Racist violence and xenophobia fomented in Russia by Putin

On the occasion of the visit to Russia, which is to last several days, of the UN Special Correspondent for Racism, Doudou Diène, the Society for Threatened Peoples (GfbV) points out that racism and xenophobia are deeply anchored in Russian society. "The policies of Vladimir Putin, who in order to justify his brutal procedure in Chechnya has carried out massive anti-Chechnyan and anti-Caucasian propaganda, has strengthened xenophobia in Russia", is the charge of the human rights organisation against the Russian president. A recent study by the renowned Levada Centre shows that 57% of those interviewed would approve the refusal of residence permits to people from the Caucasus in their town. and 53% the denial for people from Central Asia. This feeling also finds expression in acts of violence against persons seen as Caucasian or Central Asian, and makes its mark on the everyday life of immigrants to Russia, said the GfbV expert for the States of the Russian Federation, Sarah Reinke. So it is almost impossible for these people to find accommodation in Russia. The analysis of nearly 11,000 advertisements for rented accommodation in various towns in Russia has according to the GfbV shown that in average more than 30% of the advertisements contain the proviso "Only for Russians". Over 70% said in a representative study that they would not take anyone from the South or North Caucasus or Central Asia, and over 50% did not want members of these ethnic groups as neighbours. Since the beginning of the year 2006 13 persons have been murdered in the Russian Federation for racist reasons, seven of them in April alone. In April again 19 persons were beaten or injured. Since the beginning of the year the renowned organisation SOWA has registered 87 acts of violence motivated by racism. The most recent cases are listed here below: In the night of 10th June two Armenians were shot at in Moscow. One of them died of his injuries. The other one is being treated in hospital. On 7th June six Tajiki students were attacked in their student hostel in Moscow by members of the militia. The uniformed persons struck the students with spanners and straps, kicked them, insulted them and stole money and mobile telephones. Five students had to be treated in hospital for severe injuries. On 22nd April the 17-year old Armenian student, Vagan Abramyants, was murdered by skinheads in the Moscow Metro. On 21st April skinheads in the town of Kostroma attacked four Chinese students, who fortunately all survived. On 20th April a young Azeri girl was beaten up by skinheads in the centre of Kostroma. In the evening of 19th April a student from India was severely injured on the campus of the Medical Academy in St. Petersburg in a racist attack.