Volume One, Number 21
Friday, November 30, 2001

BIGOTRY MONITOR

A Weekly Human Rights Newsletter on Antisemitism, Xenophobia, and Religious Persecution in the Former Communist World and Western Europe

EDITOR: CHARLES FENYVESI

(News and Editorial Policy within the sole discretion of the editor)

Published by UCSJ: Union of Councils for Jews in the Former Soviet Union

_____________________________________________________________

BUSH SAYS RUSSIA 'MERITS' BEING FREED FROM JACKSON-VANIK; CRITICS DISAGREE. In a letter to leading American advocates of Russian Jewry, President George Bush wrote that he will work with Congress to remove Russia from the strictures of the Jackson-Vanik amendment because Russia "merits permanent normal trade relations status" on the basis of its "consistent, nearly decade-long allowance of unfettered emigration." The historic human rights legislation championed by the late Sen. Henry Jackson (D-Wash) and then Rep. Charles Vanik (D-Ohio), in place since 1974, conditioned normal trade relations on free emigration, a link that first the Soviets and then the Russian Federation called offensive, even humiliating. An exchange of letters earlier this month between Secretary of State Colin Powell and Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov formalized American expectations concerning Russian behavior requested by supporters of Jackson-Vanik. For his part, Ivanov rejoiced over "the elimination of one of the last vestiges of the so-called Cold War." The lead sponsor of the new legislation is Rep. Tom Lantos (D-Ca) who emphasizes that he will not repeal Jackson-Vanik but "take Russia off the list of countries" subject to the amendment. He plans to introduce the bill this year and expects its adoption by next May, when the two presidents are scheduled to meet next.

National Security Council and State Department officials explained the move at a meeting on November 21 with American Jewish leaders in the executive conference center across the street from the White House. The participants praised one another for cooperating in a diplomatic breakthrough achieved within a few weeks. They welcomed their agreement on lifting the Jackson-Vanik amendment as in the spirit of the nascent Bush-Putin partnership, and many rejoiced over the personal chemistry that brought the two presidents together. Though the meeting's atmosphere was one of celebration, critics among Jewish activists would have liked to see the Powell-Ivanov letters go farther than previous speeches by President Vladimir Putin. Not everyone was satisfied that the letters failed to mention the need for Russia to improve its overall human rights record, to consolidate the rule of law, and to initiate concrete efforts to combat antisemitism. "I don't think that the Russians are up to snuff on human rights," says one Congressional aide dealing with the case. "But that's what we say, in effect, when we drop Jackson-Vanik."

President Bush's letter said that President Putin "provided clear assurances" that his government would promote human rights and basic freedoms. But the assurances have failed to stop the continuing erosion of the freedom of the Russian press. On November 26, a Moscow court ordered the liquidation of TV-6, the country's last major independent television station. The court found the station financially unsound, and agreed with a suit filed by a minority shareholder, Lukoil, for liquidation. Lukoil, Russia's largest oil company, is known to be close to the Kremlin. "It looks to me like Lukoil was told to do something," said Tatyana Blinova, a TV-6 spokesperson. In its lead editorial on November 28 "The Washington Post" suggested that Bush tell Putin: "Stop suppressing independent television news. A Kremlin leader who goes to such lengths to silence his country's best journalists may not turn out to be the great Russian modernizer the West so eagerly anticipates." The following day, a White House spokesman called the closure "a step backward and out of keeping with a modern democratic society."

RUSSIAN SUPREME COURT NIXES EFFORTS TO DISBAND NATIONAL BOLSHEVIKS. Russia's Supreme Court has upheld a ruling by the Moscow Oblast Court refusing a request by the Moscow Oblast Department of Justice to disband the extremist National Bolshevik Party in Moscow Oblast, according to a November 19 report on ORT television. (The National Bolsheviks routinely incite violence against ethnic minorities and have been implicated in incidents of racist violence.) The original argument by the Oblast Department of Justice had nothing to do with extremism. As usual, it tried to exploit a non-related technicality, in this case, a supposedly inaccurate address the National Bolsheviks gave in their registration application. The Supreme Court found that the address was correct and turned down the appeal.

