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Russia & Neighbors
Racism in Russia by Ajay Kamalakaran The international community fears the rise of Neo-Nazi movements in the very country that saved the world from Fascism. There have been innumerous reports of violence against ethnic minorities and foreigners (especially dark-skinned ones) in Russia. Even the lawmakers and law enforcers are accused of being collaborators in this movement, which glorifies the very man who was responsible for 27 million Russian deaths in World War II. The stories of ghastly and barbaric violence are even scarier considering that such kind of incidents would have never taken place even ten years ago. Russia’s race relation issues are far more complicated than in any other country and unfortunately the international media’s one-sided coverage of the situation has unfairly stigmatised Russia. Historical Background The USSR officially banned religion but was a multi-national, multi-ethnic state. While all Soviet citizens were forced to learn the Russian language, Moscow encouraged the inter-mingling of cultures. As Russians settled in other republics, several citizens of the Central Asian republics and Baltic republics also settled in Russia. State propaganda ensured that there was no racism. Government-sponsored movies depicted Armenians, Georgians and Trans-Caucasians as a hospitable race. The Soviet Union also banned western movies and only Indian movies were allowed to be screened. These movies created a sense of romanticism for Russians towards Asia, much in the same Rudyard Kipling and Max Mueller did in England and Germany. The Soviet Union also saw itself as the champion of the former colonised countries and provided free education to students from the third world, in order to create leaders in the young countries that would help spread the Soviet sphere of influence. Crime was also unheard of in the Soviet Union, as the people deeply feared the police. Eighty years of such systems ensured racial harmony across the vast Soviet empire. The Rise of Xenophobia When the Soviet Union finally collapsed in 1991, many Russians were driven out of the former Soviet republics, there were however no reciprocal expulsions from Russia. With the collapse of the iron curtain, Russia opened it itself to foreign ideologies, religions and cultures. Missionaries of every possible religion and cult and flocked to spread and win followers in Russia. The economic collapse triggered by Mikhail Gorbachev’s Perestroika and Glasnost brought the vast majority of the people into a sense of disillusionment. Taking advantage of a depressed section of society, German neo-Nazis began to infiltrate Eastern Europe, Ukraine, and Russia. Several visits to Russia by Ewald Althans, a prominent German neo-Nazi, were financed by white supremacist groups in North America. Leaders like Louisiana-based David Duke and Althans kept in touch with Russian neo-fascist leaders and believed that if they would have a Nazi government anywhere in the world, it will be in Russia. The collapse of the Soviet Union also brought a downfall in the education system. Frustrated youths were recruited and trained in the art of street warfare and any were told to attack any dark-skinned person. Over the next ten years, this movement recruited many members and now there are 50,000 Neo-Nazis in Russia. Violent Streets of Russia Law and Order have definitely broken down in Russia. Russia’s once efficient police are said to be among the most corrupt in the world. They have been accused of harassing locals and foreigners with Soviet-style document checks. Unregistered and undocumented people usually pay their way out of such situations. Of course, being registered and having proper documentation doesn’t necessarily absolve a person of guilt in the eyes of a police officer. Stories of policemen beating up innocent people in the street aren’t uncommon. In the first week of September, a former cosmonaut and certified "Hero of the Russian Federation" was beaten up by the Moscow police. Russians are as wary of law breakers as they are of law enforcers. After fifteen years of living in a crime-ridden society, the common man on the street has developed immunity to feeling bad about the on-going violence against foreigners. Russia as a country is hardly safe for locals, let alone foreigners. Criminals often pick on foreigners as they are an easy and visible target and with their feeling that "foreigner = very wealthy person." This is not to hint that foreigners in Russia live in a perpetual state of fear. The average Russian doesn’t look at foreigners as enemies, but showers them with warmth. Any visitor to Russia will speak of unparalleled hospitality. Russians believe that a guest brings good luck and have traditionally been a warm and friendly race. A vast majority of the people loathe the neo-Nazis and are themselves scared of them. There have been reported cases of neo-Nazis doubling up as football hooligans and attacking Slavic Russians in the Moscow metro. Russia’s neo-Nazis aren’t hardcore indoctrinated racists but rather opportunistic criminals. The white supremacy ideology can’t be used on Russians, so neo-Nazis pretend to be football hooligans (like those in England), when they want to attack Russians. A survey conducted by a Human Rights Group in Moscow revealed that 95% of Russian neo-Nazis were in the 15-20 age group. Extremist organisations apparently train downtrodden and poorly educated youth in the art of street warfare and these same youth use these skills when attacking Russians under a non-racist pretext. Moscow and the Caucasian Factor Moscow’s economic boom has made it a magnet for immigrants from all over the surrounding countries. Russia is hardly in a position to check the flow of immigrants as the country has open borders with all former Soviet states (except the Baltics). Although CIS citizens are required to register, hardly any of them do so and are often paid much smaller wages than Russian citizens. These lower wages are more than they would make in their home countries and are more than enough to support their families back home. It’s much easier for the former Soviet citizens to get a job and work in Russia than for immigrants from China and Afghanistan as they are practically native Russian speakers. In Russia, the term Caucasian strictly means a person from Russia’s Caucasus Region (including war-torn Chechnya) and Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan. Caucasians in Russia face the wrath of common Russians and extremists alike. They often complain about police harassment and there have been several documented attacks on Caucasians by Nazi groups. Due in large part to Russia’s Chechnya conflict, the once-loved Caucasians are looked upon as enemies. Now Russian movies portray all Caucasians as criminals and drug peddlers. This combined with the fact that most small shops, fruit and vegetable markets are owned and