1.2 Racism and Xenophobia in Russia
Racism and xenophobia are pervasive problems in Russian society, which the Russian government has failed to adequately prevent or combat.[19] In a report on a June 2006 visit, the UN Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, noted, "Russian society is facing an alarming trend of racism and xenophobia."[20]The Russian Constitution prohibits discrimination on any grounds.[21] Discrimination is also prohibited by the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), and racial discrimination is specifically prohibited by theInternational Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination(ICERD).[22]
Violent racially-motivated attacks and murders of minorities of non-Slavic appearance have become common occurrences in Moscow and St. Petersburg as well as in smaller cities. [23] Most often the perpetrators of these violent acts are groups of young men and women who profess a neo-fascist ideology and are known as "Neo-Nazis" or "skinheads."According to the SOVA Center for Information and Analysis, a Moscow-based NGO that monitors hate crimes, from January to November 2008, there were at least 348 racially-motivated attacks, and 82 victims died as a result. [24] On December 5, 2008, assailants attacked two workers from Tajikistan, stabbing and decapitating 20-year-old Salokhiddin Azizov. Azizov's 22-year-old colleague was injured but able to flee. Azizov's severed head was discovered one week later in a garbage dumpster. [25]
The Russian authorities' efforts to stop racial discrimination and violence against minorities have been largely inadequate. [26] The Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, in a May 2007 resolution, noted that "the Russian Federation has still not adopted comprehensive anti-discrimination legislation offering effective remedies for victims of discrimination." [27] Although there is some evidence that prosecutors are more willing to identify racial motivations when investigating crimes and in recent years courts have issued convictions for hate-related violent crimes, including in several high-profile cases, [28] the number of crimes far exceeds convictions. For example, 2007, the SOVA Center documented at least 632 hate-related violent crimes, including at least 67 deaths. [29] However, in 2007 there were only 24 convictions for hate-related violent crimes. [30]
Violent attacks on minorities are one manifestation of racial and ethnic intolerance in Russia. Racist, xenophobic, and nationalist rhetoric is common among political leaders and during political campaigns [31] as well as in the media. [32] Organizations openly espousing racist or anti-immigrant views are increasingly organizing public protests in Moscow and other cities. [33] Discrimination and violence by police and other law enforcement is also a widespread problem and is described in more detail below (see Ill-treatment and extortion by police).
[19]The International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD) defines racial discrimination as "any distinction, exclusion, restriction or preference based on race, colour, descent, or national or ethnic origin which has the purpose or effect of nullifying or impairing the recognition, enjoyment or exercise, on an equal footing, of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the political, economic, social, cultural or any other field of public life." International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD), adopted December 21, 1965, G.A. Res. 2106 (XX), annex, 20 U.N. GAOR Supp. (No. 14) at 47, U.N. Doc. A/6014 (1966), 660 U.N.T.S. 195, entered into force January 4, 1969, ratified by Russia on March 6, 1969. For an analysis of Russian attitudes towards national identity and minorities conducted by the Levada Center see Dmitry Polikanov, "Nationalism in Moderation," Russia Profile, August 1, 2007, http://www.russiaprofile.org/page.php?pageid=Culture+%26+Living&articleid=a1185962119 (accessed August 10, 2007).
[20]"Report of the Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, Doudou Diène, Mission to the Russian Federation," A/HRC/4/19/Add.3, May 30, 2007, http://daccessdds.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/G07/127/01/PDF/G0712701.pdf?OpenElement (accessed August 1, 2007).
[21] The state shall guarantee the equality of rights and liberties regardless of sex, race, nationality, language, origin, property or employment status, residence, attitude to religion, convictions, membership of public associations or any other circumstance," Constitution of the Russian Federation, Adopted December 12, 1993, article 19.2.
[22] European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (ECHR), 213 U.N.T.S. 222, entered into force Sept. 3, 1953, as amended by Protocols Nos. 3, 5, 8, and 11 which entered into force on September 21, 1970, December 20, 1971, January 1, 1990, and November 1, 1998 respectively, ratified by Russia on May 5, 1998, article 14; International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), adopted December 16, 1966, G.A. Res. 2200A (XXI), 999 U.N.T.S. 171 (entered into force March 23, 1976), ratified by Russia on March 23, 1976; European Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (ECPT), E.T.S. 126, entered into force February 1, 1989, ratified by Russia on May 5, 1998,article 26; and ICERD.
