A round table on the topic “Cultivation of Mutual Interethnic Understanding, Tolerance and Civil Identity in students of Kazan institutions of higher education” was organized in Kazan Federal University on May 20, 2013.
Foreign students of Kazan National Research Technological University, Kazan State Power Engineering University, Kazan State Medical University and Kazan Federal University got together to discuss these pressing problems.
Vice-Rector of KFU for International Relations, Mr. Linar Latypov, Vice-Chairman of the Commission for Interethnic Relations Harmonization and Patriotic Upbringing of the Youth Affairs Council of the Russian Federation Ministry of Education and Science, Mr. Ildar Fayzullin, and Vice-Chairman of the Tatarstan Peoples Assembly Council, Mr. Sagit Dzhaksybayev, addresses the students.
Mr. Linar Latypov emphasized that the problem of tolerance and interethnic relations has been near to him since the period of his military service in Africa. Further on, he confided memories about his diplomatic activity, trips abroad and multiple meetings with people of various confessions and nationalities.
Mr. Ildar Fayzullin focused students’ attention on topicality of the issue touched upon, as it required constant attention and systematic work. According to the guest, namely this approach is now being formed in Russia. He also noted that the round table held on that day was only one of the stages, as an All-Russian Interethnic Conference would be convened in Moscow on the 27th of May.
Mr. Sagit Dzhaksybayev told about the activity carried out by the Tatarstan Peoples Assembly and invited foreign students to cooperation.
Students themselves told about work carried out with respect to them in higher education institutions, as well as about numerous events directed at their adaptation in the alien country. Each of them highly appreciated the activities conducted in this sphere by their universities, Kazan and the Republic as a whole. “Tolerance is an indulgence. And it’s improper to say that we stand each other. No, we are living in peace and treat people around us with love, just in the same way they treat us”, – a student from Nigeria expressed his opinion.
However, foreign students do not deny existence of some problems. For example, certain higher education institutions do not offer continuous teaching of the Russian language, being limited to its teaching during the first year or pre-university courses only, which, certainly, is insufficient. Students note that associations of foreign students pretty often are living separately from active students of the respective higher education institutions and their arrangements are also held separately.
A video clip “Interethnic relations and civil identity forming in young people” was shown during the round table. The meeting participants also discussed many other problems connected with living and rest conditions and sport. By the way, many of them are planning to take an active part in Universiade-2013. Thus, as many as 77 foreign students from KFU will be volunteers during this event.