Harvard professor's seminar series focuses on USSR nationalities (05/04/86)

Harvard professor's seminar series focuses on USSR nationalities

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - You need only open The New York Times to be reminded that for many Americans "Russia" and "Soviet" are still interchangeable terms. Though scholars in Soviet studies know better, they have not devoted enough attention to the nationalities factor in Soviet society and Soviet policy formation.

According to Dr. Lubomyr Hajda, coordinator of the Soviet Union program and initiator of the series "The Nationalities Factor in Soviet Society and Politics - Current Trends and Future Prospects," "A book on the Soviet Union might have chapters on Soviet economy, foreign policy, and then one on the nationalities question, as though it can be looked at in isolation from the other issues."

When the Russian Research Center asked for proposals for a yearlong seminar series, Dr. Hajda shaped his conviction that the nationalities factor is an inseparable component of Soviet policy into a proposal. The John M. Olin Foundation, the funding source for the project, chose Dr. Hajda's proposal.

Dr. Hajda, with co-organizer Mark Beissinger of the government department, have arranged for the experts on such topics as "Nationalities and Soviet Foreign Policy" and "Nationalities and the Soviet Military" to speak in the 10 seminars. The first two seminars, Dr. Roman Szporluk's "The Russian Imperial Legacy in Soviet Nationality Affairs" and Dr. Robert Conquest's "The Soviet Legacy in Nationality Affairs" served as introductions to the more specific topic areas, and were overwhelmingly successful.

"The turnouts for the Szporluk and Conquest seminars exceeded my expectations. We had to change the room to accommodate the crowd," Dr. Hajda said.

The success of the series, which has attracted audiences from Harvard's Center for International Affairs and the Kennedy School of Government, is due in part to the reputation of the speakers, as well as to a growing awareness of the role the nationalities question plays in the forming of Soviet policy. Dr. Hajda's course "Problems of Government in the Multinational Soviet State," is now required for students in the Soviet Studies program, for example.

Dr. Hajda credits the Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute as instrumental in heightening awareness of nationalities issues in the Soviet Union. "Anyone in Soviet studies knows of the institute's scholarly work and seminars. The very existence of the institute is a catalyst to inquiry," Dr. Hajda said.

Upcoming seminar topics include "Nationalities and Soviet Religious Policies" by Dr. Bohdan R. Bociurkiw of Carleton University and "Nationalities and the Soviet Economy" by Gertrude Schroeder of the University of Virginia.

The John M. Olin foundation has provided funds for the seminar papers to be edited for publication, as well as funds for the commissioning of additional articles on territories in the Soviet Union.

"Through the publication of the book," Dr. Hajda said, "the series will stimulate a wider audience to examine the nationalities component as inseparable from a broader examination of Soviet policy and society."

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