run by Caucasians has created a friction between Russians and Caucasians. Many poor Russians resent the fact that Caucasians are running the markets and getting richer everyday. Azeri traders have been unfairly stigmatised as cheats, who overcharge for their products. Racism in Russia is nothing like what it is in America or Europe. In Britain, Asian immigrants drew the ire of the cockney Brit. for absolutely no fault of theirs. "Paki-bashing" groups used to terrorise innocent Asian families. The situation in Russia is completely different. The insecurities caused by economic turmoil, have created a great rift between the communities. Many sections of the media have made it look like it’s only the peaceful and innocent Caucasians are harassed by Russian citizens. The reality is that Russians also face the ire of Caucasian racism. Unfortunately, there’s a huge "us against them" mentality. So anybody who walks on the streets with a Russian person is said to be a Russian collaborator and the same hold true for anyone who is seen associating with a Caucasian. Recalling the experience of this author’s German colleague during a visit to Russia two years ago; he roamed the streets of Moscow with an African-American friend. The Russians they interacted with were quite friendly and were very nice to the American. They spent a month in central Russia and were the recipients of fine Russian hospitality just about almost everywhere they went. Unfortunately, the American had a tough time with some Caucasians. He had to endure the abuses of ni**er from several Caucasians. The duo was shocked with the contempt they received from these "oppressed" people. The verbal attacks from Caucasians continued wherever they went in central Russia. There was even an attempted mugging that they thwarted. The group that attacked them mainly consisted of Azeris and Chechens. "We also thwarted three pick-pockets in three different regions and no prizes for guessing the ethnicity of the criminals," said my colleague. Caucasian gangs are known to target Chinese and African students as well as foreign tourists. New wave of Violence Russia witnessed several terrorist attacks in August and September. Chechen widows blew themselves up in two planes in the middle of August. And in September, Ingush (another Caucasian group) and Chechen militants lay siege to a school in Beslan in southern Russia. The ensuing hostage crisis ended with the death of 350 people mostly children. The recent terrorist attacks in Russia have given rise to growing racist fervour. A large segment of Russian society held all Caucasians responsible for the terrorist acts. The latest terrorist attacks created an atmosphere of fear and neo-Nazis used these attacks to try and stir up further hatred towards Caucasians and foreigners. In the second week of October, three foreigners were killed in central Russia. An influential English language newspaper reporter indirectly justified the killings by claiming that the nazi thugs were frightened by what happened in Beslan and this fear caused them to perform the cold-blooded murders. The reporter went on to say that the President’s warning that foreign terrorists have sneaked into Russia, instigated skinheads to kill innocent foreigners. Such a report is the exact kind of justification that racist leaders use to instigate Russian neo-Nazis to attack foreigners. St. Petersburg has always been considered a liberal city. Its very history was formed in such a way that diverse people, nations, races, and religions got along together peacefully. Even now in addition to the four-dozen Orthodox churches, there is an evangelical Lutheran church, an Armenian church, a head mosque, a Buddhist temple, and two synagogues. In addition to this, the citizens of St Petersburg have become accustomed to thinking that during the years of the war and the blockade, the city got a powerful inoculation against Nazism. In October, in this same liberal city, skinheads murdered a Vietnamese student. The police released most of the 15 suspects they arrested. A student, speaking on the condition of anonymity, claimed that even if the police had found the real culprits, they would not be tried under Russia’s extremism law, but as hooligans. "These thugs will continue to get away with murdering innocent students unless they are tried under the strictest law," added the student. Despite the problems, there has been some progress. Immense pressure from students and a public outcry led to the police arresting the three neo-nazis that murdered an African student in February 2004 in the south central city of Voronezh. The Voronezh court sentenced one of the skinheads to 17 years in solitary confinement and the accomplices to ten years. This was one of the best messages Russian authorities could send out against racism. When foreigners get killed in Russia, there is widespread condemnation in the media and this condemnation leads to outrage and such outrage leads to justice. Unfortunately Russians don’t have the backing of the international media and human rights groups in their quest for justice. Violent attacks on and murders of Russians hardly even make the news anymore. Taking just a small example of Sakhalin Island, a 32 year-old gynaecologist was kidnapped, raped and murdered and her body found after two months. The body was discovered in April of this year and still the police are clueless on the murderer. The victim’s neighbour lost a relative the same way in 2002 and again the case isn’t close to being solved. In the largest country in the world, an average of 34 murders is registered per 10,000 of the population every year. This figure doesn’t include terrorism related deaths. A majority of these murder cases remain unsolved. The police seem less inclined to pursue a serious investigation when they are under little or no pressure. A murder of a foreigner would create too much noise for the police to push the investigation under the rug. Need for Reforms Russia’s priorities must lie in tackling the crime menace. The urgent need of the hour is police and judicial reforms. Russian racists are criminals first and racists next. In many cases, a foreigner is only a victim of a crime, as he is easily identifiable as a soft target. Russia has to wage a war on crime. Racist violence will automatically reduce with a reduction in crime. Russia needs efficient and motivated police to control violence perpetrated by trained gangs and a justice system that will duly punish those that attack any person. To tackle growing racist mindsets, Russia must address the root causes of the problem including a decaying education system and a growing economy that seems to pass the common man by. It’s only when the average Russian is better educated and better off economically will the lawlessness and racism end About the Author(s): See under Our Contributors to find out about the Author(s) of this article. |
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