“The native language is Russian, the nationality in the census indicates – Chuvash”
In the 2021 census, respondents indicate two nationalities for the first time. How this happens in practice, how quickly people share information and what they think about the census in general, the Idel.Realii journalist from Novocheboksarsk learned by his own example, who went to the residents together with the census taker.
IN THE CONDITIONS OF THE PANDEMIC
For the first time in modern history, a population census is being held in the face of a pandemic. The risk of infection leaves its mark. It is not mandatory for enumerators to have a vaccination certificate, but they are all required to take a PCR test once a week. Before entering the entrance, they put on masks. When we come to the first apartment, we hear a strong cough.
“Forgive me, I would open it, but I’m sick for the third day,” the woman says.
More than once today they will refuse to speak to us due to illness. Not all residents of the group are at risk, know how to use a computer and the Internet, not all of them risk talking to census takers for fear of getting sick.
The fears of the townspeople are understandable. Media with reference to the head of Chuvashstat Elvira Maksimova the other day reportedthat during the census campaign in Chuvashia 11 census takers fell ill with coronavirus – due to illness or refusal to work, 27 contracts with census takers were terminated.
“ARE YOU EXACTLY NOT A BANDID?“
In the next apartment, a pensioner, seeing the scribe’s badge through the peephole, carefully opens the door for us. “You are definitely not bandits? I live alone, I am afraid to open,” a resident of Novocheboksarsk shares her fears.
She lives alone in a two-room apartment, which she got after the divorce. There are no children, the only source of income is a pension. With every minute, the pensioner is more and more actively making contact and answering questions in detail. By the end of the conversation, the woman is even upset that the meeting is coming to an end.
But her data are different.
– Who sent you people to interrogate? Tell this person that he is a criminal! You break the law, carry out illegal collection of personal data, stop fooling people, says a middle-aged man angrily.
In his opinion, there is no population census, since “there is no such country as the Russian Federation.”
– Since the August putsch, there has been no legitimate government in the country that could make laws and conduct a census. I heard you asked about nationality, so we all have one nationality – we are Soviet people, – our interlocutor says with pressure.
He flatly refused to take the census.
NATIONAL QUESTION
The issue of ethnic identity has become a stumbling block for representatives of various socio-political forces. Especially considering that in the current census the respondent can indicate two nationalities. National movement activists agitate indicate the nationality of a particular people, and it is recommended to prescribe their language to their relatives – even if the person does not speak it. In turn, sociological researchers are called such an initiative is harmful, since the initiators of the census with the receipt of the real data.
You break the law, carry out illegal collection of personal data, stop publishing brains to people
Our next interlocutor is a 42-year-old man who lives with his wife and three children. He works on construction sites, mostly in Moscow. He considers Russian to be his native language for himself and his children, but in the column “nationality” he boldly calls everyone Chuvash.
– Nationality is not necessarily knowledge of the language, – the man specifies. – My children did not hear the Chuvash language at all. But they are Chuvash, and their children, my grandchildren will also be Chuvash. They contain my blood, the genes of our ancestors – that’s enough to consider yourself a part of the people.
In the next apartment, the door is opened by a woman of pre-retirement age. She says that initially she did not want to participate in the census, but when she saw the scribe’s smile, she changed her mind.
– Only the husband will answer, I have business there, the interlocutor clarifies, after which she calls the spouse and asks him not to talk about the amount of the pension.
In response, the scribe reassures and reminds that such information is not required. The man says that they live together, their marriage is registered, they are Chuvash by nationality and speak the language.
– Our children are also Chuvash. The daughter knows the language, but the son does not. They grew up in the city, which is why they have such a story.
Will this census be of any use at all? Why do they want to count us all, do you by any chance know?
In two hours we manage to pass one three-entrance, five-storey building. Almost half of the people we met at home said that they had passed the census on “State Services”.
“We have already passed the census on the State Services portal, we do not want to let anyone in, because many are sick with coronavirus,” one of the respondents tells us.
