7.11.2004

All-Russian scouts conference sponsored by SOK Group

On 7 November the town of Izhevsk hosted the 5th All-Russian scouts conference to hear reports and hold re-elections.

Staging an official scouts event outside the capital city proved to be of symbolic importance: the Izhevsk scouts organization is indeed one of the youngest (founded 9 months ago) in this country and at the same time one of the largest and rapidly growing. 

The Russian scouts movement has been sponsored by the Sok Group for over two years now. In particular, the Sok Group proved instrumental in organizing the 2004 summer scouts National Jamboree meeting near Samara. According to the scouts organization members themselves, the authorities, business, and NGOs showing an equal interest in promoting the scouts organization makes it possible for them to take part on an equal footing in such crucial process as upbringing of the younger generation.

The Reporting Back and Re-Electing Scouts Conference resulted in a number of resolutions. In particular, it was decided to grant the request of the Izhevsk Administration to hold the next event, National Jamboree 2008, in the capital city of Udmurtia. Svetlana Sokolova, open scouting representative of the Samara Region, was elected third President of the All-Russian National Scouts Organization. It was also decided to move the ANSO headquarters to Samara.

The participants of the 5 reporting back and re-electing conference also came out in support of the initiative of the Sok Group, put forward by its vice president Alexei Ofitserov, to arrange participation of the Russian scouts in the action to commemorate the Victory in the Great Patriotic War.

“Using the support of the Sport, Education, Culture foundation, we plan to hold a number of events: patriotic Olympics for scouts, round tables on the role of scouting in the promotion of patriotic upbringing in Russia, quests to identify young heroes who took part in fighting at the scouts age. The actions planned are expected to culminate in avenues of glory appearing in Russian towns, and memorials set up by school museums. The scouts will be in a position to follow in [the fictitious character] Timur’s steps, bringing relief to participants of the Great Patriotic War and veterans of the home front. The event programme is still under development. But it is already crystal clear that scouting is the movement to provide a framework for patriotic upbringing of the young,” stressed Alexei Ofitserov.