrei Zolotov of Russian Profile magazine.

They could explore together with participants almost all major issues during the one-week refresher and exposure programme. And we are happy to bring to you a summary of the deliberations and findings:

Five Major Periods of Recent Russian History

In order to understand the trials and tribulations of today's Russia, it is highly important to analyse the five major periods of recent Russian history. They are: The Era of Christianisation, The Era of Tsars, The Soviet Era, The Gorbachev era, and The Neo-liberal Era of today.

The Era of Christianisation

It is probably the first effort to unite all peoples in the vast territories of the so-called Russia under one religion's principles. Christianity reached in the ancient Russian state both from Byzantine Empire and from the West. According to the Byzantine sources, Russia (then Rus, Rhos or Ros) was brought to Christianity in the year 867 . Hence all ethnic groups, opinions, thinking, traditions were suppressed and believed to be brought to the "unity" by the affiliation of Varangian dynasty with the Byzantine Empire through Orthodox church. Because of this affiliation, the dynasty moved the capital from Novograd to Kiev in A.D. 882.

The Christians at that time thought that all what is not Christian was uncivilized and uncultured and thus to be Christianised and the easiest and effective way was to get the rulers to adopt Christianity. If the rulers have adopted Christianity, all citizens and everything in the state automatically became Christian. And Christianisation led to effective colonisation on all levels: economic, language, cultural, intellectual and so on.

The fact that the same Christianity was brought to Russia from two different backgrounds, the Byzantine and the West had already sowed the seeds of today's religious conflicts. The process of Christianisation had simply eliminated all what could not fit into the Christian frame!! And such unification was indispensable for the rulers in order to establish discipline, to define an identity and to promote unity of the state as well as to recuperate territories lost by incursions and invasions: Mongol, Tartar, Turkish and so on.

The Era of Tsars or the Imperial period

Under the rule of Mongols, the duchy of Moscow could assert in the 14th century a certain influence in Western Russia. This influence together with the help of the Russian Orthodox Church and Saint Sergius of Radonezh's spiritual revival, rulers in Moscow defeated the Mongols in the crucial Battle of Kulikovo in 1389. This victory and its consequent victorious policies and wars as well as the fall of Constantinople (today's Istanbul) -- Constantinople was capital of the Byzantine Empire, Russia's spiritual leader and model -- in 1453 gave the Ivan the Great (1456-1505) to consolidate territories under Moscow. He became the first Grand Duke of all the Russias.

Following the fall of Constantinople, Russia under Moscow became more or less the only functional Christian state in Eastern Europe. It even successfully claimed the succession to the legacy of the Eastern Roman Empire.

Moscow gradually became the new political and religious power centre and the first Tsar, Ivan the Terrible was crowned in 1547. Annexing Muslim polities along the Volga River, Ivan tried to make Russia a multiethnic and multi-confessional nation. Imperial Russia began to flourish after Polish invasion (1605 ­ 1612) with Tsar Michael Romanov installed in 1613. Because of the fall of Constantinople in 1453 and its consequences, certain Russian Tsars became the head of the Orthodox Church to protect it from all invasions ­ political, intellectual, heretical, pagan. They made laws to defend of the Orthodox Church, promoted missions and contributed generously to monastic and church initiatives and buildings.

On the other hand, Russia colonised towards the east and by 17th century, Russians reached all the way to the Pacific coast and had settled in the straits between North America and Asia. During this colonisation, the political and religious authorities like in other colonisations forgot that all the people were not automatically Orthodox Christians or Russians. The political philosophy of the Church was a give and take approach between the political and religious authorities: Christianise the "whole world" and make the political leaders its guardians. It was the time of concentration, unification, and pure elimination of "other" interests other than those of authorities and oligarchs. "The poor" were left to the so-called "divine" intervention for their everyday and after-existence salvation. Tsars, their families, religious authorities feasted while common persons became economic, intellectual and cultural slaves.

Extreme capitalism deprived many from basic necessities, and grave violence of fundamental rights by the ruling class tried to be counterbalanced with charity and alms to the poor. These injustices sowed the first seeds of revolution among common people. The other main reasons for the collapse of the imperial period were the failure of agrarian reforms, suppression of the growing liberal intelligentsia. Besides various devastating defeats of the Russian army in the Russo-Japanese War and first major war (1914 ­ 1918) in Europe and the consequent collapse of the economy led to widespread dissatisfaction throughout the Russian Empire. All these helped overthrow of the Romanovs in 1917.

