Whatever the people enjoy... The state must stop playing on the xenophobic feelings of citizens

The fight against illegal migration is getting hotter political topic. Parliamentary parties compete in numbers anti-immigrant bills submitted to the Duma. They are not far behind some opposition politicians. So, Alexei Navalny started collecting signatures for the introduction of a visa regime with the CIS countries. At the same time, no one speaks of the need to combat xenophobia and nationalism among indigenous population. What this can lead to, in an interview with Profile says the director of the Information and Analytical Center "Sova" Alexander Verkhovsky.

Profile : Alexander Markovich, can you name the riots that took place in Biryulyovo a manifestation of nationalism? Or is it like is it customary to say, "a conflict on a domestic basis"?

Verkhovsky : Unequivocally answer this question it is forbidden. On the one hand, the situation around the local vegetable warehouse really criminal. Therefore, I think that it is not only about themselves immigrant workers who work at this base, but also in crime, that revolves around her. This is a serious problem for the residents of the area, and they complained about it. But on the other hand, without nationalists here, of course it didn't work out. After all, on Saturday everything went as usual. Residents protested, accused the police officer of not doing anything. investigates. But already on Sunday, people began to arrive in this area of ​​Moscow. nationalists who arranged a meeting through social networks. AND it was they who, on Sunday, October 13, pushed the crowd to mass riots and led them.

Profile : During the recent election campaign mayor of the capital, the topic of combating illegal migration was one of the main. Did this somehow affect the inhabitants of Biryulyovo?

Verkhovsky : I suspect that if it wasn't for this campaigns by the authorities, when migrants were led in columns through the streets, like prisoners of war during the war, the events in Biryulyovo would not have happened. Many citizens perceived the numerous anti-migrant initiatives as tacit permission to attack migrants. And although the Moscow authorities, of course, such a message was not consciously sent to anyone, but the level “migrantophobia” in Moscow is quite large, so a hint was enough. More before the fight at the market in Matveevskoye and mass roundups of migrants throughout Moscow research holding "Romir" conducted a survey. It turned out that with the statement “the Russian people should play a leading role in the Russian state" agreed 95% of Muscovites, and the slogan "Russia for the Russians" supported by 70% of the capital's residents. Another 73% of respondents supported the slogan "Stop feeding the Caucasus."

Profile : When you read news feeds, maybe seem that the number of ethnic conflicts began increase in the last few years. This is true?

Verkhovsky : Not exactly. It's not about conflict, it's about about organized attacks. Behind them are usually neo-Nazi groups, which in their modern form began to appear in Russia in mid 90s. In the early 2000s, they already attacked the markets and often killed people. But oddly enough, their actions of politics and law enforcement officers did not pay any attention for many years. The Interior Ministry assured that pogroms are everyday fights, and not neo-Nazis attack, but football fans or just hooligans. We have watched over several years the number of racist killings and beatings every year increased, and sentences perpetrators were single. Yes, in In 2004, nationalists killed 50 and wounded 219 people. However, there were found guilty of violence or murder motivated by ethnic and racial hatred and only 9 people were convicted!

Profile : Why did the law enforcement agencies ignore this for so long?

Verkhovsky : I think just because of laziness. After all investigating organized attacks in the markets is not easy. All changed only after the events in Kondopoga in 2006, as a result of understanding of which a special department was created in the Ministry of Internal Affairs to combat extremism. Then the number of sent to jail aggressive neo-Nazis grew to several hundred people.

Profile : Are nationalist groups created where there is a problem of illegal migration?

Verkhovsky : Not at all. Number of migrants in general correlates little with the growth of nationalism in a particular region. Even where there are no and were no strangers, they appeared and appear nationalist groups. To do this, young people need only read some nationalistic literature. And lately there was a kind of competition between the authorities and these groups for xenophobic majority. According to the survey, almost half citizens and more than 50% of Muscovites would support an extreme measure - mass deportation of people of other nationalities. As a result, populist actions mass capture of illegal migrants occurred in many regions. AND, by the way, even where there were no elections.

Profile : So far for participating in the riots in Biryulyovo only three people were arrested (at the time of submission of the material. - "Profile"), they are accused of hooliganism. Doesn't this mean that the government connives nationalist citizens?

