Russia is getting writing a new high school history book - approved by Putin and a historical society headed by the Speaker of the Russian Parliament. It seems that there are a variety of existing textbooks, which give different views of history. So Putin felt students needed a single nation-wide textbook with the correct interpretations. For example, some existing texts have been criticized for being murky about events of the Stalin era. Apparently some authors were unsure which version would get them sent to Siberia. Some textbooks exalt the Russian work to integrate the savages it conquered in Chechnya and other parts of the Caucasus Mountains. Other books might mention that the Chechens did not want to be part of Russia. It took many years of warfare. In the late 1800s most Chechens moved to the Ottoman Empire to avoid the fighting. After World War II, essentially all that were left were exiled to remote places like Siberia. It is said that twenty percent died in transit and over half died in exile. When they were allowed back, of course Russians had integrated the area by moving into any houses that still stood. So the Chechens had to find other places to live. Not sure if any of the text writers have dared to write things like that. Any bets on whether such will make the new textbooks?
Posted on: Wed, 26 Mar 2014 17:58:07 +0000