– It has definitely become uncultured in the Russian era, in terms of exclusion and not including people. Especially in connection with buses. Mina Minaie (18) tells it. She is sitting with her friends Cathrine Fornæss (18) and Jenny Amina Kristiansen (17) in the school garden at Ringerike secondary school in Hønefoss. They plan the roller skating time they will start in the spring, which will be done in a roller coaster with some other girls from the class. They say that they have done what they can to be as inclusive as possible, but that it is not so easy due to lack of space. – We have a van we have to be in, so we can’t bring twenty people either. The rush hour doesn’t exactly mean that fewer people know about extracurricular activities at secondary school, says Jenny. I think the market players define the rush hour – Unfortunately, we see that there are too many young people who have dropped out of social life right from secondary school due to the planning and implementation of the rush hour. There are also many people who are subjected to pressure, abuse and violence, so there is a lot to deal with here, says Henrikke Bugdø-Aarseth. Henrikke Bugdø-Aarseth, ombudsman for children and young people in Viken, reaches out to the major players in the Russian market. Photo: Viken county municipality She is an ombudsman for children and young people in Viken, and has been close to Russian for the past five years in connection with the pilot project “A more inclusive Russian time”. Bugdø-Aarseth believes that the Russian era as it is now has expired a long time ago and that she has ended up completely out of control. – Young people don’t define what rush hour should be anymore themselves, that’s what the strong market players do. Among other things, by saying when the celebration will be and how much money they will spend. It is a big machine that puts pressure on our young people, claims Bugdø-Aarseth. Wants to change the Russian celebration On Tuesday, she will debate the topic at Arendal Week with other subject experts, politicians and young people. She wants to change the timetable radically, among other things by phasing out the buses and cars. – The players in the Russian market exploit our young people. They have to pay large sums for clothes and buses, which are not always in such good condition either. I think measures must be taken to make it unattractive to have a bus. The national goal for the Russians in Kongeparken. Photo: Øystein Otterdal / news Bugdø-Aarseth is aware that it is the young people themselves who must define what the rush hour should be and bring about any changes, but that they cannot do it on their own. – Politicians should make arrangements to make it difficult for market players to exploit young people. A better alternative is to have places where young people can meet by, for example, having a Russian tavern that is open for a week after the exam, with controlled drinking and safe adults around the celebration, says Bugdø-Aarseth. – I’m sure that you can then give everyone a good time at graduation, because the point is to have a good time as a student in a Norwegian school, and that you get a nice celebration at the end of that time, she concludes. – Right-wing a bit like a child’s birthday The proposal for the ombudsman gets a relatively lukewarm reception from the Russian girls from Hønefoss. – The culture of exclusion will still be there whether they have a physical bus or not. So I don’t quite see the point, says Jenny. Large parts of the russet time are good as it is now, think the girls who will soon start their final year of secondary school. From left: Mina Minaie (back), Jenny Amina Kristiansen, and Cathrine Fornæss. Photo: Eirik Leivestad Hall / news When the Russian girls hear the alternative idea of a week’s Russian time in a specific room, they laugh and shake their heads lightly. – I think it sounds a bit like a child’s birthday party organized by the contact teacher, says Cathrine. Nevertheless, they recognize the point that the players in the Russian market are helping to increase the financial pressure on young people. – We couldn’t manage to print the clothes ourselves, create a logo, arrange a car, fix sponsors and so on. We have to spend money on it, says Jenny. The girls believe that the reason why some people feel left out lies in how we generally behave towards others. – People hang out with those they think are cool. So it probably has more to do with the fact that you don’t want to be with those who are seen as weird and who only go alone, because then you are seen as weird yourself. We are going to secondary school and should probably be more mature than that, but that is only the case in the society we live in, says Cathrine. This is what the market players say. news has contacted Russeservice and Bussfix, which are two of the biggest players in the market who turn to the Russians. Russeservice is a company that works with clothing and accessories for the various Russian groups. Ove K. Tufte in Russeservice responds to the criticism as follows. – We do not decide the content of the Russian era, it has always been the Russians themselves who have decided. When it comes to spending money on Russian equipment, it is up to the Russians themselves how much money they want to spend. Bussfix equips the buses and cars with interior and exterior materials, and also hires out ready-made Russian buses. The daily manager of Bussfix, Nicolay Østbye, does not recognize the claims either. – Those who spend large sums are often what are referred to as “rate buses”, this is a phenomenon that has existed for many years and is nothing new. Bussfix cannot therefore recognize itself in the claims put forward by the children’s ombudsman. Unfortunately, there are many players in the market who operate in such a way that this tarnishes an entire industry with frivolity and exploitation, concludes Østbye. Hear the episode from “Updated”: What has happened to Russian time?
ttn-69
Ombudsman for children and young people wants to change Russian time – Russians fear it will be like celebrating a child’s birthday – news Oslo og Viken – Local news, TV and radio