MOSCOW RALLY BLASTS JEWS AND PUTIN'S GOVERNMENT. On November 27 a crowd of about 1,000 gathered at Moscow 's Gorbatsky Bridge to hear speakers such as a coal miner named Konstantin Pimenov scream at "kikes" and "the Zionist clan" around President Putin, composed of "children of enemies of the people who were not beaten hard enough!" The rally was organized at the behest of the blatantly antisemitic Movement to Support the Army (DPA), according to a report in the daily "Kommersant." Supporters of the DPA - led by antisemites Viktor Ilyukhin and General Albert Makashov who has publicly urged the murder of Jews - attacked government reforms of the military, held up portraits of Stalin, and called members of the government "traitors." According to "Kommersant," Pimenov shouted: "A holy power is with us! The Lord God was the first Communist!"

SKINHEADS ARRESTED FOR MURDERS. Moscow police arrested a 16-year-old skinhead on charges of murdering Angolan refugee Massa Mayoni, "Moskovsky Komsolets" of November 19 reported. On August 23 Mayoni was beaten into a coma outside a refugee center maintained by the United Nations High Commission for Refugees and died in the hospital later. (See Bigotry Monitor #10, September 14.) The accused killer was discovered as a result of the Moscow police's crackdown on skinheads in the wake of the October 30 "pogrom" [IN] the Tsaritsyno Market.

According to a November 21 report on NTV's web site, three teenagers were arrested on charges of murdering a homeless man in Moscow. After consuming large amounts of alcohol, the trio went "hunting," and upon spotting three homeless men in an alley, they attacked with pipes, beating one to death and severely injuring the other two, who had to be hospitalized.

On November 26 "Moskovsky Komsomolets" reported that three skinheads were convicted of a series of gruesome murders in 1998 and 1999 and were sentenced to 15, nine and nine and a half years respectively. Two of the murderers were under age at the time, and their motivation was the desire to "cleanse" Moscow of non-Russians and homeless people.

SYNAGOGUE IN KOSTROMA VANDALIZED THREE TIMES IN NINE DAYS. A synagogue scheduled to open in the Russian city of Kostroma 200 miles northeast of Moscow was vandalized with swastikas three times between November 19 and 27, according to Andrey Osherov, head of the local Jewish community and UCSJ's regional monitor. After the latest incident, the synagogue's leaders decided not to clean up, so that government officials and communal leaders scheduled to attend the synagogue's ceremonial opening on November 28 could witness the damage. Last July, arsonists still unidentified attempted to burn down the synagogue.

Three days before a ceremony commemorating the opening of a Jewish center in the Russian city of Tomsk, the building was defaced with swastikas, according to David Kizhner, UCSJ's monitor in Tomsk. A policewoman who arrived on the scene shortly after the discovery of the vandalism refused to record the incident as a crime, arguing that nobody was hurt, and therefore the police will not search for culprits. In addition to the swastikas, the vandals painted on the walls the words "Yids get out of Russia!" and "Russia for Russians!" The local press and local officials ignored the incident, possibly out of fear of negative publicity on the eve of regional parliamentary elections.

NEO-NAZI PARTY HAS 3,000 MEMBERS IN BELARUS AND CLOSE TIES WITH REGIME. The violent neo-Nazi movement Russian National Unity (RNU) has about 3,000 members in Belarus, in more than 26 cities and towns, according to the November 18 edition of the Russian weekly magazine "Versiya." In addition, the National Bolshevik Party and "other ideologically similar organizations" have several hundred members throughout the country. The article focused on the history of the RNU in Belarus, starting with a 1994 incident in which its members beat pro-NATO and pro-American demonstrators in the capital Minsk. Since then, the local RNU has, according to the article, "established useful ties in military and governmental circles and cleansed the streets of opposition figures." This last charge is often made by leading opponents of Alexander Lukashenko's government, some of whom have been beaten by RNU members.

KOSOVO SERBS CHARGE DESTRUCTION OF ORTHODOX SITES UNDER U.N. RULE. Albanian extremists have destroyed or vandalized 108 churches in Kosovo since the arrival of NATO forces in mid-June 1999, Serbian Orthodox Church representatives told Keston News Service. They charge that the attacks form a systematic campaign to eradicate Serb Orthodox presence in the province. While right now the international peacekeeping force (KFOR) has been guarding such sites, Orthodox monk Fr. Sava Jancic told Keston, monasteries such as his will be at risk once former Kosovo Liberation Army men will decide its future. In the Kosovar Albanians' struggle for a separate state, he said, "the Serbian Orthodox Church is the last anchor of Serbian presence here, so we are strategically dangerous to them." However, Bob Charmbury of the United Nations Mission in Kosovo said he was unaware of any destruction of religious sites since KFOR's arrival. He said all the destruction occurred "in the immediate aftermath of the war."

Fr. Sava suggested that his Decani monastery is "an island," and the KFOR checkpoint at the gate is its "port," from which "we take our ferry - an armored car - across a sea containing dangerous piranhas." While such a restrictive environment is conducive to monastic life - "Our celibate community is the only Serb community growing in Kosovo!" he said - he acknowledged that the impact is negative on church life, as it is essential for clergy to visit believers.

NOVEMBER MEMORIES. In Central European countries November is a month for remembering martyrs. On November 18 - the anniversary of Vukovar's fall and the Serbian massacres that followed - Croatian President Stipe Mesic declared that Croatia wants all war criminals from the former Yugoslavia brought to justice, whether in local courts or in The Hague. He said that in addition to former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic - now accused of genocide, the most serious crime recognized by the international tribunal - his military and political command must also be tried for their roles ten years ago when Serbian forces entered Vukovar, as well as individuals who took part in the massacre of Croatian civilians and hospital patients. On November 17, Czech leaders marked the anniversary of two events: the 1939 Nazi execution of nine students who protested their country's occupation and the 1989 communist repression of a students' demonstration in Prague, which sparked the collapse of the regime. Deputy Premier Vladimir Spidla said that "freedom is difficult to win but easy to lose." Chamber of Deputies Chairman Vaclav Klaus said "the twin anniversary" was "a symbol of the struggle for democracy that had lasted half a century." After September 11, Klaus added, it is "impossible to believe that that struggle is now over."

* * * QUOTE OF THE WEEK * * * In her "Washington Post" column "Diplomatic Dispatches" on November 28, Nora Boustany described Anna Politkovskaya as "the intrepid reporter who covered the war in Chechnya for the daily 'Novaya Gazeta' and who has been threatened by Russian officials for reporting on military abuses." Boustany quoted Politkovskaya as "determined to return" to work alongside other threatened journalists. "I think it will be quite difficult to destroy me now, because I have said so much," Politkovskaya explained. "It will be obvious if they kill me."

RUSSIA AS A LAND OF OFTEN FAIR HUMAN RIGHTS LAWS BUT SCARCE COMPLIANCE
A Report by a Council of Europe Entity Tells a Sad Story in Every Category

In the executive summary of its lengthy report on Russia, the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) stated: "Problems of racism, xenophobia, and discrimination persist," and then identified, apparently in order of magnitude, those "notably - although not exclusively" affected: Chechens and other persons from the North Caucasus and Central Asia, refugees and Jews. The summary blamed the difficulties "encountered in ensuring that federal legislation and policies are applied at the regional and local levels."

The summary of ECRI's report cited the principal problem: discrimination originating "in the system of registration of residence and temporary stay and its enforcement procedure." The text then expressed "serious concern" with the behavior of "law enforcement officials vis-a-vis members of certain minority groups." Next, a finger was pointed at "the unsatisfactory implementation of existing law provisions against racial violence and hate speech." But then came a bureaucratic-academic compromise. The summary identified the negative phenomena as "in part connected" to "extremist groups and political parties and to the exploitation of social prejudice." In this instance, the government - central, regional or local -- was not blamed. The key descriptive paragraph in the 27-page (plus notes and appendices), single-space report ended with an expression of "concern" with "the absence of comprehensive civil and administrative anti-discrimination statutory provisions covering discrimination in different fields of life including provision for a fully effective specialized body."

The boldface paragraph that follows has power, even without adjectives qualifying ECRI's level of dissatisfaction. It simply suggested that the Russian authorities take "further action… to combat racism, xenophobia, discrimination, and intolerance in a number of areas." The recommendations listed "the need to ensure that federal legislation and policies… are applied at the regional and local levels; the need to review the system of registration and temporary stay and its enforcement procedure" so it is not discriminatory; "the need to counter illegal behavior" by law enforcement officials, "particularly against vulnerable groups; the need to improve and substantially strengthen the response of the authorities to racial violence and hate speech; the need to continue the process of countering extremist political parties and groups; and the need to adopt a body of comprehensive civil and administrative anti-discrimination provisions covering discrimination in different fields of life."

An entity of the Council of Europe, an institution increasingly influential in the eastern part of the continent, ECRI identifies its objective as "combating racism, xenophobia, antisemitism, and intolerance at a pan-European level." Its angle is the protection of human rights, and its approach is analytical. Its rapporteurs move from country to country, and in 1998 they completed their first round of reports for all member states. Now engaged in compiling the second round of reports, their aims include following up on the proposals made in the first report and reexamining issues at a greater depth. A special feature of the rapporteurs' work now is "a confidential dialogue" with the national authorities of each country prior to the final adoption of the report. For the second round of reports, the rapporteurs engaged in a series of "contact visits" with representatives of various ministries and public administrations responsible for issues related to ECRI's mandate. The report on Russia was adopted in March, and thus it does not cover any development subsequent to that date. But it was released only this month, and the gap is not explained.

In one paragraph after the other, ECRI noted the existence of a law or a regulation favoring one anti-discrimination cause or another but then expressed dissatisfaction with compliance, especially on the regional level, and often asked for a closer monitoring of the problem. Just as repetitiously, ECRI began a paragraph by recognizing "some" recent improvement but then pointed out that more improvement is needed. For instance, the report covered the international legal instruments, constitutional provisions, and criminal and civil provisions. It first praised their more-or-less acceptable level, but went on to emphasize, albeit in an understated manner, the importance of updating the provisions and raising the level of compliance.

In one section, the report stated in its laconic style: "ECRI reiterates its call for a strict observance of the decisions of the Constitutional Court." Elsewhere, the report "emphasizes… the urgent need for training in anti-discrimination standards and for awareness raising initiative in the field of racism and racial prejudice for all professional groups involved in the administration of justice."

In the section dealing with refugees and asylum seekers, the report sternly reminded the authorities that the law is often violated and asylum seekers are refused "on the basis of unlawful requirements" such as the lack of registration papers or the absence of kin ties in the region. Using a sharper tone, the report stated that asylum seekers are subject not only to refoulement - forcible repatriation - but to "harassment, violence, and requests for bribes."

Under the category of "vulnerable groups," ECRI expressed its "deep concern" with "widespread sentiments of hostility and high levels of prejudice" toward certain ethnic groups, often resulting in violence by private individuals and law enforcement officials. Here ECRI laid the blame on "public bodies at federal and regional level" and "the media and social actors often supporting them." It identified immigrants from the Caucasian region and Chechens, Meskhetian Turks, and Ingush refugees as especially vulnerable, and voiced "deep concern" with their plight.

According to ECRI, the Jewish community remaining in Russia numbers between 600,000 and 700,000. While noting "a welcome revival of Jewish communal and religious life," ECRI expressed "concern" with "the persistent presence of prejudice" and "widespread manifestations of antisemitism, including episodes of violence," such as the bombings of synagogues and "violent attacks." It voiced "serious concern" with extremist movements "very often of antisemitic nature."

Next, ECRI estimated Russia's Roma (Gypsy) population as 150,000, but noted that Roma organizations speak of up to ten times that number. ECRI characterized the Roma as "faced with poor living conditions and lack of access to basic services," because of the Roma lack of awareness of their rights and "indifference or discriminatory behavior on the part of the local authorities."

The report's 83rd and final paragraph stated that the Russian Constitution confers on foreigners and stateless persons the same rights as on Russian nationals. However, the report concluded, on the federal and regional level alike the authorities "restrict or invalidate the rights connected with freedom of movement," and ECRI "urged" Russian authorities to ensure that those rights "are thoroughly respected in practice."

* * * *

[HOME] [ACT] [CONNECT] [JOIN] [ABOUT] [SEARCH]