This is the first editorial in this week's issue of the Sakhalin Times

The Federal Drug Service needs to be commended for its proficiency in drug busting. More than 32 kilograms of illegal narcotics have been confiscated and a record 92 cases have been filed this year alone. The authorities are however not even close to shutting down the large network of drug peddlers and users that exists. A drug service official told this publication that he believes there are close to three thousand people addicted to banned substances in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk alone. This is in a city that has a population of around a hundred and fifty thousand. Such a large number means that Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk has the maximum number of drug addicts per capita in Russia.

It’s an open secret that marijuana is readily available near the October (Oktyabr) theatre. The place for opium is the Chinese market near the railway station and if its hashish that a person needs there’s no place like the Slava Square, World War 2 memorial. It’s widely believed that immigrants from Azerbaijan and China are the ones bringing in the narcotics and that there are certain elements in the police that are turning a blind eye for kickbacks.

The more alarming problem is that the drug ring has penetrated secondary schools and junior colleges. The busting of a children’s criminal camp in Uglegorsk last summer was an eye-opener for the authorities as the adults conducting this camp had served time for drug peddling.

Holding sports competitions and seminars in schools to raise awareness is a huge step in the right direction. It’s not just young people that need counselling and the authorities need to reach out to parents as well. It’s not uncommon to see even 10 year-olds smoking in the alleys of the city. If this isn’t disturbing enough, some shopkeepers even sell vodka to (obviously) under-aged people.

The Sakhalin authorities also need to clamp down on chemists who sell certain drugs without a proper medical prescription. In certain cases, addiction to common house-old medicines, which are not taken under medical supervision, can be more dangerous than the usual banned narcotics. In addition to this menace, there is a great deal of confusion as to whether the Russian Duma and the Kremlin passed the bill on sale and consumption of alcohol in the vicinity of educational institutions, parks and hospitals. With spring in full swing, the number of drunks on the road keeps increasing every day. This all culminates in 10-plus days of mindless drinking coming up with the May holidays.

The real War on Drugs will have to be a well-coordinated effort and touch every demographic group and each layer of society. While the authorities need to reach out to the masses and educate them better, a zero tolerance policy for any kind of substance abuse is the only way to win this war.

This is the second editorial in this week's issue of the Sakhalin Times

At a summit on the sidelines of the recently concluded Russian Economic Forum, some NGOs and students including west-leaning students from Moscow debated on whether the multinationals involved in energy projects in Sakhalin and other parts of Russia should play a more proactive role in Russia. Many argued that oil companies need to pay attention to the distribution of revenues from production, human rights protection, anti-corruption efforts, and other areas where preventive action might reduce the likelihood that foreign investment might create or aggravate conflict.

They argued the need for both an increased tolerance for intervention in the domestic sovereign affairs of Russia, and perhaps even the legitimisation of foreign investor participation in Russian politics. The latter however, crosses the confines of the Russian Government’s tolerance and the destruction of Yukos is ample proof that political intervention by any company no matter how large it is, must be ruled out. The oil giants cannot legitimately perform the functions of governments, and must not be expected to do so.

The shelf project operators in Sakhalin have drawn a lot of flak from this publication for all sorts of reasons including environmental damage. They have been viewed as self-interested and uncaring about the impact their operations may have on society. This is exactly why Exxon Neftegas Limited needs to be commended for its contribution to the local hospital in De-Kastri. This must be the first step in a larger social development plan. A tremendous amount of goodwill can be earned if the energy giants can be an active part of Sakhalin’s community development.

There definitely is a growing tension between rising expectations of Sakhaliners and limits in the oil giants’ scope of action. It is fair to expect oil companies in Sakhalin to spend substantial sums on healthcare facilities, education, environment protection and preservation of the habitats of indigenous people. The shelf operators can also initiate partnerships with the government in certain infrastructure projects but there isn’t too much more that they can really do. Social responsibilities of major multinationals in foreign countries are limited and if this limit is crossed, it can be seen as an undue interference in the domestic affairs of a sovereign nation.

This is the second editorial in this week's issue of the Sakhalin Times

The Commonwealth of Independent States was basically formed by Russia to ensure Moscow had its fair share of influence over the former Soviet republics. Most CIS countries maintained their inherited Soviet systems, including an unreformed judiciary, police force and other laws like registration procedures to keep citizens wrapped inside the hands of governments. Essentially these newly independent countries were Soviet republics with different names and still showed a great allegiance to Moscow. Corrupt leaders played the America card only when they wanted some concession or the other from Moscow.

