SoVA CENTER FoR INFoRMATIoN AND ANALYSIS Xenophobia, Freedom of Conscience and Anti-Extremism in Russia in 2013 A collection of annual reports by the SoVA Center for Information and Analysis Moscow 2014 UDC 323.1(470+571)(082.1)”2013” Содержание BBC 66.094я43+66.3(2Рос),54я43 X44 X44 Xenophobia, Freedom of Conscience and Anti-Extremism in Russia in 2013: A collection of annual reports by the SoVA Center for Information and Analysis; Vera Alperovich, Natalia Yudina [Alperovich Vera, Sibireva Olga, Kravchenko Maria, Yudina Natalia / Ed. by Verkhovsky Alexander] – М.: SOVA Center, 2014. – 156 pp.: tables The Ultra-Right Shrugged: Xenophobia and Radical Nationalism in Russia, and Efforts to Counteract Them in 2013 ..................................................... 5 ISBN 978-5-98418-031-3 Criminal Manifestations of Racism and Xenophobia ............................. 7 This collection of reports summarizes all the major areas of work addressed by the SOVA Systematic Racist and Neo-Nazi Violence ................................7 Center for Information and Analysis in 2013, in a similar fashion to collections in previous years. There are three reports on themes which have become traditional for the SOVA Other Kinds of Right Radical Violence ...................................... 13 Center in this collection: The first report addresses radical nationalism and hate crime, Vandalism .................................................................................. 14 and the efforts of government and society to combat these phenomena. The second report addresses problems relating to freedom of conscience in contemporary Russia. The third Public Activity of Ultra-Right Radicals ............................................... 15 report addresses the misuse and abuse of ‘anti-extremism’ measures. The reports are updated versions of original texts on the SOVA Center website. Spin on Criminal Incidents and Rallies against “Ethic Crime” ... 15 The appendix provides details about hate crimes and the prosecution of such Anti-Immigrant Raids ................................................................ 24 crimes. All data were compiled at the end of January 2014. This translation of the published Russian text uses a modified Library of Congress Traditional Nationalist Actions ................................................... 28 system of transliteration for names and publications, except where there is an established alternative spelling (e.g. Yeltsin, not El’tsin, Yabloko, not Iabloko). Participation in the General Protest Movement ......................... 32 This collection was compiled and published with the support Party Building ............................................................................ 33 of the International Partnership for Human Rights (IPHR). Participation in the Elections ..................................................... 35 We are also grateful for support from the Open Society Foundation (OSF), Norwegian Helsinki Counter-action to Radical Nationalism and Xenophobia .................... 37 Committee, “State Club” Foundation, and for the state support grants distributed by the Insti- Public Initiatives ........................................................................ 37 tute of Civil Society Problems per Decree no. 115-rp of the President of the Russian Federation, issued on 29 March 2013, and by Civil Dignity Movement per Decree no. 348-rp of the President Criminal Prosecution ................................................................ 39 of the Russian Federation, issued on 18 September 2013. Criminal Prosecution of Extremist Groups and Banned Organizations ......................................................... 47 The SOVA Center website, which includes publications and news, can be found at http://sova-center.ru The Federal List of Extremist Materials ..................................... 48 Design, cover design – N. Vinnik Banning of Organizations as Extremist ....................................... 51 Layout – М. Konkova Other Administrative Measures .................................................. 52 1 Подписано в печать 10 июня 2014 г. Формат 60х84 /16 Гарнитура Таймс Печать офсетная. Бумага офсетная. Уч.-изд. л. 9. Тираж – 200 экз. Заказ № ......... РОО Центр «Сова». Адрес для писем: 103982, Москва, Лучников пер., д.4, под.3, к.2. Olga Sibireva Телефон/факс:(495) 517-92-30. E-mail: [email protected]. Веб-сайт: http://sova-center.ru Типография Россельхозакадемии. 115598, Москва, ул. Ягодная, 12. Freedom of conscience in Russia: Restrictions and challenges in 2013 ....... 56 ISBN 978-5-98418-031-3 Summary ........................................................................................... 56 Legislation relating to religious organizations ...................................... 57 © Authors, 2014 – report texts © Vinnik N.V., 2014 – design Federal legislation ...................................................................... 57 9 785984 180313 Regional initiatives ..................................................................... 59 Vera Alperovich, Natalia Yudina Initiatives not successfully progressed in 2013 ............................. 60 Problems relating to places of worship ................................................. 62 Problems with the construction of religious buildings .................. 62 The Ultra-Right Shrugged: Xenophobia Problems with existing religious buildings ................................... 66 and Radical Nationalism in Russia, Preferential treatment accorded certain religious organizations by the authorities .......................................................................................... 67 and Efforts to Counteract Them in 2013 Defending believers’ feelings ............................................................... 71 Liquidation of religious organizations and denial of registration .................................................................... 74 Summary Discrimination against religious organizations and citizens on the basis of The results of 20131 are extremely disappointing for the Russian society as their attitude to religion ...................................................................... 78 a whole, and only nationalists have reasons to feel optimistic. Insufficient protection against defamation and attacks ........................ 82 The decline in street racist violence, which lasted from 2009 to 2012, evidently came to an end. The past year was characterized by a notable surge in ethnic violence, evident even to casual observers. A real persecution was unleashed against migrants Maria Kravchenko from Central Asia and the Caucasus. People suffered from organized attacks as well Inappropriate enforcement of as from casual xenophobic violence; weapons were used in some cases. In particular, anti-extremist legislation in Russia in 2013 ................................................ 86 there was an increase in the number of attacks on board of subway cars and suburban Summary ........................................................................................... 86 trains (“white cars”). In October, we witnessed unprecedented group raids against Creation of Regulatory Acts ................................................................ 88 Tajikistan-bound trains. Combined with increasingly frequent semi-legal raids by Major Trends in 2013 .......................................................................... 94 ultra-right groups against migrants’ places of residence and employment, these events create an overall atmosphere of violence. “Excessive Vigilance” ................................................................. 94 The number of local conflicts, which, with various degrees of success, The Internet and Anti-Extremism .............................................. 96 were fueled and/or publicly presented as “ethnic” by the ultra-right increase in Incidental Victims of Inappropriate Anti-Extremism .................. 99 2013. The most significant among such conflictswere the riots in Pugachev and Principal Targets of Persecution ........................................................101 Arzamas and the Moscow district of Biryulyovo. A large-scale anti-migrant campaign was initiated by the authorities back Religious Groups ......................................................................101 in the spring and intensified in the summer in the wake of the Pugachev events Political and Civic Activists ......................................................110 and in connection with the electoral campaign. Media Topics ............................................................................115 As a result, the statistics on ethnic intolerance and support for nationalist A Bit of Statistics ...............................................................................117 slogans in the mainstream society grew to unprecedented levels. These factors created a very favorable context for nationalists. Against this background, their initiative – a campaign for introducing the visa regime with Appendix. Crime and punishment statistics ..............................................121 the countries of Central Asia and the Caucasus, and a series of rallies against “ethnic crime” – attracted a much greater public and media attention than 1 This report was prepared as part of the project, imlemented using the state support grants per Decree No. 115rp of the President of the Russian Federation, issued on March 29, 2013 6 Xenophobia, Freedom of Conscience and Anti-Extremism in Russia in