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Dear Mr. President, To say openly, we do feel that the priority national project “Education” misses the quality of the content of education, although everybody seems aware of the importance of both who and how teaches what in educational establishments. One of the recent “Vremena” programs with V.V. Pozner can serve an illustration to the above, participants in the show drew a solid conclusion that “the Tatar yoke” had in considerable degree predetermined an inappropriate attitude towards property in modern Russians. “Russia, as we can say, was rather unfortunate in some things,… 250 years of Mongol and Tatar yoke, which was utterly hard, had certainly thrown Russia many years back”, - summed up maestro. This fact shows how deeply the notion of the Mongol and Tatar yoke has taken root in public conscience, and how it disfigures not only human historical view, but the whole system of public relations, constitutes justification of the state’s and individual’s noncompetitiveness. “The Tatar yoke” plays a special role as a chauvinism, xenophobia and intolerance “bacillus” agent. If the history of Mongol and Tatar invasion and the Golden Horde, as it is told in school textbooks, would have been an indisputable truth, we would have to just regret of our bitter lot. But there are scientific concepts that refute this history and clearly prove its groundlessness. For example, it is scientifically proved in “Another history of Russia” book, authors S.I.Valyansky and D.V. Kalyujny, Moscow, “Veche” publishers, 2001. All this considered makes it possible to “throw down the Tatar yoke” out of the public conscience, which would undoubtedly be a blessing for the development of Russian people, society and the state. Probably for the sake of such a high goal the historical truth should be determined and then included into the state educational standards. It is not difficult to do from the scientific point of view. Taking special measures for the historical truth determination is provided by some of Russia’s international obligations (articles 4,6,12 of Framework Convention on national minorities protection). But still there are forces that take profits of false history. If it is difficult to overcome them, it is essential and enough for the state to strictly follow the “Education Law” of RF.
But textbooks on history of Russia of all educational program levels (steps of education) contain nothing but information about the Mongol and Tatar yoke. Alternative versions are hushed back; so the content of education violates the “Education Law” and doesn’t consider the variety of visions, it doesn’t promote the realization of students’ right for a free choice of opinions and beliefs.
Modern historical science by the decision of the special session of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR of April 26-27,1946 had definitely determined that the Kazan Tatars are the Volga region Bulgarians, and that it’s not true to call them “Tatars”. It was determined that the name “Tatars” was officially assigned to Volga region Bulgarians by the repressive policy of Soviet power, initiated by Lenin’s decree on the formation of TatarASSR of May 27,1920. But textbooks on history of Russia of all educational program levels (steps of education) hush up these scientific materials. Instead, the false information on Tatars’ invasion from Mongolia is being offered. It is obvious that such violation of the “Education Law” doesn’t contribute to the formation of an adequate world vision. Evidently, the content of historical education should be brought into accord with the “Education Law” of RF at the realization of “Education” national project. Profundity of knowledge, as You’ve said recently, is in many respects determining our place in today’s life as well as our ability to build the future for our children. I ask you to take proper arrangements that would fill the content of education in Russia with the modern knowledge in history of Russia, that is: modern knowledge on the history of Volga region Bulgaria and Volga region Bulgarians, as well as modern alternative knowledge on 250-year period, that went down in text-books as the Tatar yoke period.
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