Life inside Russia: Meet two teens from the new, democratic Russia. (World).

Russia has endured tough times since the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (U.S.S.R.) collapsed in 1991. But, says 15-year-old Pavel Gavrikov, "I think life has been getting better. At least there is more freedom for people to decide their own individual way of life."

Like most Russian teens, Pavel was born a Soviet citizen. But he remembers little about the once-mighty Communist state, which was for decades the main rival of the U.S.

"I know what my parents and other people tell me about it," he says. "I want to learn more before I make up my mind. After all, it's part of Russia's history, and we have to understand history before we judge it."

When not studying, Pavel enjoys skateboarding, surfing the Net, and playing military board games. He also dabbles in computer programming, and admits that his own PC is full of pirated software, purchased on Moscow's thriving black market (a place where products are bought and sold illegally).

"I know it's probably wrong, but almost nobody in Russia uses properly licensed software," says Pavel. "I guess that's because [with inflation] not many Russians can afford to pay Western prices for these things yet.

Pavel is an only child. His mother, Tatiana, manages a dental clinic, and his father, Mikhail, is a lawyer. Like most Russian families, the Gavrikovs still live in a Soviet-built home, which means quarters are cramped.

Not far from downtown Moscow, the Gavrikov apartment has just two rooms, plus a tiny kitchen and bathroom. When guests visit, the master bedroom has to be converted into a living room.

"I think we're pretty lucky by Russian standards," says Mikhail. "We've adjusted to all the changes, and we manage all right. A lot of people in this country lost their jobs, fell into poverty, and still can't figure out how to make a living in a completely different economic system."

Life After Communism

The U.S.S.R. was a union of 15 republics, bound together by an authoritarian (controlling) regime. The Communist government owned all property and ran the economy with absolute power.

The government strictly limited individual freedoms. Those who criticized state policies risked imprisonment or death.

Yet the system also ensured security for obedient citizens, guaranteeing jobs, housing, free education and health care, and other benefits.

When the Soviet Union collapsed, each of the 15 republics, of which Russia was the largest, gained independence. In Russia, the new government has tried to create Western-style democracy and free-market economies, with mixed success.

For the family of Sonia Shatokhina, a 13-year-old eighth-grader, making ends meet is a struggle. Sonia shares a small four-room apartment with her parents and four brothers and sisters. They live in Korolyov, a town outside Moscow.

Sonia's father, Nikolai, is an actor. After being unemployed for several years, he recently landed a small part in a TV series. Sonia's mother, Yelena, is a physicist who once worked full-time for the Soviet Union's space program. Since the collapse of the U.S.S.R, which brought a drastic cut in space spending, Yelena has worked only occasionally.

"Unemployment can be an advantage," says Sonia. "My parents decided to use the extra time they spent at home to educate their children."

Sonia is involved in many extracurricular activities, including acrobatics, music--she plays the violin--and watercolor painting. But, admits Nikolai, family finances are a constant worry.

"Prices for everything keep going up," he says, "and what we earn never seems to be enough. We've seen some hard times."

Most residents of Korolyov are still connected to the nearby space program, so the loss of the shuttle Columbia deeply affected many people here.

"I saw it on TV and was shocked," says Sonia. "What a terrible catastrophe. I hope that in the future, Russia and America will cooperate more in space. Maybe if we put our best efforts together, there will be fewer accidents."

War with Chechnya

Three years ago, Vladimir Putin, a former member of the KGB, the Soviet secret police, was elected President of Russia. He promised to restore law and order, and to push through long-delayed economic reforms.

Many people agree that life has improved under Putin. The economy is picking up, and crime--a big problem in the 1990s--has been reduced.

But Putin also launched a new war against Chechnya (CHECHnyuh), a small, predominantly Muslim region located near Russia's Caucasus (KAW-kuh-suhs) Mountains. Chechens have been fighting Russia for independence off and on for nearly 200 years.

