Anti-Romani Racism in Russian Local Elections
05 December 2003
On December 5, 2003, the European Roma Rights Center (ERRC) sent a letter to Ms Tatjana Merzljakova, Commissioner on Human Rights of the Sverdlovsk County, Russia, expressing concern about intense anti-Romani racism accompanying the local elections campaign in the city of Jekaterinburg, Russia. The ERRC was alarmed to learn that one of the candidates for mayor of Jekaterinburg campaigned for the demolition of the local Romani settlement. Anti-Romani attitudes have been fostered also through hate-mongering and stigmatising publications in the local media. The ERRC urged the Commissioner to denounce publicly manifestations of racial intolerance toward Roma and appeal to the media to observe the principles of tolerant portrayal of minorities. The text of the ERRC letter follows:
Dear Ms Merzljakova,
The European Roma Rights Center (ERRC), an international public interest law organisation that monitors the human rights situation of Roma and provides legal defence to Romani victims of human rights abuse, is concerned about calls to hatred, in particular, directed against Roma ("Gypsies"), and about instances of incitement to racial hatred in the Sverdlovsk County of Russia.
The Jekaterinburg-based Romani organisation Roma Ural provided the ERRC with newspaper articles taken from the local newspaper Uralskije Vesti (Ural news), which overtly called on people living in Jekaterinburg to support an initiative put forward by one of the candidates for the position of the mayor of Jekaterinburg, Mr O. Gusev, to demolish the "Gypsy settlement".
On November 13, 2003, in an opinion poll conducted by the newspaper, the following question was put: "Do you support the initiative put forward by Mr O. Gusev concerning the liquidation of the Gypsy settlement and building on its place municipal blocks of flats for dwellers of the city?"
In another issue of the same newspaper, in an article entitled "Shacks and palaces", Roma were identified as "thieves", "deceivers", and "drug dealers" (Uralskije Vesti, No 34, November 20, 2003). The fact that all this takes place as part of an election campaign increases the tension in society.
The ERRC believes that such publications incite to racial hatred and contribute to a climate of intolerance towards Roma. The ERRC would like to remind you that racism has been a subject of serious international concern which, in particular, is embodied in the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, of which Russia is a signatory state.
Dear Ms Merzljakova!
The ERRC urges you to publicly condemn the increasing number of various manifestations of racial intolerance in the media as well as to call upon journalists to refrain in their work from inciting anti-Romani sentiments.
Sincerely,
Dimitrina Petrova
Executive Director
European Roma Rights Center
Persons wishing to express similar concerns are urged to contact:
Ms T. Merzljakova, Commissioner on Human Rights of the Sverdlovsk County
Oktyabrskaya square 1
Ekaterinburg 620031
Russia
Fax +7 (3432) 178872
E-mail:
