No ethnic crime in Russia remains untrammeled

2008-07-19 11:35:00

ArmInfo. No ethnic crime in Russia remains untrammeled since any fact
of xenophobia is investigated, Solicitor General of RF Yevgeny
Zabarchuk told ArmInfo during his unofficial visit to Armenia. ‘We pay
special attention to any display of nationalism and racism and respond
to and investigate every such case’, he said.

Y. Zabarchuk said the criminal code has already been amended to toughen
the responsibility for racial and ethnic crimes. Relevant divisions are
operating at the RF Prosecutor General’s Office and at other structures
and the work is coordinated.

‘I would not say there is splash of nationalism against Armenians in
Russia. I would call the developments as display of intolerance among
youth. It is more characteristic to St. Petersburg and Moscow. These
are two cities with many problems’, he said. RF Solicitor General
underlined that a series of operations conducted in St. Petersburg
resulted in arrests and proceedings on facts of nationalism. Y.
Zabarchuk outlined the great difference between the militia and
judicial assessment of the developments. ‘It is clear that militia
tries to evade responsibility and soften the importance of incidents,
which is characteristic of all the law-enforcement agencies’, he said.

By data of All-Russian Public Opinion Research Center (VCIOM) in 2004
respondents named mostly Caucasian among the peoples arousing
displeasure and bewilderment: Chechens (14.8% of the polled),
Azerbaijanis (5.1%), Armenians (4.1%), Caucasians in general (6.0%), as
well as Szgany (5.1%) and Jews (2.5%). Sociologists say the situation
has not much changed since 2004.