The Soviet Era

People succeeded in revolting against the status quo of this time and leaders came out of revolution took charge. Bolsheviks seized power under the leadership of Vladimir Lenin. Bolsheviks later called themselves communists. A bloody civil war followed: Royals, oligarchs, religious leaders and their friends were killed ruthlessly; palaces and churches were looted. The Bolsheviks' Red Army defeated anti-socialist, monarchist and bourgeois forces known as the White Army. Hence the Soviet Union was born in 1922. Joseph Stalin came to Power after the death of Lenin in 1924 and in 1930's millions of people whom Stalin and his authorities thought of being threat to their power were executed or exiled to labour camps in remote areas of Siberia.

Joseph Stalin introduced big agrarian and economic reforms. He could transform the country in a short period into a wealthy industrial nation leaving many below poverty line. But the war against Nazi Germany devastated the Soviet Union; Russia has lost more than 27 million citizens; 18 million of them were civilians. Though the war ravaged Russia, with the help of Red Army, the nation came out of it victorious as a well-known superpower.

During Soviet Era, Russia won almost all the wars and it is the Red Army that stopped the German invasion. The new Soviet Era guaranteed social security, national pride, and developed a high level of spirit for initiatives and invention. It is during the Soviet era, the first human person could orbit the earth, supersonic planes were produced, and space technology went ahead beyond all expectations. The Soviet period will continue to send its impacts and nostalgias through decades and centuries to come!!

Gorbachev Era

Since 1985 came the glasnost (openness) and perestroika (restructuring)! Glasnost means one who makes things public, seen by the public, transparent or open. Free speech was guaranteed for the first time. Churches were recognised. Gorbachev wanted a moderate reform my modernising Soviet communism. Things went out of his control with the displeasure of conservatives and military. Gorbachev was probably the cleverest Russian politician and he succeeded as a politician. He failed when he began to behave as a citizen and a human person in view of making Soviet Russia a modern super power. A military coup in 1991 to remove him from power not only failed but also forced the collapse of Soviet Union with the increasing power of neo-liberals who found their freedom and voice under glasnost and perestroika. This brief Gorbachev era is considered the period that initiated far-reaching and traumatic changes not only in Russia but also in Europe.

The Russian Neo-liberal Era

Boris Yeltsin came to power in 1991 and ended exclusive communist rule. Prior to dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, he was elected president of Russia through direct presidential election in Russian history. He introduced a shock therapy through market-oriented reforms. Priceless national industries of petroleum, metallurgy and so on were privatised for peanut prices and majority of the population fell into poverty. People found themselves overnight without jobs, social or physical security, insurance and literally without a hold or grip anywhere.

The year 1993 was crucial for Boris Yeltsin. He survived an impeachment process on 26 March 1993, abolished Supreme Soviet and the Congress of People's Deputies by decree on 21 September, on the same day cracked down factions of army that turned against him, adopted the Constitution of Russian Federation on 12 December 1993 and was elected president of the new Russian Federation. His time was plagued by regional wars especially in Chechnya.

In the first days of the year 2000, Boris Yeltsin made Vladimir Putin president; later he was elected president in early 2000.

President Putin formed a new neo-liberalism in view of a strong Russia in terms of economy and military. And today's Russia is a communist-capitalist and conservative-neo-liberal era that has all evils of the last 1000 years of Russian history. This combination of capitalist interests together with increasing oil prices has boosted the Russian economy compared to the 1990s but has kept the common person far way from all agendas.

Major findings

In the light of the historical enlightenment, the resource persons and participants analysed the situation of Russia today and understand the nation better:

New Freedoms

Though in principle there are more freedoms in Russia than in the Tsar and Soviet eras, the market rules, traditions and present day presidential system do not allow Russian citizens to enjoy the new freedoms. And at the same time, the new freedoms have helped devastate the moral, ethical, social, economic and cultural fabrics of the society, which even the communists tried to care.

Internet boosted new freedoms by giving access to information. Today, information ghetto in principle is no more possible. But as we all know Internet is not accessible everywhere and even among the regular users of Internet, even in the developed world, many people are still kept in ignorance.

Majority of the people in Russia are still far way from true political and economic independence. Because of the brainwashing and counter brainwashing during several centuries and decades, many people were left without the basic notions of what is wrong and right. There are many in Russia who can read but are not able to understand or judge what is good or bad in what they read.

