News

On October 5 exit session of the Council of representatives of Karelians, Veppsians and Finns of the Republic of Karelia under the Head of the Republic of Karelia took place in the village of Sheltozero, Prionezhsky metropolitan region. The session was dated for opening the first phase of the first starting complex of the Sheltozero village high school including dining room, gym and workshops.

Head of Karelia Sergey Katanandov, deputy of the State Duma of Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation Valentina Pivnenko, representatives of ministries and departments of the republic, administration of Prionezhsky metropolitan region, Veppsian rural settlements, heads and members of national public associations of Karelians, Veppsians and Finns, teachers of Sheltozero school, the community have taken part in the session of the Council.

At the session of the Council there have been discussed important issues of using language and ethnocultural potential of Veppsians as indigenous small people of the Russian Federation in development of territories of Veppsian rural settlements.

Information on the role of cooperation between the government and the public in preservation of Veppsian people was presented by the Minister of the Republic of Karelia on National Politics and Relations with Religious Associations Andrey Manin, assistant to the Head of administration of Prionezhsky metropolitan region on social issues Marina Illarionova, and deputy director of Sheltozero school on educational Galina Pozdnyakova. Also the session of the Council considered assistance of the Veppsian Culture Society and Kaichii public organizations in preservation of the Veppsians' ethnic identity, development of their native language and traditional culture, arts and crafts of the Veppsian people.

Thanks to joint efforts of bodies of the government, local self-government, and the public positive results were acheved in the field of preservation of the Veppsian people. Thus, funds were allocated from the Economic and social development of indigenous small people of the North through to 2008 federal target program, and in 2009 grants for construction of the first phase of the first starting complex of the Sheltozero village high school were obtained. Total amount of money spent on construction has made from over 124 million roubles of which 60% were assigned by the republic and 40% - by the federal budget.

In 2008-2009 the republic is implementing the Plan of the republic's activities for organization and carrying out of the the II Decade of the World Indigenous People. The most significant activities of the Plan were the Inter-regional workshop conference Veppsian - indigenous small people of the Russian Federation: prospects of preservation and development held last April, participation of Veppsians in the international and inter-regional cooperation: in the Vth World Congress of Finno-Ugric People in Khanty-Mansiysk in June, 2008, the Xth International Congress of Finno-Ugric Writers in Yoshkar-Ola in September, the IVth congress of indigenous small people of the North, Siberia and the Far East of the Russian Federation in Moscow in April, 2009, the IVth Congress of Finno-Ugric Peoples of the Russian Federation in Saransk this September.

Sessions of joint working bodies which are the indicator of ethnopolitical, ethnosocial and ethnocultural health of the society, therefore, they are held regularly and allow to respond to solution of actual problems of the population.

In the past 20 years in the republic there had been published more than 40 books in Veppsian language and in Russian about Veppsians. Quite often these editions became winners of The Best Book of the Year competition in The Best Book in Karelian, Veppsian and Finnish Languages nomination. Among them there is the Maria Mullonen's and Nina Zaitseva's New Russian-Veppsian Dictionary, Zinaida Strogalshchikova's The Veppsians monography. All the budget-sponsored literary novelties in Veppsian language, CDs, textbooks are in great demand among representatives of the Veppsian community of Karelia, the Leningrad and Vologda areas.

Within the scope of the Agreement on cooperation and the Plans of coordinated actions between the Ministry, administration of Prionezhsky region, public associations in the past two years there had been held 17 ethnopolitical, ethnosocial, ethnocultural programs, projects, activities, total amount of grants for which realization was made 340 thousand roubles. Among them there should be especially mentioned the Ancestral Home competition of Karelian and Veppsian families, the Tree of Life inter-regional holiday of Veppsian people. Production and placement of road signs with names of settlements in Veppsian and Karelian languages has begun in Prionezhsky region of the republic.

Among priorities of bodies of the government, local self-government, national public associations it is necessary to mention continuation of work on strengthening of the regional normative legal base regarding protection of the primordial inhabitancy, traditional way of life, management and crafts of Veppsians living in the Republic of Karelia, development and adoption of the Activities Plan of the republic for 2010-2011 on organization and carrying out of the II Decade of the World Indigenous People in territoriy of republic, implementation of intergovernmental cooperation agreements between the republic and the Leningrad and Vologda areas in economic, social, scientific, technical, and cultural spheres.