In May 1992 an international conference examining the fate of minorities in the former Soviet Union was organized jointly by the Kennan Institute (DC) and Michigan State University. Fourteen speakers were invited from Moscow, St. Petersburgh, the north Caucasus, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Moldova, and Lithuania; among them was Dr Ramazan Abdulatipov, Chairman of the Chamber of Nationalities of the Russian Parliament. The immediate impetus for the conference was a national survey of 6,500 Russians in 16 non-Russian regions of the former Soviet Union. The survey was conducted in August and September of 1991 by the Center of Public Opinion Studies in Moscow on the basis of a program prepared by Vladimir Shlapentokh and Lev Gudkov.

The Organization (Conference) on Security and Co-operation in Europe has just held a meeting in Budapest which was widely touted as a flop for its failure to achieve agreement on Bosnia. Its only reported action was to change its own name to “Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe.” But, tucked away in the small print of the final document (paragraphs 25-6), is a resolution to appoint within the Office for Development of International Human Rights (OCJIHR) “a contact point for Roma and Sinti (Gypsy) issues.” This will act as a clearing-house for information, facilitate contacts between state and international and non-governmental organizations, working closely with Gypsy organizations. What this will mean in practice is not yet clear; but those who have pushed for this development have a clear agenda.