Besides, centuries of violent life do not allow people to understand and harness new freedoms of these days. And this situation helps many both Russians and non-Russians to take big profit out of these chaos.

As many in Russia often say that "living is dangerous!" new freedoms for the time being bring more dangers, later they may bring more benefits.

According to some resource persons, philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre was only imagining of the extreme cases of human existence, while in Russia people went through what he was thinking.

And new freedoms in today's Russia are to be understood in these contexts and used for the benefit of all.

Economy

After the imperial and soviet economies, today Russia has a strange economy, which benefits the higher levels of both classes. During the imperialist time, the economy favoured the capitalists. In Soviet era, the economy tried to favour all by making the state the owner of everything.

Today, Russians have become prisoners of both elite imperialists and elite communists as they became the masters of new capitalism. The worst combination that can happen in Russia is the alliance for profit by conservatives and liberals, communists and capitalists. In other words, thieves from both sides have united and become friends today so that they can exploit more common people and common good.

And today, we have a virtual Russia of profit makers from all sectors, ideologies and beliefs. The uniting factor is money and profit. And in this virtual and profit-oriented Russia there is no social contract or social responsibility. Expectations of common people and the poor are not considered.

Therefore today's risks in Russia are huge, and tomorrow's risks can easily become catastrophes as the gap and difference between ruling elite and ordinary people becomes bigger and bigger.

On the other hand efforts are made to make Russia strong: economically by just distribution of wealth, culturally by promoting the great varieties of cultural landscapes, and agriculturally by promoting local and healthy food.

Economists and other experts do not consider Russia part of Europe or Asia and envisage Russia's own development in the globalised world. In addition, they do not see a strong economy for the majority of the population without respecting the fundamental labour rights and the right to be paid for the work done by every Russian.

Because of these, most Russians do not consider Russia their country. They migrate to other parts of the world as fast as they can.

Role of Religions

The Orthodox Church made the strongest influence on Russia for more than 1000 years. And it still does among many Russians. As religious freedom was limited during the last 10 centuries, today people are running into anything that has a pretended religious colour.

Besides, the religious authorities continue to accuse common people of being ignorant of Christian religion and Christian realities in spite of the fact that religious authorities' ignorance on society and common people are bigger. Many argue this arrogance together with ignorance lead to atheism and lack of respect toward true religions in Russia.

As during all these years, Christianity greatly succeeded in spreading Christian faith, stressing Christian routes of Russia and giving a certain Christian national identity. Christian religion together with other religions has a greater possibility to reconstruct the moral and ethical ideals on all levels: economic, political, cultural, social and so on.

In February 2004, the Orthodox Church brought out an exceptional "Code for Moral Principles and Rules of Economic Activity", a document based on the ages-old religious and moral heritage including that of Russia. And the Refresher Programme at Moscow analysed in detail Russian economy and its impacts in today's Russia.

The resource persons called for greater co-operation among all Christian denominations especially the Orthodox and Catholic. In this context many Russians consider ecumenism utopian and the new slogan for colonisation by Catholics. Besides ecumenism doesn't work as ecumenical initiatives in general do not bare fruit; among authorities ecumenism is artificial dialogue, common people dialogue on religious issues more naturally.

In the analysis of religions, Russians feel that Christianity more specifically a renewed Orthodox and Catholic Church could be still a good solution amidst the Western liberalism and extremist Islam.

In order to play the right and the people-desired role in today's Russian society, both the Catholic and Orthodox Churches have to follow some necessary steps even if they are humiliating at some stages: There is a great necessity to recognise the past and the mistakes committed by both the churches. Then a pardon has to be requested from common people. These will make both the Churches stronger to take the next steps of co-operation and working together for betterment of all human persons through solid moral values, exemplary ideals and meaningful rituals. Differences and elitism have to be abolished. Introducing special kitchenware and others to people based on their religion does not help promote values and morals all people need.

Strengths of the Orthodox and Catholic churches should be united to bring all confessions to work together to contribute to better welfare in Russia.

Taking advantage of new freedoms and the period of transition, more than 100 sects have found fertile ground to Russia. Most of the sects are fraud and not religious entities. They continue to grow because of the weakness of traditional Christian churches such as Orthodox and Catholic.

