The Solovetskii monastery (Barentsphoto.com)
A group of prominent members of the Russian Public Chamber have addressed Prime Minister Putin with a request to hand the Solovetskie islands in the White Sea over to the Russian Orthodox Church. The letter reads that Church sovereignty over the islands will put a stop to the development of “amusement tourism” at the famous islands.
Meanwhile, the Russian Minister of Education and Science, Andrey Fursenko, says he is thrilled by the cultural festivals organised on the islands. He himself attended the recent Solovki song festival, Rosbaltnord.ru reports.
The authors of the letter to premier Putin disagree. “In the immediate vicinity of the Solovetskii monastery and the graves of GULAG victims, song and jazz festivals are held”, the authors of the letter write, adding that the islands should get special status as spiritual and historical site, Pravda Severa writes.
The dispute over the future of the Solovetskii islands has been going on for years, and is unlikely to calm for many more years.
The church on the one hand demand that the expanding tourism industry on the islands is curbed and that it itself gets control over developments. On the other hand, the local municipal administration, the local museum and the tourist industry argue that the islands should remain all open for the public.
Signs of a compromise still came to the surface in a recent seminar with representatives of both parties. Then, Rector of Sankt Petersburg Spiritual Academy Georgy Mitrofanov called on the state to play a far more active role at the islands. He believes the state should help develop the islands both as a church centre and as a centre for the commemoration of GULAG victims, Rosbaltnord.ru reports.
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