A word in simplicity

The petition demanding to resign the Commissioner for the Rights of the Child Pavel Astakhova collected more than 90 thousand signatures. The document published on the Change.org website expresses indignation with the words of the children's ombudsman, facing the children who survived in a catastrophe on the Syamozer: "Well, what, how did you swim?"

“We regard this statement as an inhuman and disgusting manifestation of the limitation, callousness and cynicism of a person whose duties include protecting the rights and interests of children in the Russian Federation. Such qualities are incompatible with the position of the Commissioner for the Rights of the Child,” the authors of the petition published on Friday say.

Astakhov said his phrase on Thursday, visiting the surviving children in the Moscow hospital. Instead of a girl, to whom the question was addressed, the Commissioner was answered by a woman who was in the ward. “Thank God they survived,” she said. The video recording of this episode was published by Ren.tv.

On Saturday, Astakhov told Life that he would continue to work despite the petition with a request for his resignation. "Change.org is registered in San Francisco, we will now express public opinion on American sites? They go there a large number of electronic bots, do not need to register. When they write that the Russians are voting, I excuse me, I even see that 90 percent go from Ukrainian sites to write some nasty things. I can only answer with work -I continue to work" -I continue to work " -I continue to work. The Commissioner said.

Prior to this, Astakhov said that his phrase was roughly torn out of context and explained that he used psychological techniques to help "reveal a frightened child." "A rudely torn from the common extremely complex psychologically and morally conversation with the victims of the girls, the phrase does not convey the character of this conversation at all," he wrote.

In response, the official representative of the Investigative Committee Vladimir Markin advised Astakhov to be guided by the recommendations of psychologists in a conversation with injured minors. “We have long asked the question“ how to swim? ”To those who directly sent and accompanied the children in this mortal swim,” Markin said. “With all due respect to Pavel Alekseevich, he should explain to him that, when deciding when to conduct the interrogation of the injured minor, the investigator is guided, first of all, by the recommendations of psychologists, so as not to indulge the child.”

In turn, Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov regarded Astakhov’s words as an “awkward figure of speech”. “In this case, I would suggest not to be fanned - there is no talk of any sarcasm. This is most likely just an awkward figure of speech,” Peskov said. “I would not join the string of those who give it like almost intentional sarcasm; it is obvious that this is not so.”

The tragedy on Siamozer occurred on June 18. 47 children who came from Moscow went for a walk along the lake in three boats with four educators and got into the storm. The boats turned upside down. As a result, 14 adolescents aged 12-14 were killed .