From the Republics is a new weekly column from MT reporter Leyla Latypova that focuses on the latest political and social developments in Russia’s ethnic republics. This week’s edition looks at how Kremlin-installed officials learned how to wield Russia Day for propaganda. Russians across the country last week celebrated Russia Day, a national holiday commemorating the country’s declaration of sovereignty in 1990 and the beginning of constitutional reform in the Russian Soviet state. Despite over three decades of observance, many Russians are unsure why they get a day off from work on June 12….