Chronicle of the Guilty Verdicts for Propaganda of Xenophobia in Russia. 2008

*We publish a list of the guilty verdicts for the non-violent hate crimes issued in 2008, in Russia. In total, we know about 42 verdicts (we don't include the verdicts which we consider to be unlawful).

Besides, there were 2 verdicts for vandalism committed with a hate motive. Admitting the hate motive as an aggravating circumstance of vandalism is very rare, that's why we count such cases separately.

The news to which we provide links are in Russian language.*

1. Verdicts for hate propaganda
2. Verdicts for hate motivated vandalism

Verdicts for hate propaganda

January, 2008, Sortavala (republic of Karelia). Verdict for neo-nazi graffiti under art. 214 (vandalism) and part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred). One person was sentenced to 9 months of suspended imprisonment.

January 21, 2008, St. Petersburg. Verdict for a xenophobic pamphlet under part 1 art. 280 (public calls to extremist activities) and part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred). One person sentenced to year of imprisonment.

January 28, 2008, Syzran (Samara region). Verdict for radical Islamist propaganda under part 1 art. 282 (incitement to religious hatred). One person sentenced to 1 year of suspended imprisonment.

Jamuary 28, 2008, Tyumen. Verdict for making and distributing of neo-nazi leaflets under part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred). One person sentenced to 1 year of suspended imprisonment.

February 1, 2008, Maikop. Verdict for posting a video with a double murder on the Internet under part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred). One person sentenced to 1 year of criminal colony.

February 4, 2008, Sovetsk (Kaliningrad region). Verdict for making and distributing of xenophobic leaflets under part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred). One person sentenced to 180 hours of compulsory labor. The leaflets were doomed for being extremist.

February 12, 2008, Novosibirsk. Verdict against Boris Mironov for anti-Semitic propaganda under paragraph :b; part 2 art. 282 (incitement to ethnic hatred with abuse of official position). Mironov was convicted, but released for the expiry of the statute of limitations.

February 18, 2008, Moscow. Verdict against Maxim Martsinkevich (alias Tesak) under paragraph :c; part 2 art. 282 (public incitement to hatred committed in an organized group). Martsinkevich was sentenced to 3 years of imprisonment.

March, 2008, Kursk. Verdict for xenophobic propaganda under part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred). One person sentenced to 1 year of suspended imprisonment.

March 18, 2008, Ulan-Ude. Verdict for neo-nazi leaflets and videos under part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred). One person sentenced to 1 year of suspended imprisonment.

April 25, 2008, Samara. Verdict for publishing and distribution of a neo-Pagan xenophobic anthology under part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred). One person sentenced to a 30 thousand Rubles fine. All the 3 issues of the anthology doomed for being extremist.

April 28, 2008, Tolyatti (Samara region).Verdict for distribution of anti-Chechen leaflets under part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred). One person sentenced to a 100 thousand Rubles fine.

May, 2008, Dagestan. Verdict for an anti-Semitic article in a news-paper :Mnenie naroda; part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred). The author of the article was convicted, but released for the expiry of the statute of limitation, and the editor was sentenced to 1,5 years of suspended imprisonment.

May,13, 2008, St. Petersburg. Verdict for distribution of an anti-Semotic video-film under part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred). One person sentenced to a 100 thousand Rubles fine.

May 13, 2008, Salsk, (Rostov region). Verdict for sending xenophobic sms messages under part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred). An activist of National-Democratic Party of Russia was sentenced to 6 months of compulsory labor.

May 14, 2008, Vladivostok. a href="http://xeno.sova-center.ru/45A2A1E/B5F0755">Verdict for distribution of anti-Semtic leaflets under part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred). One person sentenced to 1 year of suspended imprisonment.

May 26, 2008, Kazan. Verdict against 6 members of Tatar regional department of :Russian National Unity; (RNE) under art. 282.2 (organization of and participation in the activities of a public association which was doomed extremist), art. 282.1 (creation of and participation in an extremist association), 282 (incitement of ethnic hatred), 280 (public calls to extremist activities), 163 (extortion), 223 (illegal manufacture of weapon), 222 (illegal purchasing of weapon), 213 (hooliganism), 150 (involvement of a minor in a crime). 5 people were sentenced to prison terms from 1,5 to 7 years, including one person with an injunction of working as a journalist. One person sentenced to 4 years of suspended imprisonment.

May 27, 2008, Voronezh. Verdict against one of the leaders of National Socialist Society of Dmitry Rumyantsev under part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred). One person sentenced to 1 year of suspended imprisonment.

May 29, 2008, Lipetsk. Verdict for creation of a neo-nazi website. One person sentenced to a 20 thousand Rubles fine.

June 4, 2008, Akhtubinsk (Astrakhan region). Verdict against one of the activists of the local movement :K Bogoderzhaviu; under part 1 art. 282.1 (creation of an extremist society) and paragraph :c; part 2 art. 282 (incitement to ethnic hatred committed in a group). One person sentenced to 2 years of suspended imprisonment and 3 years of injunction of performing certain activities.