Significance of New National Holiday

The new Russian holiday 4 November, known as People's Unity Day was first celebrated on 4 November 2005 a few months before the Refresher Programme. The new holiday has replaced the 7 November holiday known during the communist era as the Day of the Great October Socialist Revolution which honoured the 1917 Bolshevik revolution; it was renamed "Accord and Reconciliation Day" following the fall of the Soviet Union. The new holiday eliminated the favourite holiday of neo-liberals, known as the Constitution Day, which commemorated former President Boris Yeltsin's adoption of the Russian Constitution on 12 December 1993.

According to the various news reports and experts, the creation of People's Unity Day, was initiated by the Kremlin, backed by pro-Putin political forces, and blessed by the Russian Orthodox Church.

The bill to establish the new holiday was introduced in 2004 by the leaders of the pro-Kremlin Unified Russia, the nationalist parties and Liberal-Democratic Party of Russia. President Vladimir Putin signed the law in December 2004.

The new holiday sent some strong messages: It is created on the day when Russia liberated itself after defeating Poland and Lithuania and thus ending their occupation on 4th November 1612. After this historic liberation, Russia reinvented itself and conquered Ukraine in less than fifty years and in the following hundred years expanded its boarders up to the Pacific Ocean. According to some resource persons, Poland and Lithuania have been "coincidently" Catholic and during the occupation their army marched in with "more priests than soldiers" in order to bring civilisation to the wild, vast and Orthodox Russian territories "without culture or civilisation".

4thNovember had another important event in Russian history. After Russia's defeating of Sweden and taking control over Baltic nations and the present-day Finland, the Senate of St Petersburg voted 4 November 1721 to grant Peter the Great the status of "Father of the Nation and Emperor" and thus created the Russian Empire.

The Orthodox Church had celebrated 4th November for 270 years before 1917 as the "Day of the Kazan Mother Of God Icon". "It is the "Mother of God" who gave the force to defeat the Catholic Polish troops." Therefore it is natural that the Orthodox Church gave its full and official blessings to the new holiday. In order to mark the importance of this new holiday, Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Aleksii II travelled on 3 November 2005 to Nizhnii Novgorod -- from where leaders of the people's militia, Kozma Minin and Dmitrii Pozharskii, successfully led their troops to Moscow in 1612.

During the first celebration of this new political, historical and religious holiday, preachers at Orthodox religious celebrations had carefully exhorted people that the new holiday was not against the Polish, nor against the Catholics, rather it is the day when all Russians were united. They also argued that there was no such unity in any other time of the Russian history and the new national unity day is indispensable for the building of the common bright future of all Russians.

Population

Russia has been a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural, and multi-characteristic society for several centuries. And the diversity grew as Russia expanded in all four directions. But it did not really care for the specificity, uniqueness, and precious nature of its persons and nature. The emphasis in the major two historical periods ­ Imperial and Soviet ­ was to care for uniformity, military style. It brought frequent and reactionary conflicts, which continues to turn into wars.

Whatever were the origins, beliefs and opinions of the peoples or nations annexed to the Russian empire in the course of the history, they were all brought into the status quo that was decided by a rich and powerful minority. In all these periods people were caught up in the middle and became helpless.

And there came a disinterest on all levels, as people from their experiences in the last centuries concluded that there is "no exit". Today the common Russians are without a "grip" or "hold" anywhere. They have no support, no job, no health care, no insurance or no basic living facilities or comfort guaranteed by the state, as it was the case in Soviet times.

Besides people have been totally disoriented since 1991 under the wild neo-liberalism where moral values and ethical codes are sacrificed for money and profit. And one of the clear outcomes, according to experts, is the unimaginable spreading of fatal HIV and AIDS and the devastation of Russian population. AIDS and old age are the main threats to Russian population as they kill big numbers of people throughout Russia.

In order to redress the situation, the government made plans to encourage and support young women to have children. But the efforts do not bear fruit because the women want to enjoy new freedoms. Besides, they ask this fundamental question: Why to have children if they are to die of AIDS in their 20s or 30s or earlier?

Values

In today's Russia, traditional and solid values are overturned and are washed away with neo-liberalism.

Values of democracy have probably never been understood in Russia in the last 1000 years. And it is impossible to expect full democracy in Russia until the Russian society understands the responsibility and moral implications of listening to people's voice. Simply that was not the tradition.

And as a result, in today's Russia politics are done in closed circles. It is like in chess where things are hidden; in football, you can see things.

Besides, today's Russia has no model or aim. Formerly the Soviet Union was the model, spirit and aim. And everything was geared to that ultimate aim.

