The improprieties of renaming Grozny's main street.
Before the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917 there were very few places on a Russian map named after a person. Even the city founded by Peter I was named not after the Emperor, but after his heavenly guardian, St Peter.
As Stalin's personality cult developed, more places were named for individuals. It soon went to absurd lengths, but it is important to understand that this was common practice during the communist period in our country's history.
In 1955, when the country marked the 10th anniversary of victory in World War II, a street named Victory Prospekt appeared on the map of Grozny. In October 2008 it was renamed Putin Prospekt. By signing a decree, Ramzan Kadyrov erased the toponymic monument to victory in the Great Patriotic War from the map of the Russian city of Grozny with a stroke of a pen. This was Ramzan Kadyrov's personal decision.
It is notable that Vladimir Putin for some reason did not correct the President of Chechnya (although he might well have), but instead mumbled some clumsy explanation. It is also interesting that most media outlets (as if following an order) kept mum. The notorious youth movement "Nashi" also kept silent over an obvious desecration of the memory of the Great Patriotic War.
The leadership of United Russia Party (Ramzan Kadyrov is a member of the UR Supreme Council) also kept quiet, offering no explanation either of the first step towards a Putin style cult or the destruction of the Victory Monument. Silence is a sign of agreement. By contrast, when the Glory Memorial in Kutaisi in December 2009 was dismantled the whole pro-Kremlin political establishment protested vehemently.
Speaking about the unprecedented renaming of Victory Prospekt to Putin Prospekt on the eve of the celebration of the 65th anniversary of the Great Victory, I would like to recall an apposite and telling extract from Konstantin Paustovsky: "Place names are the poetic folk decorations of the country. They speak about the character of the people, its history, its inclinations and various aspects of its life. Names should be respected. If changing them is required, it should be done competently, with wisdom and love of country. Otherwise names turn into verbal litter, evoking vulgar taste and exposing the ignorance of those who invent them."
I have a hunch that Kadyrov Jr. is not very familiar with the work of Konstantin Paustovsky, or, for that matter, with anything apart from weapons, politics, finance and football. It looks as if this young man with a checkered biography born in 1976 also lacks any genuine respect for the great victory of our people over fascism.
And one more thing. The people of Chechnya remember the tragedy of the 1944 deportation, ordered by Stalin, all too clearly. Yet their President seems to be blissfully unaware that re-naming a central street in Grozny after Vladimir Putin cannot but bring back painful memories of the Stalin era. Of course one says this more in sorrow than in anger. Alas, it has now become our common sorrow... However, if he is a man, he'll own up and rectify his error.
The age-old Chechen ethos is founded on respect for the concept of Kyonakh, literally "a worthy man." Ramzan Kadyrov surely considers himself one. In 2008 the Ziya Bazhayev Charitable Fund published the ethical code Kyonakhalla which contains 55 wise rules to live by. One of them reads: "A kyonakh should not only be able to uphold his rights, but also listen to anothers' opinion, and agree with it if it is right. Recognizing that somebody else is right and conceding in an argument is not weakness but a sign of nobility."
Only the President of the Chechen Republic can legally bring back Victory Prospekt to Grozny's street map and the President of Russia and the Prime Minister of Russia can and, I am sure, must support Ramzan Kadyrov on this.
By Mikhail Gorbanevsky