The latest hostilities began in 1999, after a series of mysterious apartment bombings killed nearly 300 people in Moscow and other Russian cities. The attacks were blamed on Chechen rebels.

Putin ordered the Russian Army to crush rebel forces and occupy Chechnya. Heavy bombing and artillery shelling against Chechen cities has caused thousands of casualties among innocent civilians.

Last October, a group of 40 "suicide warriors" slipped into Moscow and seized a theater. Armed with explosives, they took 800 hostages--including many women and children--and threatened to blow up the theater if the Russian Army did not withdraw from Chechnya.

After a tense three-day standoff, law-enforcement officials filled the hall with a powerful gas that put everyone to sleep, including the terrorists. Russian forces then liberated the theater, but not before the gas accidentally killed 129 hostages.

Many Russians say that the siege was Russia's version of September 11, 2001--a catastrophic event that awoke people to frightening new dangers.

"This happened in my city, not far from my home," says Pavel. "I can never walk down the street and feel safe again."

For weeks afterward, Sonia's mother insisted on accompanying her everywhere. But, says Yelena: "What can you do? It's impossible to keep the kids home all the time, and you can't go everywhere with them. We just pray there won't be more terrorist attacks."

"The Best Place for Me"

Russia is one of the few countries in the world that still requires every 18-year-old male to serve in the military for two years. Conditions in the cash-strapped Russian Army are said to be terrible, and Pavel is determined not to join when he reaches draft age in three years.

"I am a patriotic Russian, but I don't want to go into the Army," says Pavel. "There are legal ways to avoid it, such as staying in school."

Despite hardships that remain in the new Russia, Sonia is happy with her life and her homeland.

"There may be problems in Russia, but it's the best place for me," she says. "I want to travel, but I wouldn't live anyplace but here in Russia."

RELATED ARTICLE: RUSSIA

Russia is the world's largest country in area, stretching across Asia and a vast section of Europe. Russia once belonged to an even bigger country, the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (U.S.S.R.). Fifteen countries made up the U.S.S.R. until it broke up in December 1991.

FACTS TO KNOW

AREA: 6,592,819 square miles, nearly twice as big as the U.S.

POPULATION: 143,500,000; 73% urban.

GOVERNMENT: Presidential-parliamentary democracy; Vladimir Putin has been President since 2000.

ECONOMY: Industrial nation, rich in natural resources. Only 8% of the land is arable (farmable). The change from a government-run economy to a market economy resulted in high unemployment and inflation, but recent developments have been positive.

PER CAPITA GDP*: $7,700.

RELIGIONS: Russian Orthodox (Christianity), Islam, others.

LANGUAGES: Russian, many others.

LITERACY: Males, 99%; females, 97%.

LIFE EXPECTANCY: Males, 59 years; females, 72 years.

* The value of all products produced by the country in a year, divided by the population. (GDP stands for gross domestic product; per capita means per person.)

1. What is the capital of Russia? __________

2. Once known as Petrograd, St. Petersburg was the capital when the Czars ruled Russia. What is the city's latitude and longitude? __________

3. The Ural Mountains divide Europe and Asia. The mountains lie near what line of longitude on the map? __________

4. Part of Chechnya is located in which mountains? __________

5. What is the name of the huge region of Russia that stretches across northern Asia? __________

6. The Lena River empties into what body of water? __________

7. Russia is the largest former Soviet republic. What is the second-largest former Soviet republic? __________

8. What Russian city is closest to 60[degrees]N, 150[degrees]E? __________

9. What percentage of Russia's land is arable? __________

10. What is the capital of Ukraine? __________

World map questions

1. Moscow

2. 60[degrees]N, 30[degrees]E

3. 60[degrees]E

4. The Caucasus mountains 

5. Siberia

6. The Laptev Sea 

7. Kazakhstan

8. Magadan

9. 8 percent

10. Kiev