The Impact of Chechen War on the Life of Russia

The Chechen war in the past decade had totally impacted profoundly on Russia’s life.

The direct consequences are; thousands of victims died, the expenditure of materials enormously

that when counted can result to millions of rubles and the Chechen Republic being devastated.

The indirect impacts though not noticeable as such but also not very serious.

Due to the war, there was unprecedented xenophobia surge in Russia. Since 1994, the

anti-Chechen sentiment has been on the growth. Most Russian ethnic expresses the feelings of

resentments towards the Chechens. Most Russians believe that the only people who understand

the force language are the Chechens and any trial of establishing a conversation with them on the

conditions that are ‘equal’ is looked upon as the signal of being weak. Furthermore, it is

perceived that the Chechens generation that is coming is more hostile towards Russian as

compared to the current one. Russians have a fear of being the terrorist victims due to Chechens

militants in the future prophecy. Hence in the minds of Russians that are average this fear drives

a demonization.

The main political mobilizing issue in Russia is the war in Chechnya. This gives an

explanation as to way president Putin continuously focuses on it. The study of sociology

conducted latest shows that the periods in which the ratings of the president coincide at the

highest point the times that political mobilization is great within Russia. Every moment was

connected to Chechen’s war for example the speech of Putin’s speech on October 1999in the

aftermath terrorist’s deed in the cities of Russia. The only current action in September 2004 in

Beslan that didn’t raise the ratings of the president, however on the other side to his passion it

dealt a blow that was vicious.

Anther impact is the emergence of regional administration reform project by Putin. Some

sort of legitimacy has been given by the conflict to this project by providing as its foundation of

the separatism and terrorism fighting rationale. Currently there exists two counterterrorist

maneuvers in progress in Russia. One across the federation of Russia while the other in

Chechnya. It is not the coincident that the new regional administrations that Putin created that is

Federal districts were rooted on the former military district boarders. In addition, among the

seven original plenipotentiary, the representative of the president in the formations were

universal. The two that were participants in the Chechen war, are the Victor Kazantsev and

Konstantin Pulikovsky.

This comprises an example that the war is used as a tool to raise the general’s effect and

the officials in the high ranks from Army, Internal affairs ministry and the political life security

service of the country in comparison with the Yeltsin times. The current number of scientists in

the structures of the government has gone down three time while the military number has gone

up. The changes of this kind in the structures of elites show a change in attitude and disposition

within the society as a whole.

More than other factors the war in Chechen has resulted to the rise of traditionalist and

the attitudes that are centered to the state in the society of Russia, and the increase in “strong

arm” popular hope. From 1990s end, the orientations that are based on the value which are the

distinctive empire features have emerged to be prevalent in Russia. The popular respect is only

enjoyed by the three institutions namely; ruler not as the presidency institution but

manifestation,, the Armed force and the church, plus the Federal Security Service. In addition

these attitudes are themselves presenting popular distrusts that are overwhelming for the

executive, legislature and the judiciary, political parties let alone.

The National Territorial Issues Which Instigated Instability

The Chechnya’s description in the rubric of the “terrorism war” has resulted to the

conflicts multiplication, in the manner that it is no longer Chechnya’s boarder’s circumscription

but currently it includes the whole Federation of Russia. The mindset of the imperial that

expanded out of this development is already being seen in the incompetently appointment of

leaders of regions other than through elections. At least the degree of penetration of terrorisms

into Ingushetia was invested under the elected president of the republic Ruslan Aushevthan

during the region of appointed Murat Ziyazikov. Currently, Chechens are not the only ones but

plus the Ingush who are slowly by slowly being acquitted by the militants expertise.

The war on terrorism didn’t create the national order in the area of making reforms of the

state. In fact, the process contradicted the traditions of the nation. As a result the individuals

living in the Northern part of Caucasus, the election is a representative of the social attributes of

the tradition and an integral part of day to day life. on almost every occasion the elections are

held ranging from selecting tamada at the dinning table or the elder of the village to the election

of cleric of Muslims to the head of jamaat that is local, extending to the president appointment of

viceroy always representing only the dimensions of Russian authority that is visible while these

authorities elected locally and informal means given the real powers; the wider the gap between

the authorities that are formal and informal, the higher the chances of a divide in the

administration.

For example the event that took place in August at Dagestan, mayor Khasavyurtin

publicly made a challenge to the president who is in power just because of the support from the

Kremlin. The current president of M. Batdye can not be referred to as the as the popular leader

who was elected but just a member of the party that is in power. It looks as if Kremlin made a

decision for not a leader that is authoritarian who may lead to inconveniency as he places

incompetent leaders who are obedient to him. On the other hand, leaders of such kinds are not

able to assure political stability in the country that they control. The sequence of events that has

occurred in Ingushetia, Dagestan among other places proves this point. During the investigations

these events some prosecutors were dismissed.

The other point is the presence of ethno-political connections. The stability that is

considered under this environment is a representative of a change from one form of instability to

the other. The ethno-political actions in the early 1990s were the domination of the minority

ethnics which were led by the national movement leaders in the republic of Russia. By the late

1990s, the representation of Russian majority emerged. These groups that support the philosophy

of “Russia for Russians” have really increased in number for the past few years. This chauvinist

motto has varying intensity degree of support. This is just a shift in the concentration within the

ethno-politics of Russian from the minority ethnicity to majority ethnicity that determines the

presence of stability in large proportion. There is truth that the “home-grown” extremists of

Russia have never received the acknowledgements like that as these who are popular and in

authority have a preference of not noticing them. Currently a number of publications argue that

the phenomenon of skinhead is a notion that is fictional brought up by the activists of human

rights with the guidance from the west and support of finance.

Another factor is the orientation of national movement. Earlier on the orientation was

political not ethnically. The leaders of these groups used to air their objections to the central

government and not to the fellow individuals. Currently no longer the central government is the

enemy but the fellow people. Most people in the majority feel that other people who living it

Russia’s territory posses a threat to the security of the nation. The polarization of the ethnicity

allows the penetration of problems that are social and political. This lope is maximally being

utilized by the authorities particularly in some regions and districts in the southern Russia where

nationalists’ mottos from such hateful organs like the National Unity of Russians are being

adopted by the politicians. Having the support these groups they work hard to cover up the

mistakes they make and to move the public concentration in the direction of minority ethnics

internally and the international terrorists and the western that are outside Russia as enemies.