Udmurt-Language Scholar Mourned In Russia After Self-Immolation Protest

Mourners paid their respects on September 12 at the funeral of Udmurt scholar Albert Razin, who died by self-immolation in a protest against Russia's language policies in the town of Izhevsk, capital of the Volga region of Udmurtia. Razin died on September 10, several hours after he set himself on fire outside the regional parliament in Izhevsk. A bill approved by Russia's State Duma last year cancels the mandatory teaching of indigenous languages in Russia's so-called ethnic regions and republics where non-Russian ethnic groups are well-represented.