Not everyone understands that the fact of filling out the questionnaire on “State Services” without further submission of the QR code by the scribe means that they have not passed the census. But this is often not explained.
However, some residents eagerly talk about their lives – down to numbers, which you usually don’t expect to hear from strangers. “My wife and I sleep together, and we have the same food in the refrigerator, just write it down,” a man suggests in one of the apartments.
In addition to the questions from the questionnaire, some of the respondents tell us about their problems, and some for their personal data and their safety.
– And you can not tell us when they will make repairs in our entrance? – one of the census participants addresses us. – We have written everywhere – both to the deputies and to the mayor’s office, but they do not tell us anything sensible. Will this census be of any use at all? Why do they want to count us all, do you by any chance know? The main thing is that information about us goes in the right direction.
Some respondents invite to their home for a cup of tea: “You are probably tired of walking all day, you just set the tea. Do not hesitate, come in!” One woman greeted us warmly.
CORRESPONDER ABOUT HIS WORK
On average, over the entire period of the census campaign, a census taker will visit up to 800 apartments. According to rough estimates, you need to enumerate seven to eight households a day.
– We have a free schedule, but I try to interview as many people as possible, – says the scribe Valery (he asked not to indicate his last name – “Idel. Realities”). – Before the start of the census, we went through training: we were taught not to insist, but people still heard something. Basically, the population reacts, calmly and affably, responds only if they are busy.
The training of census takers, as they themselves note, lasted three days – his census controllers or an authorized employee of Chuvashstat. The emphasis on training was not so much on the rules for filling out the questionnaires as on the etiquette of communication with the population.
– We were told that we must fully trust people, not ask for passport data. If a person wanted to call himself “Vasya Pupkin”, that means we should write it down like that, ”the scribe recalls.
People answer that they are tired of the elections, and then there is the census
According to the agreement, the census taker will earn 18,600 rubles per month for the census. In past years, census takers say, benefits were introduced: for example, for travel in public transport. This year, they note, the “preferential practice” was canceled, with which many were unhappy.
– Basically, students get a job in the census. Pensioners, as I heard, are not hired because of the risk of contracting the coronavirus. In addition, this year census takers are working on tablets, where data is transferred, and it is much easier for young people to learn to work with technology, ”says Valery.
According to him, it is not always safe to conduct a census in disadvantaged areas. In some cases, for security reasons, local police officers are involved in the work. But there is no information about attacks on scribes in Chuvashia.
– There were cases when you are faced with rudeness. People answer that they are tired of the elections, and then there is the census. We also had to escape from stray dogs, we also had this. In this case, we took a bottle of pepper and bought a simple whistle, – says the scribe.
***
The last all-Russian population census took place in October 2010. She showed that the country’s population is 142 million 857 thousand people. The new census was supposed to start in October 2020, but it was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic. Initially, it was planned that the census would begin in April 2021, but in the end it was postponed again – in the fall.
The preliminary results of the census will be summed up in April 2022, the final results will be published by Rosstat in the IV quarter of next year. Head of Rosstat Pavel Malkov Please inform that based on the results of the census, demographic, social and economic data by regions and settlements will be collected and summarized, as well as information on the living conditions of citizens in different regions of the country. This, according to him, will allow to form an expert opinion on the socio-economic situation of the country.
“We will get rich material for scientists, analysts and experts,” said the head of Rosstat.
Official sources provide some evidence on the progress of the census. Chuvash official media reportthat in the first week and a half since the beginning of the census campaign on “State Services”, 154 thousand residents of the republic (12.8%) completed the questionnaire on their own. On stationary sites, census takers covered 237 thousand people (19%).
Thus, Chuvashia entered top three by activity in the online population census among the regions of the Volga Federal District. Head of the region Oleg Nikolaev gave instructions to more actively carry out explanatory work on the importance of the census campaign through “State Services”.
Previously “Idel.Realii” published material dedicated to the most controversial moment of the All-Russian Population Census, in which the issues of identity and powers of the census taker were examined in detail.
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