Paul Goble
Staunton, February 9 -- Sayana Mongush, a prominent Tuvan activist who
earlier served in that republic’s parliament, says that the governments of all
non-Russian republics must prevent Moscow from sending young men from their
nations to fight in Ukraine. Otherwise, she says, they will be unable to
prevent another round of genocide against their peoples.
On her Facebook page yesterday,
Mongush says that non-Russian legislators must act because “the death of one”
of their own if their people numbers 100,000 is equal to the death of 1,000
Russians who number 140 million and thus constitutes a threat to the survival
of their nations (facebook.com/sayana.mongush?fref=ts).
The Tuvan activist said that she was
particularly concerned about Russians who were recruiting irregular forces in
non-Russian areas because it is clear that Moscow is prepared to sacrifice any
such non-Russian fighters with little concern because their deaths would allow
Russia to do away with people many Russians consider mere “ballast” holding the
country back.
She says that she did not raise her
sons to be “fertilizer” for one of Russia’s wars, especially given how Moscow
treated Tuva then. Her sons and those around them had to cope with a situation
in which hospitals there had no instruments or linen. One had the feeling, she
said, that Tuva “had been looted” when the Russian troops withdrew.
Like many in her age cohort, she had
few children. And she argues that is yet another reason why she will “never”
allow her sons to fight in Moscow’s wars.
“I will never be in love” with Moscow, Mongush concludes. “I have a long
memory,” and it has “a big bill” to pay Tuvans and other non-Russians.
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