Kazan pays tribute to Chingiz Aitmatov memory

Kazan paid the tribute to the memory of the outstanding writer and philosopher Chingiz Aitmatov April 28. Russian Minister of Culture Alexander Avdeyev, Tatarstan Deputy Prime Minister – Minister of Culture Zilya Valeyeva, the Kyrgyz Republic Minister of Culture and Information Sultan Rayev and other participants of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization member-states’ ministers of culture took part in the special event at Tatar State Academy Theatre named after Kamal.

According to Zilya Valeyeva, organization of this meeting of creative intelligentsia and figures of culture is honour and heartfelt obligation of our republic. Aitmatov’s creativity is his last will to the whole Eurasian community. He felt the historical commonness of peoples of the planet’s larger part.

“He had that amazing ability to combine national and universal values. Chingiz Aitmatov is a great son of Kyrgyz nation and at the same time outstanding Russian writer. He has always been a brother and friend for people Tatarstan,” Mrs Valeyeva said. She reminded that headstones of the writer’s mother kin representatives were found in Baltasi District of Tatarstan. They are dated back to 1645.

Russian Minister of Culture Alexander Avdeyev made a speech at the meeting. “Aitmatov was able to write about the most important for us values. Both ordinary people and heads of countries trusted him,” he said.

The writer’s relatives – his widow Maria Aitmatova, sister Roza Aitmatova and son Ilya attended the meeting.