Xenophobia and extremism still endanger Russia, says report

The bureau published a report entitled "Aggressive Xenophobia, Racism and Intolerance in Russia in 2011" that blames instability of social and economic development, problems with employment and lack of proper controls on migration, general growth in the number of Russian citizens who protest against corruption by state authorities and law enforcement officials, and what the report calls ongoing terrorist activity in North Caucasus for creating a tense environment in Russia.Human Rights Bureau head Alexander Brod said the riots in Manezh square in December 2010 were the benchmark by which the report measured 2011.

On Dec. 11, 2010 between 5,000 and 10,000 young men swarmed at the gates of the Kremlin chanting nationalist slogans after a Muslim migrant from the North Caucasus killed an ethnic Russian football fan in a street brawl.

"The street violence continued, and according to our monitoring last year there were 110 attacks based on the aggressive xenophobia. As result of it, 31 people were killed, and 120 people were injured. The attacks were registered in Moscow, Dagestan, St.Petersburg and in another 26 regions of the Russian Federation," Brod said.

Some experts, however saw the signs of declining extremist activity and racist outbreaks in Russia.

According to the report, which is based on their own monitoring and government sources, 85 people were killed and 324 across Russia were victims of xenophobic attacks in 2009, compared to 43 and 311 in 2010 and 31 and 120 in 2011, respectively.

"I can agree that the report doesn't have full data, but nevertheless there is a big difference between the years 2009, 2010 and 2011. Even if we just consider those obviously killed because of these (nationalism) factors, then the tendency in comparison to 2009 is that there almost were three times fewer (people) killed, almost three times fewer people who suffered. Doesn't it demonstrate that the Russian authorities understand how serious and important the situation is and that they are trying to find a solution," said Vladimir Khomeriki, the head of the Congress of National Associations of Russia, which unites more than 90 ethnic organisations.

In some experts' opinions this development showed that law enforcement agencies in Russia were able to keep xenophobic violence under control and not let nationalistic and racist activity spread widely.

"It was proved, on the basis of monitoring, that law enforcement agencies are actually able to keep the situation under control and they can do it quite successfully, if they consistently and purposefully do this right and do not, shall we say, play any other political games," Executive Director of Jural Information Agency 'Man and Law' Boris Panteleyev said.

However mass nationalist marches last year showed the problem still remained serious.

Some 7,000 skinheads, neo-Nazis and ultra-right groups gathered on the outskirts of Moscow on Russia's National Unity Day in early November 2011 to hold an annual demonstration which has come to be known as the "Russian March".

In this event, the largest nationalist protest so far, young men marched in unison behind a giant wooden cross and priests singing Orthodox hymns. In hooded sweatshirts, surgeons masks and leather jackets they gave Nazi-style salutes and chanted "I am Russian! ", "Return Russia to the Russians!", "Beat the Jews, save Russia!"

Attacks on migrants and ethnic minorities have skyrocketed in Russia, along with the creation of skinhead, paramilitary and nationalist groups, since the Soviet Union's fall 20 years ago.

Political analysts said the government has contributed to a growth in nationalist sentiment in Russia. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin himself seized on xenophobic sentiments during his 2000-2008 presidency in an attempt to rebuild voters' faith in Russia.

But ahead of a parliamentary election in December 2011 and a presidential poll in 2012, in which Putin plans to take back the reins of power, nationalism was stronger than ever with some 59 percent of Russians agreeing with the nationalist motto that "Russia is for Russians", according to a poll by the independent Levada Centre last year. Nearly the same number of people surveyed believe more blood will be spilt in nationalist conflicts across Russia.

Twenty years after the fall of the Soviet Union, Russia is still shaped by its place at the centre of the former empire. Migrants from Central Asian and Caucasian states are still flooding Russia in increasing numbers, says the World Bank-supported Fund Migration XXI Century. The organisation estimates the number of illegal immigrants to be between two million and eight million people.

In December 2010 Groups of young men marauding near Russia's heart of power, attacked immigrants from the North Caucasus and Central Asia in broad daylight, while fighting off Russian riot police for hours.

Since then, nationalists have been holding more rallies with increasing frequency, which coincides with the growing pro-nationalist sentiments in society, analysts say.

Attacks on non-white minorities and migrants rose year-by-year, peaking in 2007-2009 when hate groups killed nearly 100 people a year, according to Moscow rights group SOVA, which tracks racist violence. The biggest rise in killings and beatings was recorded in 2007 with more than 700 incidents registered.

Russian nationalists believe they can raise their clout with the public by drawing attention to the more than one million immigrants that move to traditionally Slavic lands every year and the billions of tax dollars that go to annual subsidies of Russia's mostly Muslim North Caucasus region.

Data from Russia's justice ministry shows that nearly half of all the nationalist organisations that have been closed down in Russia were shut in the last year and a half.

In 2010 Russian courts handed down 93 convictions to ultra-right criminals, a third more convictions than the year before. Last year 165 people were convicted of racist violence.