June 30, 2008, Blagoveshchensk. Verdict against activists of Amur department of :Soyuz Russkogo Naroda; art. 282.1 (creation of an extremist society) and art. 282 (incitement to hatred). One person sentenced to 3 years of imprisonment, 2 people got suspended sentences.

July, 2008, Alexandrov (Vladimir region). Verdict for nationalistic statements on an Internet forum under art. 282 (incitement to hatred). One person sentenced to a 54 thousand of Rubles fine.

July 14, 2008, Krasnodar region. Verdict for nationalistic statements on Kuban.ru forum under part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred). One person sentenced to 100 hours of compulsory labor.

July 21, 2008, Bryansk. Verdict for distribution of an anti-Semitic film under part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred). One person sentenced to an 25 thousand Rubles fine.

July 24, 2008, Volgodonsk (Rostov region). Verdict for a mass sending of anti-Russian sms messages under part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred). One person sentenced to 1 year of suspended imprisonment.

August 13, 2008, Ukhta (Komi republic). Verdict for making a mannequin with an offensive nationalistic inscription and a hoax explosive device under part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred). One person sentenced to 20 hours of compulsory labor.

August 21, 2008, Stavropolsky Krai. Verdict against a chief of one of the police stations under paragraph :b; part 2 art. 282 (incitement to ethnic hatred with abuse of official position). One person sentenced to 1 year of penal colony settlement.

August 27, 2008, Boksitogorsk (Leningrad region). Verdict against a policeman for creation of a neo-nazi website under part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred) and part 1 art. 222 (illegal weapon storage). One person sentenced to 2,5 years of imprisonment.

Augus 29, 2008, Blagoveshchensk. Verdict for publishing and distributing nationalistic newspapers under part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred). One person sentenced to 1 year of penal colony settlement.

September, 2008, Miass (Chelyabinsk region). Verdict for neo-nazi graffiti. It is unknown what the charges were, but the hate motive was admitted by the court. One teenager was convicted, but released.

September 15, 2008, Ulyanovsk. Verdict for an attack on a local Jewish center under part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred), part 1 art. 119 (threats of death or severe bodily harm), part 1 art. 318 (violence against a representative of authorities). One person sentenced to 3 years of imprisonment, 2 people sentenced to compulsory labor and one person got a 1 year of suspended sentence.

September 16, 2008, Veliky Novgorod. Verdict for posting a video with a double murder on the Web under part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred). One person sentenced to 170 hours of compulsory labor. The film was doomed for being extremist.

September 29, 2008, Nenets Autonomous Okrug. Verdict for organizing racist manifestations against working migrants under part 3 art. 212 (calls to mass disorders and violence). According to some data, the court admitted the hate motive. One person was sentenced to 1,5 years of imprisonment.

October, 2008 г., Akhtubinsk (Astrakhan region). Verdict against activists of :K Bogoderzhaviu; movement under art. 282.1 (creation of an extremist society) and part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred). 3 people sentenced to terms of imprisonment from 1 to 3,5 years.

October 13, 2008, St. Petersburg. Verdict against Yury Belyaev, the leader of :Partiya Svobody; (:Freedom Party;) under part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred). He was sentenced to 6 months of penal colony settlement.

October 28, 2008, Magnitogorsk, (Chelyabinsk region). Verdict for publishing and distributing of nationalistic leaflets under part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred). One person sentenced to 7 months of compulsory labor.

October 28, 2008, Veliky Novgorod. Verdict for spreading of neo-nazi videos on the Internet under part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred). One person sentenced to 60 hours of compulsory labor. Videos were doomed for being extremist.

October, 2008, Barnaul. Verdict for posting extremist materials on the Internet under part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred) and art. 319 (public offense of a representative of the authorities while fulfilling his official duty). One person sentenced to 1 year of penal colony settlement.

December, 2008,Penza. Verdict for nationalistic statements on the Web forums under art. 282 (incitement to hatred). One person sentenced to 1,5 years of imprisonment.

December 9, 2008, Petrozavodsk. Verdict for postig racist meterials on the Web under art. 282 (incitement to hatred). One person sentenced to 1 year of suspended imprisonment.

December 22, 2008, Moscow. Verdict against football fans for anti-Semitic actions under part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred). Three people sentenced to suspended terms of imprisonment from 0,5 to 1 year.

December 30, 2008, Ukhta (Komi republic). Verdict for distributing an anti-Semitic film under part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred). One person sentenced to 90 hours of compulsory labor.

Verdicts for hate motivated vandalism

February 22, 2008, Izhevsk. Verdict for repeated contamination of the local Jewish community center under part 1 art. 282 (incitement to hatred) and part 2 art. 214 (hate motivated vandalism). One person sentenced to 3 years of suspended imprisonment.

September 1, 2008, Nizhny Novgorod. Verdict for repeated acts of vandalism at a graveyard under part 2 art. 244 (hate motivated annihilation or damage to graveyards). One person sentenced to 2,5 years of suspended imprisonment.