 AN INTRODUCTION TO ROTARY IN
RUSSIAIn several European countries, the break up of the Soviet
Union and the release of the bloc which had been Russian
dominated, signaled a gradual return of Rotary to areas which
had been without it for many years, and in other areas an
introduction to the ideas and ideals of the Rotary movement.
The first moves to bring Rotary to Russia actually preceded the
end of the Soviet Union. Back in 1988, three Rotarians from
Sweden asked Mr. Pankin, the USSR ambassador to Sweden for an
audience so that they could speak about the Rotary movement.
During their conversation they told the ambassador in detail of
Rotary tasks and targets, ideology and philosophy. Mr. Pankin
supported the idea of a possibility to create Rotary clubs in
the USSR.
But the problem was that in the Soviet Union there did not exist
any non-government organisation that worked on the same Rotary
principles, so RI did not make any decisions in this regard. In
spite of the fact that foreign Rotarians participated in the
non-government programs and exchanges with USSR, there was no
information about Rotary in the USSR, to say nothing about an
idea to establish such clubs in the country.
Some time later the first Secretary of the embassy, Mr. Losin,
prepared an in-depth information sheet about the Rotary movement
and forwarded it to the Union of Soviet Friendship Societies and
the "USSR - Sweden" society.
Several members of the Board of the society liked the idea of
establishing a club with such principles. In the fall of 1988
through the invitation of the "USSR-Sweden" society, two Swedes
came to Moscow. Rotarians Axel Murray of Stockholm (now honoured
member of Moscow Rotary club), and Vikar Saefvestad of
Jonkoeping.
The Russian hosts were very serious about the visit, and the
Rotarians, who had had no authority to discuss the creation of
Rotary in the USSR, instead were to inform the Soviet people
about the movement, and had been given broad opportunities to do
so. There were interviews with "Izvestia", the "Time" show on
central TV, and "Moskovskie Novosti" newspaper and radio. In
Moscow they had met such dignitaries as: academician Petrakov,
Tatyana Zaslavskaya, Alexander Shokhin (not a prominent figure
on the Russia's political scene at that time), Vladimir Gusinski
(not a well-known businessmen then).
After visits to many Rotary clubs, members of the delegation
(Alexander Makartsia, Alexander Tarnavksy, Sergey Yushin and
Estonian Tynu Karu) came home with a desire to prepare ground
for the foundation of new clubs in Moscow and Tallinn. In 1989
contacts of Rotary International with USSR had become more
active, but no decision to start a club in the country was made.
Only in the spring of 1990, after a visit of Mr. Rolf Kljarich,
RI ex-president, to Moscow, (and his meeting with the first
deputy minister of Foreign Affairs Mr. Petrovski, who had
guaranteed the safety of future Rotarians), was the first Rotary
club in Moscow created. RI decided that Finnish district 142
world supervise creation of the club in Moscow.
On June 5th, 1990 in the presence of numerous guests from abroad
and RI headquarters, RI ex-president Mr. Rolf Kljarich among
them, the Moscow club received its Charter. Among the first
members of the club were such prominent people as: Prof. Mozolin
(President), Prof. Y. Belenkov, cardiologist, Y. Nagibin,
writer, and other representatives of Moscow business, academic
and cultural world. For almost two years Mr. Yuri Luzhkov, Mayor
of Moscow, was an active member of the club, and today he is the
club's honorary member.
This account is based on the excellent pages concerning Eastern
Europe put on the net by Henk Aalders then of the Kumeu Club
from New Zealand. It includes material provided by
PDG Kari Tallberg and PDG Jack Olsson.
For a personal account of the re-start from former RI Director
Jorma Lampen
Rotary Global History
Historian Basil Lewis
11 January 2006
|
