Two days ago, the VII Congress of the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of the Russian Federation re-elected Ravil Gaynutdin as its leader. At the same time, his colleagues celebrated his 60th anniversary and 30 years of «service» as the unchanging leader of the Council of Muftis of Russia. Well, there was no lack of congratulations and recognition of Ravil-khazrat’s merits during these days, and we did not want to spoil his celebration. However, it is impossible to avoid this event, and here is the reason why.
All the media and bloggers of the SAMR (Spiritual Administration of Muslims of Russia) presented the Congress of the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of the Russian Federation as the «Congress of Muslims of Russia» and its unchanging leader as the «Leader of Muslims of Russia». But if it was a Congress of Muslims of Russia and not just an internal affair, why was there no discussion of their, to say the least, very problematic situation? And why didn’t the representatives of the Muslims of Russia at least ask the «Leader of the Muslims of Russia» questions about how he plans to respond to the challenges they face before electing him? And at most, didn’t the Muslims of Russia, out of decency, find at least one alternative figure who could propose how to do things better?
And here, if we have to commemorate the 30th anniversary of Ravil-khazrat’s «service,» it would be worth remembering where it all began, and the Council of Muftis of Russia itself. The young, energetic mufti then led others like him away from his teacher, Talgat Tadzhutdin, because this new, energetic generation of Muslim activists wanted to move beyond the ghetto in which Muslims existed during Soviet times and achieve ambitious goals.
In addition to building mosques and madrasas, publishing literature, sending pilgrims to the Hajj, etc., the main goal, which Gaynutdin repeatedly expressed in the circles of the SAMR, was the recognition of Islam as a religion equal to Orthodoxy and of Russia as a Eurasian, Orthodox-Muslim country. Has this goal been achieved or at least approached? When the jubilarian celebrates the 30th anniversary of his activity, it would be logical to ask this question. And to critically examine why it was not achieved, what hindered it from the outside and what was done wrong from the inside.
And discussions about the mythical or real 30 million Muslims in Russia and 4 million in Moscow cannot be considered in favor of the fact that the main goal of the SAMR was achieved. First, because there is no benefit in the influx of cheap and powerless labor. Secondly, the greater the number of Muslims that Ravil-khazrat will mention, the more contrasting will be their powerlessness against this background, their lack of a voice in Russian and Moscow affairs.
And as for him, as their «leader», the question arises — how does he intend to change this situation, and does he intend to do it at all?