[23]See, inter alia, Human Rights First, "2008 Hate Crime Survey: Russia," http://www.humanrightsfirst.org/discrimination/reports.aspx?s=russia&p=violentattack (accessed December 19, 2008).
[24] "November 2008: Results for the Month," SOVA Center, December 1, 2008, http://xeno.sova-center.ru/29481C8/C1B9224 (accessed December 18, 2008). The Moscow Bureau for Human Rights, a Russian NGO that monitors racism, recorded the following figures for racially-motivated attacks from January-November 2008: 118 deaths and 364 injured. http://antirasizm.ru/news.php?page=1 (accessed December 18, 2008).
[25] Police opened a murder investigation into the case. Michael Schwirtz, "Killing of Migrant Worker in Moscow is Investigated as Hate Crime," International Herald Tribune, December 14, 2008 http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/12/14/europe/moscow.php (accessed December 18, 2008); and "A violent attack on workers from Tajikistan took place near Moscow," Sova Center, December 9, 2008, http://xeno.sova-center.ru/45A29F2/C263ACA (accessed December 18, 2008).
[26] Both the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and Russian NGOs have acknowledged some steps that the Russian government has taken to address racism. See OSCE, "Hate Crimes in the OSCE Region- Incidents and Responses, Annual Report for 2007," Warsaw: October 2008, http://www.osce.org/documents/odihr/2008/10/33851_en.pdf (accessed December 19, 2008).
[27]Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe, Resolution CM/ResCMN(2007)7 on the implementation of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities by the Russian Federation, adopted May 2, 2007, https://wcd.coe.int/ViewDoc.jsp?Ref=CM/ResCMN(2007)7&Sector=secCM&Language=lanEnglish&Ver=original&BackColorInternet=9999CC&BackColorIntranet=FFBB55&BackColorLogged=FFAC75 (accessed May 7, 2007).
[28]In one high-profile case, in December 2008, a Moscow court convicted seven teenage members of a nationalist gang of 20 murders and 12 attempted murders of migrants between August 2006 and October 2007. "Moscow Racist Killers Convicted," BBC, December 3, 2008, http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7762302.stm (accessed December 18, 2008); "Skinheads from the 'Ryno Gang" received 6-20 year sentences. The Leaders received the maximum sentence," Newsru.rom, December 15, 2008, http://www.newsru.com/russia/15dec2008/rynoconvicted.html (December 18, 2008).
[29]Galina Kozhevnikova, "Radical Nationalism in Russia and Efforts to Counteract it in 2007," (Radikalnii natsionalizm v Rossii i protivodeistvie emu v 2007 godu), SOVA Center,http://xeno.sova-center.ru/29481C8/A91EC67#r3 (accessed December 18, 2008).
[30]Ibid.
[31] Some government officials have acknowledged this problem. See "First deputy PM admits Russia has problems with xenophobia," ITAR-TASS, in Russian, as carried in BBC Monitoring, July 28, 2007. See also Human Rights Watch, Singled Out: Russia's Detention and Expulsion of Georgians, Volume 19 No. 5(D),September 2007, http://www.hrw.org/en/reports/2007/09/30/singled-out.
[32] See "Compliance of the Russian Federation with the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination : Russian NGOs' Alternative Report," August 12, 2008, paras. 206, 256-260.
[33] For example, several anti-immigrant organizations, including the well-known Movement against Illegal Immigration organized protests in several cities on November 4, 2008, National Unity Day in Russia. "Over 200 Detained at far-right rally in Moscow," RIA Novosti, November 4, 2008, http://en.rian.ru/russia/20081104/118119911.html (accessed December 19, 2008). The ruling Unity Party's youth wing has also organized anti-immigration protests, one of which included banners stating: "We will defend Russian citizens" and "Our country, our work." Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, "Ruling party's youth group blames migrants for Russia's woes," December 8, 2008, as carried in UNHCR Reliefworld, http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/49422e6921.html (accessed December 19, 2008).