Verkhovsky : Such a thought comes to mind. But now it would be more correct to wait for the final decision of the court. Here a comparison with Bolotnaya suggests itself. Events on the Bolotnaya authorities were expected, and all decisions were made in advance. Both the police and the Investigative The committee had no doubts about what to do with the suspects. Everything was already decided. And the events in Biryulyovo were sudden. And whatever said the employees of the ICR, the qualification of the guilt of the rioters in Biryulyovo is a political issue that is now being resolved somewhere in political areas. I'm sure the authorities will decide how much people to plant and how to qualify their actions. And apparently this the issue has not yet been resolved. Therefore, all decisions are now made at a minimum: in hot pursuit, 370 people were detained, all were rewritten, photographed, questioned, released and filed a case of hooliganism. This the article allows you to conduct any investigative actions and conduct searches at least every second inhabitant of Biryulyovo, but as for serious sanctions, it is obvious that everyone is waiting for a serious political decision.

Profile : The question is, is the government ready to upset the nationalist voters?

Verkhovsky : Exactly. The fact is that most Russians have some sympathy for those who went out on the street in order to express their protest in this way. From what kind of sentence will be handed down largely depends on what message will send power to society - or a sentence against the instigators unrest will be conditional, as in Kondopoga, or, conversely, tough. So far this is not clear. The authorities are afraid of such riots. But worth it fear that violence as a method of expressing one's xenophobic emotions will spread widely, go beyond the narrow circle radical nationalists and take over ordinary people who today peacefully sitting at home, and tomorrow they will kick any passer-by with "wrong" appearance. When one person out of a thousand does this, the process can still be stopped, but when one person from hundred, it is almost impossible.

Profile : Oppositionist Alexei Navalny gathers now signatures under the bill on the introduction of a visa regime with countries CIS. In your opinion, the visa regime will reduce the intensity of xenophobic sentiments in Russian society?

Verkhovsky : No. For those who do not like people from the Middle Asia and Transcaucasia, in fact, it doesn’t matter if they walk the streets with with or without visas. And the authorities are unlikely to agree to this. First, it's impossible even imagine how you can catch millions of CIS citizens in Russia and send them all to their homeland for visas. Secondly, many former citizens of the CIS countries are already citizens of Russia. Thirdly, in order to introduce visas, the Kremlin needs to abandon the Eurasian project. AND fourthly, what to do with the Russians who still live in the CIS countries? Their also allowed to enter Russia on visas? Moreover, one must not forget that the main object of xenophobic emotions of the majority are people from the Northern Caucasus, that is, our fellow citizens. They take a sad second place among the victims of racist attacks. Any survey shows that on the first place among the Russians is hostility to the gypsies, and in the second - to people from North Caucasus.

Profile : Do you observe the reverse process - aggressive nationalism on the part of Caucasians against Russians?

Verkhovsky : Of course. A few years ago in Moscow Caucasian youth groups appeared, which even stylistically copied neo-Nazis, but they were few in number. Wider it is impossible to create a nationalist movement: it is not clear how to unite - on ethnic grounds or to all immigrants from the Caucasus. Ethnic consolidation here, in the metropolis, does not work well in reality. deed. Rather, we can expect a union according to the mirror principle attitude to pressure: we are discriminated against as “Caucasians”, in response we and unite. And there have been attempts. Everyone, probably, saw the slogans "Caucasus - force!".

Profile : Can religion become a factor of consolidation?

Verkhovsky : In 2007, during a fight on Staraya square between the Caucasians and the fans were the first to shout in unison "Allah Akbar!”, although, as it turned out later, half of them were Armenians. They just had to shout something when they went to fight. But such the method of consolidation is still too unstable.

Profile : Does the religious motive play any role in the rejection of people from Muslim countries and regions by the indigenous population?

Verkhovsky : In Central Russia, for example, a woman sometimes they can hit a Muslim headscarf on their heads. Now after terrorist attack in Volgograd, I think women in headscarves will again have problems. But so far this is not the main factor. Nationalism in Russia is not religious, but purely racial.

Profile : What is needed in order to reduce interethnic tension?

Verkhovsky : By and large, the state should stop playing on the xenophobic feelings of citizens, even if such a game politically beneficial. Because while the state still has authority in the eyes of the majority, sooner or later people will agree with the persistent Kremlin policy. But for this we must first recognize that migrants it is necessary not to send, but to integrate. In the meantime, we sound almost entirely prohibitive ideas.

Sources

• WHATEVER THE PEOPLE AMIDE ... The state must stop playing on the xenophobic feelings of citizens // Profile. 2013. October 28.