Human Rights Conference, 5 July: the position, expressed on the problems of racism, xenophobia and freedom of conscience

The all-Russian conference :Human Rights in Russia in the Year of Russia's Chairmanship in the G8 and the Council of Europe Committee of Ministers; (organized with the assistance of SOVA) has adopted an address (Word document) to the leaders of the G8 countries.

The address has an appendix :Brief overview of human rights problems in Russia and recommendations;, which covers a very wide range of problems. Here we publish the parts concerning religion in the society, xenophobia and counteraction to it:

Xenophobia and Racist Violence, Freedom of Conscience

Russia's legal system lacks effective mechanisms to counteract racial discrimination. In many cases, authorities practice racial discrimination against certain groups (such as Roma, Chechens outside Chechnya, and some ethnicities in Krasnodar Krai). Other serious concerns include discriminatory treatment of ethnic minorities and foreigners, and widespread racial profiling by police.

Massive ethnic xenophobia fuels political ethno-nationalist movements and hate crime. Nationalist propaganda is increasingly explicit, racist offences are more numerous and cruel, and their geography expands. On the other hand, virtual impunity of nationalist rhetoric and a lack of adequate measures to stop racist violence further legitimize ethno-nationalism in the public mentality.

The state's inability to counteract these catastrophic trends is not due to absence of tough legislation, but rather to poor performance of police, who often share the racial prejudice. We cannot deny that the state takes notice of the growing ethno-religious xenophobia, but authorities at all levels increasingly use it to advance an entirely different agenda - i.e. to limit civil rights and liberties. By doing so, they discredit the emerging anti-racist campaign and undermine an effective response to particularly threatening forms of xenophobia.

In contrast, anti-extremist, anti-fascist rhetoric and legislation are increasingly used to suppress independent media, civil and political activists, and become a key instrument of government's pressure against society.

In violation of the freedom of conscience, authorities selectively target religious groups which they perceive as :non-traditional.; In most regions, local governments interfere with the activity of religious organizations through discriminatory treatment of certain religious associations, restricting the Roman Catholic parishes as well as Protestant and other faith-based communities in the performance of their service and mission. Religious denominations face particular difficulties in exercising their property rights. "Non-traditional; religions are also targeted by negative media campaigns, which frequently disseminate distorted, biased information. This non-legal classification of religions into "traditional" and "non-traditional" breeds religious xenophobia. Increasing violence and vandalism fueled by religious intolerance cause grave concerns.

Recommendations
We support a program proposed by the Russian Anti-Fascist Front established on 22 June 2006, and insist that:

• the Russian Government must seriously consider the advice, offered on many occasions, concerning ways to counteract racism, xenophobia and discrimination in the law enforcement, education, mass media, etc.;

• the Russian Government must recognize the existence of ethnic discrimination in Russia and encourage effective application of existing anti-discrimination provisions;

• the Russian Government must immediately initiate the drafting of anti-discrimination legislation, involving experts of human rights groups;

• the Russian Government must ratify international instruments against discrimination, including the 12th Protocol to the European Convention on Human Rights, establishing liability of public officials for discrimination;

• Russia must immediately abandon the idea and practice of toughening legal provisions against extremism. Even the existing Law on Counteracting Extremist Activity is so repressive that it cannot and should not be applied in full. In the current situation of escalating massive xenophobia, it is preferable to suppress and punish only the most dangerous, violent acts, calls to violence and discrimination, and related organizing;

• the Russian Government must consistently and explicitly condemn any attempts to use anti-extremist legislation inconsistently with its purpose, i.e. against civil society activists and independent media.

We urge Russia's G8 partners not only to support the Russian Government in efforts to combat racism and racial discrimination, but also to insist that the Russian laws and practices in this sphere are aligned with international obligations, both in terms of prohibiting various forms of discrimination, and in terms of protecting civil rights while suppressing racism and hate speech.

Persecution of Moslems and the Fight against Terrorism

Starting in the autumn of 2004, Russian authorities have used the pretext of "fighting Islamic extremism and terrorism; to target members of various faith communities with fabricated criminal prosecutions. Not limited to turbulent regions of the North Caucasus, prosecutions based on falsified evidence also take place in the Central Russia, the Volga region, and Siberia. In contravention of Russia's international obligations, authorities criminalize and prosecute expression of views on the social order, or possession of religious literature by Russian Moslems.

A number of recently adopted legal provisions against terrorism and extremism also cause grave concern - in particular, the vagueness of terminology, such as "involvement" in, or :assistance; to terrorism and extremism, allowing their application against a broad category of believers or, indeed, against any critic of abusive anti-terrorist operations or official anti-terrorist policies. The current procedure for finding certain groups to be terrorist contravenes Russia's human rights obligations, as the government's opponents are not only denied the opportunity to participate in relevant judicial hearings, but cannot even access the text of such judgments or appeal them in court.

We find it alarming that the Russian authorities refuse to investigate the abductions of Uzbeks living in Russia to smuggle them back to Uzbekistan where they face charges of Islamic extremism.

Recommendations
G8 partners should urge Russia to align its anti-terrorist and anti-extremist legislation with its international human rights obligations, while existing judgments based on such laws in the so-called :Islamic extremism; cases must also be reviewed in the light of the said international obligations. Cooperation with other countries' security agencies must be legally regulated.