Kirov civic activists Yaroslav Shitov and Vladimir Melkishev held a series of pickets at Teatralnaya Square and at the monument to Sergei Kirov under the slogan «Je suis Charlie». The occasion was a terrorist attack on French satirical weekly edition «Charlie Hebdo» which published the caricature of the Prophet Mohammed.
“Freedom of speech is a fundamental democratic value, an indicator of social maturity of society as a whole and of each individual citizen in particular. Therefore, in my opinion, the duty of every responsible member of society is the need to make the most decisive assessment of any attempts to infringe this right on the part of any whatsoever organizations and individuals, regardless of where it occurs,” Yaroslav Shitov said.
On the other hand, Shitov believes that after the events in Paris the leaders of the European Union should think about whether to continue the policy of multiculturalism and adjustment of immigration legislation:
“There is a historical process, ignoring which mankind drives itself into a dead end of civilization, the way out of which can be very expensive for many people. The concept of multiculturalism, or as it is called in Europe "multi-culti", couldn’t stand the test of time. These are the failures of migration policy and the policy of assimilation of immigrants, as well as the events of recent years in a number of European cities. And the tragedy of the last days in France brought this inconvenient problem to the surface once again, exposing her to the limit. And while many in Europe understand that the reforms in this area are long overdue, however bureaucratic machine of old Europe was unable to timely respond to the ongoing changes within the European continent, which, in turn, exacerbates the growing social contradictions. So, in my opinion, we shouldn’t expect any positive fundamental changes in this direction.”
Civil society activist believes that the problem of international terrorism has not yet been resolved. As a result, ordinary citizens suffer from the actions of intruders:
“An adequate assessment of the events and phenomena is needed, taking into account local factors affecting the development of the particular situation. In this regard, the generalization of international experience in the fight against terrorism is one of the key points due to which the modern society permanently reduces the risk of becoming a victim of a terrorist attack. Nevertheless, we have to admit the fact that, despite all the efforts of the international community, the terrorist threat is as yet very real, and the terrorists still find loopholes to carry out their criminal plans, resulting in ragged life of any innocent people, that can’t remain normal person indifferent.”
Let us add that the evening of January 6 several dozens of Muscovites have also come to Manezh Square with a poster in memory of the victims of the terrorist attack in Paris. Two of the protesters were detained by police and taken to the police station, where they were drawn up on an administrative offense under Article 20.2 of the Administrative Code (violation of the established order of organizing or holding meetings, rallies, demonstrations, marches or picketing).
Sergey Zhilin, «7x7»