In today's neo-liberal, Tsar and Soviet military style Russia, people look for some humanistic and secular values like in Asia and West Europe where moral and political values are measured under secular norms.

In reality, new freedoms instead of giving better understanding of values eliminated them. Even the moral code of USSR was destroyed in 1990. During 70 years, Russia had few values, but since 1990, there are no values. Values are money, influence and power.

Today's Russia therefore is almost an empty ground with regard to values. It can be considered fertile land and good results can be achieved if people cultivate well instead of wasting time thinking of past and lost opportunities.

Journalism

There are 55'000 news outlets, commercial and entertainment media. There is no pluralism in the Russian media and there are no clear regulations so that government can descend upon any media any time. As majority of Russians are poor, newspapers can not expect big advertising income except in big cities where a lot of advertising is done in the form of testimonies and texts. In addition, many newspapers became bankrupt because of unjust court rulings. In Russia judges are not appointed for life so that they can be dismissed at any time.

In spite of all these, newspapers are the only media that managed to exert some freedom in the highly authoritarian and dictatorial Russia. Some of the newspapers such as "Moskowski Komsomolets" managed to keep their heads up in an increasingly less free Russia. "Moskowski Komsomolets" is the biggest newspaper and its chief editor says that 60 percent of the Russian population reads the newspaper and it could bring about changes in Russia in the last 24 years through will and determination. It could influence the elections of some 90 percent of the Russian parliament (Duma) in the last years. He says that journalists should always stay behind and help mobilize especially in difficult times.

There are no public television channels in Russia, but government controls and finances various channels, saying that the public has no money. NTV, TV6 and TVS were destroyed by President Putin as there was no independent court.

Television is considered public trust with two thirds of power given to the president and one third to the prime minister. Some TVs has 7 to 8 percent public shares. Therefore there is no free television and Russian TV is hundred percent Kremlin. And TV is cleaned up from any opposition use.

Russians are happy that today, journalists can meet more often than before, though they are not able to make great impacts on the regime.

Journalism ethics, like ethics in other domains, made a transition from communist approach to either liberal or religious approach instead to professional approach in view of common good and welfare. Ethics and values are more and more relative considering the new human existence under wild liberalism.

Journalists and all men and women of good will want to promote the physical and professional unity of journalists: They emphasised that more gatherings, meetings, sharing and conventions like this Refresher programme are absolutely necessary to help Russia advance taking into consideration the welfare of all human persons and the whole nature.

Politics, Foreign Policy

Politics and its major external arm the foreign policy are no more conceived and executed in the interest of the nation. They serve primarily business interests especially with USA, India and China.

Soviet Russia had instruments of influence and had clearer visions to achieve its goals and it exerted considerable power worldwide and raised itself to the rank of the first super power. Chechnya war began with President Boris Yeltsin and not with Soviet Era. And it continues with Yeltsin's successor, President Vladimir Putin who according to many Russians drove into Kremlin with Chechnya war.

Western businessman and oligarchs take advantage of today's weak Russia as it royally serves their business. Even military policies are arranged for business interests.

Russian politics and foreign policy has two major impediments: The first: The politicians still think Russia's identity is imperial and not ethnic. The second is the fact that almost all political and foreign policy decisions are made as Russia lived in a reactionary situation. These impediments do not allow comprehensive position or policy for the biggest country in the world in terms of territory and with so many ethnic, religious and racial groups. Optimists do not go further than the results of the saying: Drop of water changes the form of a rock gradually in centuries to come.

Exposures

During the Refresher week, participants could visit various places and projects in Moscow and in other parts of Russia to understand the realities face to face. The trip to Sergiev Possad and Russian villages and the visit to the Russia's biggest newspaper, Moskowski Komsomolets helped participants to have greater idea of the cultural and religious treasures, impact and scope of the media, as well as the simple lives of Russian villagers.

Feedback

The first feedback that has been repeated again and again by participants and resource persons was that the seminar was carefully organised with right settings that people could speak, discuss and debate freely, openly and spontaneously.

Several Russian and non-Russian participants said that the refresher programme was a perfect experience and brilliant chance to know many intelligent and interesting people.

It helped them meet people from different parts of Russia, learn new facts and information about different countries, exchange viewpoints, and see how people live.

The great expectations from Russia today are that programmes of this high calibre be organised more frequently in various parts of Russia at this time of change and transition.