16 February 2004 17:11
RUSSIA: GOSKOMSTAT OFFERS POPULATION SNAPSHOT
The results of the 2002 census confirm that the proportion of older citizens in the overall share of Russian
population continues to grow concurrently with Russia having one of the lowest life-expectancy rates in Europe,
"Izvestiya" reported on 12 February, citing State Statistics Committee Chairman Vladimir Sokolin. According to
the daily, Russian men on average live to be 58 years old, while women live to the age of 72. At the same time, in
comparison with the 1989 census, the average age of the population has increased by 4.3 years. The daily also reported
that according to recently published research, Russia occupies second place in the world in term of murders, with 29
murders for every 100 people. "The only country where the chance of dying at the hands of a murderer is higher is
Colombia," "Izvestiya" added. Russia is also No. 2 among the countries of the former Soviet Union in
terms of suicide, following Lithuania. The 2002 census results also showed that English is the second-most-popular
language in Russia, with 4.8 percent of the population being able to converse freely in that language, according to
RIA-Novosti on 12 February. Tatar is third and German fourth. JAC Copyright (c) 2004. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the
permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
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RUSSIA IN FACTS
