Moscow Bureau for Human Rights - 08.24.2005

Statement of the Moscow Bureau for Human Rights 

Explosion of hate

The explosion that thundered on August 21 on the Tcherkizovskiy market in Moscow, took away the lives of more than 10 people and wounded not less than 50. As the investigation showed, young terrorists were governed by nationalistic motives. 

Radical nationalists in Russia are not only marching and screaming neo-Nazi slogans already. In 2002 in different cities they had mined anti-Semitic banners, some of these banners exploded during the efforts to take them away. In 2005 train “Grozniy-Moscow” was blown up. Skinheads in St.-Petersburg, arrested in April-May 2006, were going to use explosives in their aggressive xenophobic actions. Explosion recently took place near Muslim oratory in Yahroma under Moscow. Neo-Nazi literature, full of “the shooting lists”, was found by those militants suspected in attempt upon A.Tchubays. Two years ago in St.-Petersburg anti-fascist scientist Nikolay Girenko was killed. Anti-fascist law-protectors receive threats with physical destruction constantly. In general, in Russia annually dozens of ethnic-based murders happen.

We're facing now the beginning of mass terror with aggressive background.

We colligate the increasing of xenophobic activeness of ultra-nationalists in Russia with the following circumstances. For a long time the law-enforcement services showed no respond to the development of radical groups and their criminal activity. Hate-based crimes were at its best qualified as hooliganism. Thus, the impunity fro aggressive xenophobia was established in society. There was a lack of effective programs on overcoming of extremism and upbringing of cross-national and inter-religious dialogue culture in the country. Social-economic, migration questions, youth, national policy were let develop as it might. Human rights and creative organizations hadn't played proper role in forming of public condemnation of xenophobia. Crisis of culture, spirituality, education, unethical coverage of national problems in mass media, cult of aggression and violence on TV also provoked the rise of intolerance in society. 

A flow of xenophobic propaganda continues to press on young minds from the pages of newspapers, published by nationalist organizations, books, issued by outwardly respected publishing houses, hundreds of Internet-sites. The necessity of committing terrorist acts against “aliens”, that allegedly invaded Russia, is being advocated. Such instigation to attacks on people with other color of skin, form of eyes, religion has already led to the fact that national-based crimes became more aggressive and demonstrative, they're committed in public places, regularly and everywhere. Mostly revolting is the fact that nationalists conceived the explosion on Tcherkizovskiy market with enthusiasm. Adherents of the group of Dmitriy Dyomushkin “Slavic Union” immediately started to glorify terrorists as “people of action”, dreaming of the coming of terrorists-kamikaze, which will lead them to the power. National-socialist community reviewed the act as the sign of the fact that their “movement grows constantly, sends up the level in all spheres of its activity. Perdition of “the guests of the capital” because of “the sanitary action” satisfies”. The exploders were announced as “NS-heroes”. 

The Moscow Bureau for Human Rights and partner organizations address all branches of state power of Russia, NGO community with an appeal to strengthen interaction on overcoming of aggressive xenophobia in Russia, develop education of citizens in a spirit of all-human values, create an atmosphere of peace and harmony in society.