Human Rights Violations in Russia
Please read this important message about hate-crimes against non-Slavic peoples that are currently being committed in Russia, and what you can do to help.
From AndreyBoskhomdzhiev, April 22, 2010:
"Is the world paying anyattention to the hate-crimes in Russiaagainst non-Slavic peoples, even those who are Russian citizens? Ihave not seen any news in the American press about the recent murders of Kalymkpeople (Citizens of Russia from the Kalmykrepublic in the south). Yesterday, April 21st, Kalmyk young people bravely began acts of civildisobedience to tell the world what is happening and I want to help them. I am a Russian Kalmyk, AndreyBoskhomdzhiev, a graduate student in Massachusetts,and follow the news from home as well as from official Russian websites. The most recent murder of a Kalmyk young man,Dolgan Nikeev, has been acknowledged by the government on its website inRussian, but is not included in the same website’s English languagepage.
Because of so many victims andthe silence of government on acts of xenophobia, Kalmykyoung people in Kalmykia started civil disobedience days on April 21st. Today will be a memorial services for the 22 year old student DolganNikeev killed by Russian “Nazis” in Moscow. In the recent series ofattacks, Russian Nazis celebrated Hitler’s birthday with a crimespree. According to Russian news sources, several people were killedin the attacks on April 20 2010. Among them was Dolgan Nikeev, a Russiancitizen, a Kalmyk 22-year old student at Moscow University. He was stabbed to death and his Kalmyk friendwas also seriously injured. The other person wounded was an Arab who wasattacked by 10 people with knives. He is in critical condition. As reported in the mainRussian newspaper site, found here.
Earlier this year, Russian news acknowledged one morecase, the murder of 16 year old Kalmyk, a first-year college student in Moscow. He wasstabbed by Russian nationalists on January 12, 2009. Although it is notthe first case of attacks on Kalmyks, the official news has admittedand issued statements to the press only for two cases (other one on march23 2008 when 24 -year Kalmyk girl was stabbed to death right next to the storein Moscow). Other cases were never published or admitted, among them the murder of mycousin on the Moscowsubway in 2007. There is a high increase in racism in Russia lately, and as result manynon Slavic victims, (even though they are citizens of Russia). http://www.interfax.ru/society/news.asp?id=56244 I hope you can pay attention to this news. Please contact me if I can help. You can contact me, AndreyBoskhomdzhiev, for more information at this email: aboskhom@larp.umass.eduor by phone at 413-559-1251.
Sincerely,
AndreyBoskhomdhziev
What are actions that you can take?
1) Send this information to your newspaper and ask that it be covered;
2) Send a letter to the SOVA Center supporting their call forgovernment action against anti-Slav violence in Russia, and read SOVAs reports on nationalism and xenophobia here.
(Photo courtesy of flickr user squigglycircle, shared under a creative commons license.)