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Alexander Bastrykin meets chairman of Russia’s Union of Writers Valery Ganichev

Alexander Bastrykin has had a meeting with Chairman of the Russia’s Union of Writers Valery Ganichev. The famous writer and Mr. Bastrykin exchanged their opinions on a number of conceptual issues and discussed some of the most important problems the writers’ corps and the investigative bodies are facing now and to solve which they might be useful to each other. The conversation took place in the legendary office of the Union’s Chairman in a house in Komsomolsky Avenue in Moscow where many of Soviet and Russian writers worked for many years. They call the office their spiritual bastion. At the beginning of the meeting both men underlined the importance, timeliness and necessity of the meeting for both the Union of Writers and the Investigative Committee. In our complicated and pragmatic time creative people often need help and support so that they can apply their talent, while investigators whose job involves risk and psychological stress must know that the public see and appreciates their efforts. This can be helped by an image of a modern-time investigator that might be created by writers.

Mr. Ganichev who has been managing the Union of Writers for more than 20 years now, said that the organization unites 8,500 writers and poets from all regions of Russia; such great authors like Proskurin, Leonov, Sholokhov, Rasputin, V. Belov, S. Mikhalkov and other famous literary artists joined the Union in different times. The meeting was also attended by famous poets and writers who not only weighed in the discussion, but brought up a number of issues.

Mr. Ganichev noted that the principles of the Union of Writers remain unchanged: patriotism, spirituality, morals, care about the present and future of Russia, building of a civic society. Modern-time writers stick to the principles of classic literature which has to be republished presently. Recalling history lessons Mr. Ganichev named a common example: when in 1937, Pushkin, Lermontov, Dostoyevsky started being published in millions of copies, a famous public figure who had left Russia some time before said: “Thanks God – Russia is saved!”

Discussing moral and spiritual unity of our compatriots, the two noted the role of the World Russian People’s Synod in creation of which the Union of Writers took active part. By the way, Mr. Bastrykin was elected a member of the council of the council of the Synod.

They also talked about memorials and heroes who get destroyed or attacked from time to time. Unfortunately, not all of the younger generation know about the heroic deeds committed by Zoya Kosmedemyanskaya, Aleksandr Matrosov, Aleksei Baresyev. Who and what for needs to cast doubt on the feat of the Panfilov Division’s 28 Guardsmen? Or what for are the attempts to debunk the feat of the heroes of the Young Guard? By the say, the Union of Writers placed a request with the heads of the chambers of the Federal Assembly of Russia to put novel Young Guard by Aleksandr Fadeyev back on high school program. Mr. Bastrykin noted that literature has one of the key roles in raising patriotism.

The two men agreed that the Russian people have a foremost need of justice. The many-century dream of the Russian people - for everything to be by right is reflected in the modern literature, too. Restoration of justice is at the end of the day is the principal goal of the Investigative Committee’s job, Mr. Bastrykin added.

Analyzing Russian literature, Mr. Ganichev noted that it is anti-bourgeois in its essence meaning that it stands against greed and cupidity. Mr. Bastrykin said that investigators fight against those evils as well, but not using a word, but the law.

Another important issues brought up at the meeting was fighting against ribaldry. Foul language cannot be allowed to be heard on the TV, from the theater stage or in daily life.

Moving on to concrete points of cooperation related to raising young people, Mr. Bastrykin offered the members of the Union to meet cadets of the Investigative Committee, students of the Investigative Committee Academy and young investigators. He noted that he sees the biggest problem not in some professional faults, but in callousness and indifference to other’s troubles which are still traits to some of investigators. He assured that he would never put up with it.

The participants of the meeting also came to conclusion that it was necessary to use literature to tell people about the investigation profession, veterans of the investigation, officers killed in the line of duty. They also discussed creation of the image of a modern-time investigator. Mr. Bastrykin promised to help the writers with that and offered to get them in contact with the training and education department of the Investigative Committee. Namely, the Investigative Committee holds contests for the best criminalist and investigator who could make prototypes for the characters of future stories.

Mr. Bastrykin expressed gratitude to Mr. Ganichev and other writers present at the meeting for admitting him in the Union of Writers, but he noted that he sees his membership as an advance biding him to continue writing. He added that despite a lot of work to be done he still has this need to do science and writing, though he rarely has enough time for it. However, there are people and events that leave such a strong impression in life or history that it is impossible not to write about them. This was the way for instance that Mr. Bastrykin wrote a book about Maya Plesetskaya and Lyudmila Shvetsova who he was lucky to be acquainted with.  

The participants of the meeting noted the value of such books wrote by Mr. Bastrykin as Dactylography. Signs On a Hand, Murder of S.M. Kirov, which popularize the work of investigators. Mr. Ganichev added that he “read the book with his daughter like a detective story.”

Expressing the opinion of every one of his colleagues, Mr. Ganichev thanked Mr. Bastrykin for having found time to meet with the writers, for the warm, candid and cordial conversation. Mr. Bastrykin expressed his confidence that the meeting would be the start of fruitful and successful joint efforts to raise young investigators. The two men agreed to sign a cooperation agreement. At the end of the meeting the writers and poets gave Mr. Bastrykin their books and Mr. Bastrykin awarded them medals of the Investigation Committee “For Assistance”.

Head of Media Relations                                                                                                                              V.I. Markin