One of the most complicated regions for Russia - North Caucasus - still not only does not feel to be part of this country, but sees it as an enemy. This conclusion was made by a journalist of the American magazine Time, who visited Dagestan. Attempts by the Russian authorities to assimilate the local people are unsuccessful, says the correspondent Simon Schuster.
Sport schools are used to work with young people, said the journalist. There, boys and young men are tried to be occupied by something peaceful, so they do not join the Mujahideen.
Every year, Moscow spends less than a million dollars to support the wrestling schools of Khasavyurt - much less than it would cost to build the universities or provide the well-paying jobs that this city decidedly lacks, says Time.
The author cites the example of the Khasavyurt sports school of Saytiev brothers, who inspired a generation of Chechens and Dagestanis to channel their aggression into sport, writes Simon Schuster. However, he said, the remodeling of young athletes was not successful - the trainees at the Saytievs' wrestling school speak Chechen to one another, and most of them attend the madrasahs of Khasavyurt, which now outnumber the gyms. These athletes compete for Russia, but don't feel themselves as Russians, concludes the journalist.
And the athletic training itself, as noted in the article, is sometimes more useful for the "militants". The author lists several well-known professional athletes who were killed in shootouts with the police: 28-year-old wrestler Ramazan Saritov (this year), a 15-year-old wrestler Movsar Shaipov (2008), a 19-year-old Nariman Satiev, three times world champion in Thai boxing (in 2010).
Heads of the sport school Saytiev brothers, according to the correspondent of Time, are too, can not boast of absolute adherence to the policy of the Russian leadership. Buvaisar Saytiev, three-time Olympic wrestling champion, recalls his participation in the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta:
"Everyone I knew was fighting the war. And there I was like a fool in my wrestling tights, because I knew that my one machine gun would not add much to the battle".
As American correspondent notices, his younger brother Adam Saytiev - Olympic gold medalist of the Games in Sydney - is set less than peaceful. According to the journalist, Adam Saytiev agreed to lead a sport school for the sake of his brother. He is far more religious, according to his friends, at some point the religion became for him even more important than his sporting achievements.
According to Saytiev Jr., in the Caucasus the war is not for territory or for resources, but for the right to be themselves. "If a Muslim loses his religion, he loses all meaning in life", said the athlete.
If Moscow in an attempt to assimilate the Caucasians, was trying to bet on sports development, it was clearly wrong, sums up the Time. During training, the young athletes do not notice the sound of gunshots that wafts in through windows from time to time. But when the call to prayer rings out from the minarets, they stop their training and piously turn toward Mecca.
Department of Monitoring
Kavkaz Center
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