15 years into independence, an entire new generation is coming of age. A generation of people who were never Soviet citizens, and thanks to Hollywood and an influx of western philanthropists and organisations, think differently from their elders. The youth of the CIS countries prefer American Universities to Russian ones, both because of better job prospects and personal safety. Increasingly, young people are looking west in their thought processes. It’s this different thought process that has been the backbone of the rose, orange and other revolutions.

Georgia’s Rose Revolution, which was allegedly sponsored by George Soros, might just have been the beginning of the end of Moscow’s power in the region. It was a precursor to the now-celebrated Ukrainian Orange Revolution. The final round of the Ukrainian elections by no means produced a landslide victory for Victor Yushchenko but few will argue that he received overwhelming support from the youth of the nation. The Ukrainian youth on the whole prefer to be part of the enlarged European family to being stepchildren of Russia.

In Moldova, when a communist was re-elected, there was no revolution as the incumbent is pro-West and anti-Russia. While in Kyrgyzstan, a pro-Russian incumbent was booted out via a revolution. Even Armenia, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan are leaning towards the west or regional powers like China. Moscow neither has the economic clout nor the required number of spin doctors and agents to keep the people in the former Soviet republics loyal to Russia.

Russia would be well served to focus on the great dangers that exist from within. In addition to the rise of extremism, there a growing discontent among a large number of people who feel “cheated” out of their welfare benefits. The secessionist movement in Chechnya is rearing its ugly head into Dagestan and other neighbouring regions. Russia needs to focus on straightening out the internal mess and become a strong nation once again. A big grievance about the former-USSR was that the country did much more for developing countries than for its own citizens. Repeating such mistakes can have fatal repercussions for Russia.

This is the second editorial in this week's issue of the Sakhalin Times

Sakhalin Energy’s decision to reroute its offshore pipelines, to protect the endangered Western Grey Whale, is a welcome development. The company deserves credit for inviting the reputed IUCN panel to survey the area and for implementing the recommendations of the panel. The decision to relocate the pipelines is a victory for environmentalists who have been waging a global war against Shell.

Sakhalin Energy has once again showed that it is willing to take the needs of the environmentalists in mind while developing the Sakhalin-2 project. The decision to relocate the pipelines is however just the tip of the iceberg. The environmentalists, who have reacted cautiously to this news, have stated that questions on oil spill response, ship-whale collisions, sedimentation, noise and cumulative impacts are still unanswered. This basically shows that when it comes to protecting the environment, there is still a lot of work to be done.

Last September, when the Cristoforo Colombo spilt oil off the coast of Kholmsk, many environmentalists fretted that Sakhalin Energy tried to shrug off responsibility and its damage control operations commenced late. There are several unanswered questions about the impact of the project on the fish in the water of the Sea of Okhotsk, the livelihood of the indigenous people and dangers posed by Sakhalin’s regular attacks from earthquakes, cyclones and typhoons.

Just when one controversy seemed to have died down, another one immediately popped up much to the scourge of Sakhalin Energy. Debris and soil (allegedly with toxins) have been found in the Aniva Bay just a stone’s throw away from the LNG plant’s construction site. This debris has been found on the breeding ground of crabs and scallops. This is another major environmental violation not to mention an attack on the livelihood of many a Sakhaliner. Conservative estimates show that more 60% of Sakhaliners are employed in the marine food products and fishing industry. Sakhalin Energy has launched an internal enquiry into the matter but it is a matter of concern that many of its sub-contractors seem to have thorough disregard for the environment and people of Sakhalin.

Russian Environmental Laws might be stringent but there are way too many loopholes and punishments are not nearly as severe as they need to be. These loopholes are openly exploited by many companies. Take for instance how the Sakhalin-1 operators paid a paltry fine for the mass death of smelt in Chayvo Bay late year. The onus is on the Russian Government to tighten the screws on environmental laws and punishments for the violation of these laws. The government has to be as strict in enforcing the environmental laws as the authorities in Alaska and the North Sea. This is the only way that Sakhalin’s Environment can be protected.