Log in

View Full Version : Violence against minorities in Russia



tachosomoza
6th November 2011, 20:51
Nothing new. SOVA is an organization dedicated to investigating and reporting human rights abuses.

http://www.sova-center.ru/en/xenophobia/reports-analyses/2009/11/d17411/#r2_1


In the summer of 2009, racist and neo-Nazi incidents were reported in 15 Russian regions (including Moscow, St. Petersburg, Vladivostok, Volgograd, Vladimir, Kaluga, Kirov, Maikop, Omsk, Petrozavodsk, Rostov-on-the-Don, Samara, Stavropol, Ufa, and Ulan-Ude). At least 91 people were injured, including ten who were killed (in the summer of 2008, at least 90 people were injured, 15 of them killed, in 20 Russian regions). In the first 8 months of 2009, at least 44 people were killed and at least 247 were injured (86 killed and 332 injured in the first eight months of 2008). [1] It is clear that the overall number of victims has dropped, but the intensity of violence was about the same in the summers of 2008 and 2009.

As before, public access to timely information on racist crimes is limited, judging by the substantial updates on the past years' casualties, [2] and the fact that reports of a few recent crimes came to light only because the suspects got arrested.

Multiple recent arrests of the neo-Nazi partially explain the drop in casualties; another reason is the ultra-radicals' shift of focus: some of them have switched to subversive and terrorist activity targeting mainly government agencies, and such attacks usually result in fewer victims. Many ultra-right websites routinely report blast and arson attacks against police stations, government buildings, retail stores and other sites. In the summer of 2009 alone, the neo-Nazi assumed responsibility for arson attacks in Moscow against the Prosecutorial Investigative Committee office in Kuntsevo, police cars in Ryazansky District Police, and two retail stores in Moscow, and a retail store in Vladivostok. One report out of two published on the ultra-right websites is untrue and intended for self-promotion. However, in an ever increasing number of cases, arrested ultra-right activists face charges of actual arson and blast attacks. An underaged neo-Nazi offender arrested in mid-August in Moscow is suspected of at least five of such attacks. In addition, law enforcement authorities report having arrested members of violent gangs, including the Zhikhareva and Barshelutskov gang arrested in early 2009 and suspected of at least six blast attacks, and the Tamamshev gang whose core members were arrested in the summer of 2008. There are certainly other violent groups which have not been apprehended yet.

One particularly high-profile incident was the racist raid of Georgyevsk, Stavropol Krai, on 3 June 2009, where a dozen aggressive young men walked the city streets in broad daylight, attacking random passers-by who appeared "non-Slavic" to the attackers. At least three people were seriously injured. A subsequent investigation revealed that the raiders had been prepared to commit arson attacks and other violent acts (bottles of inflammable liquid, iron bars, and facemasks were found and confiscated from them).

Traditionally, more casualties of xenophobic violence are reported in summer due primarily to the Navy Day celebration. We know that at least one person was killed ant at least six were injured on the Navy Day (2 August) in 2009, plus two mass fights were reported in Nizhny Novgorod and in the Moscow suburbs.

As before, the safety of civil society activists who oppose the ultra-right is under threat. On 31 July 2009, Maxim Yefimov, leader of the Youth Human Rights Group chapter in Karelia, was attacked in Petrozavodsk in what is believed to be retaliation for his anti-fascist activism.

In mid-July, Konstantin Baranov, leader of the Young Europe youth NGO chapter in Rostov, received a series of phone calls and letters with personal threats from some neo-Nazi. The Young Europe NGO's page on the V Kontakte social network came under a spam attack by the neo-Nazi. Konstantin Baranov is certain that the attacks were triggered by his group's active opposition to the ultra-right's music concerts in his city.

In early September, the Moscow Human Rights Bureau received similar threats.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3LqEFkadXjQ

I seriously don't know why anyone would want to go there, with the boneheads organized like they are, along with the corruption. Too much of a hassle.

Dzerzhinsky's Ghost
6th November 2011, 21:04
This is absolutely no surprise to me and sadly this seems to be an ongoing and pervasive problem. As for not knowing why anyone would go there it's of my opinion that the only way to stop this problem is to face it head on.

tachosomoza
6th November 2011, 21:09
This is absolutely no surprise to me and sadly this seems to be an ongoing and pervasive problem. As for not knowing why anyone would go there it's of my opinion that the only way to stop this problem is to face it head on.

True. I think we would do well to urge international pressure to get these incidents in the spotlight. It's an everyday thing. Comrades of East Asian, African or African American, or Central Asian descent can't even enter the metro without being in groups, for fear of being assaulted by these louts. In full view, and even with support of, the police. With Russia becoming more and more global, this nonsense should be unacceptable.

tir1944
6th November 2011, 21:13
Yes,this is capitalist Russia.A hellhole.

Dzerzhinsky's Ghost
7th November 2011, 01:02
True. I think we would do well to urge international pressure to get these incidents in the spotlight. It's an everyday thing. Comrades of East Asian, African or African American, or Central Asian descent can't even enter the metro without being in groups, for fear of being assaulted by these louts. In full view, and even with support of, the police. With Russia becoming more and more global, this nonsense should be unacceptable.

Thoroughly agreed and I think in addition to the stories you've posted it should be pointed out that there use to be a trend among the Russian far-right to record and upload videos of fascists beating up Russian minorities everywhere. What we need is to not only put a spotlight on everything but we also need more comrades on the ground to combat this problem wherever it rears it's ugly head; strength in numbers and solidarity.

tachosomoza
7th November 2011, 05:41
Indeed. The troublesome thing is that the fascists have connections in courts and on the police force. I remember reading an account of an Eritrean comrade who was assaulted. He entered police station, where the desk officer told him: "What do you want, African Monkey? We have no bananas here."