”Gorby Fever” sweeps Manhattan. People in the U.S.A. are enamored of Mikhail Gorbachev, the father of glasnost and perestroika in the Soviet Union. Even the State Department reports that the human rights issue has improved under his regime. However, what about the rights of the republics within the Soviet Union?
Instead of extending additional cultural and economic freedom to the 14 non-Russian republics, Mr. Gorbachev has tightened his grip on them. Many naive people applaud him for this action because he also exudes strength to keep the ”union” together. What ”union” are they referring to? In order for a ”union” to exist, there must be agreement and consent. Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania were forcibly incorporated into the Soviet Union by Joseph Stalin and after 48 years of subjugation by Russia, the Baltic people recently signed over 4 million petitions demanding autonomy from Moscow.
The whole structure of the Soviet Union is a farce. It is a shield to mask Russia`s colonization of the non-Russian nations. While Mr. Gorbachev`s methods may be different from his predecessors`, his ultimate goal is certainly not.
