From Ridus.ru:
People in St Petersburg want to introduce an oath of allegiance on receiving a passport
Noviy Region 2 reports that Georgy Poltavchenko, the Governor of the St. Petersburg Youth Board, has endorsed a proposal to introduce a patriotic oath which young people would have to take in order to obtain a passport.
According to the publication, Poltavchenko liked the idea, but he has suggested that thorough work still needs to be done. “No need to cram a lot of words in there, the main thing is that the idea and the responsibility that people take on when they say these words” the governor said.
The oath was published on a discussion board on social media site VKontakte:
“I, a citizen of the Russian Federation, solemnly accept responsibility for strictly observing the laws of our state; I believe that I have to be tolerant towards other religions, to honour the traditions of our country, to respect and revere relatives and friends, to be a faithful defender of constitutional order, and to endure all the hardships and deprivations of life. If I were to violate these obligations, I would believe that I had acted dishonestly to myself and those around me, the citizens of our country.”
The reaction to this initiative from the online community has seen a stream of bewildered, angry, and sometimes openly sarcastic comments: “there are no words, what kind of madness is this”, “the very idea of it, a crazy oath, the proposed vow; it’s craziness × 1000”, “and do you also need to take an oath when you’re 20 and 45?”
“In my opinion, it’s a stupid idea”, wrote one of the bloggers. “I did not choose the country in which I was born, and if you have Russian citizenship, it is only because you were born there – it’s a random event. I do not want to be tolerant towards other religions, because I’m an atheist, because I believe that religion has become obsolete. It’s a decaying public institution that needs to be amputated as soon as possible … I do not want to endure “hardships and deprivations that may arise.” Simply a priori. The state should provide its citizens with everything they need.”
Another user said that “this ‘oath’ will be beneficial to officials – that they’re not going to do it, just as they won’t laugh at us – these are the ‘hardships’ that we must humbly endure. On the whole, it’s a joke.”
The Youth Board of St. Petersburg is a permanent collegial advisory body to the governor. Its aim is to develop proposals concerning the interaction of young people with the executive bodies of state power.
Comments from Ridus.ru:
vlandin:
All while kneeling and reverently kissing the cross and a portrait of the President.
Т: (responding to above)
Idiocy: Why must we “be tolerant towards other religions” – what’s this Orthodox nonsense doing in a secular state, and right at the beginning of the oath as well? Bugger off! But the call to join the opposition in the fight for the restoration of constitutional order is pretty good, “be a faithful defender of constitutional order”
Molot:
Everything bad comes to us from St. Pete’s, the blank fired from the Aurora, along with that Sobchak and that furniture maker.
[Note: the “furniture maker” is Anatoliy Serdyukov.]
Т: (responding to above)
The only bad thing to come out of St. Pete’s is Putin. As they say, there’s a black sheep in every family …
pogladkota:
“I, by an unfortunate accident, was born in Rashka, and I don’t take responsibility for anything, burn in hell, you bastards”
Самыйсамый:
Will it be like the Pioneer oath?
Dobryak: (responding to above)
No. There was a point to that. This is more like a spell.
Курочка Рэбэ:
I vow to love Putin and to give my life for him and his entourage, as well as pay my utility bills on time and not to revolt.
Владимир-3965:
It’s all kicking off in the madhouse!!! Sad to see that it’s getting worse especially in cultural cities, like St Pete’s…
Proteus:
We still have to swear on the bible in court)) No-one does now for some reason …
mikelangelo: (responding to above)
Heh, Mein Kampf is banned, the constitution is extremism … waiting for Putin’s memoirs, if we live that long…
dire.one:
[…] If you’ve got a brain, you just wouldn’t stay in Russia, try to get out of here)
assimetrik:
Hahahaha, what are you doing St Petersburgers, stop it)))
вера-4518:
Madness. Even in the Soviet times it wasn’t this bad.