On March 2, 2013, UCSJ President Larry Lerner and International Director Leonid Stonov had an hour long Skype discussion with the Chair of the Moscow Helsinki Group (MHG), Luidmilla Alexeeva. Alexeeva is a long-term partner of UCSJ. She arrived in the US on March 1, 2013, after being invited by Senator Benjamin Cardin, chairman of the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE), also known as the U.S. Helsinki Commission. During her stay in the US, Alexeeva will have meetings with many key members of Congress and the human rights community.

During the Skype conference, Alexeeva described the severely deteriorating human rights situation in Russia. She cited the detention and arrests of participants of peaceful meetings and rallies and spoke about the many difficulties that NGOs face today. These range from issues with registration to the regular tortures occurring in police stations and jails. In addition, she described other problems such as the censorship and control of information, increasing extremism and the threat of the new “agents of influence” law that can prevent NGOs from receiving foreign grants.

MHG continues to support UCSJ’s monitoring of antisemitism and xenophobia, as well as our advocacy for the victims of such abuse. MHG permits us to use their network for this monitoring. Alexeeva also stressed that the West needs to improve its collection and dissemination of information regarding mass violence against human rights workers in Russia. UCSJ promised to help with this issue.

UCSJ and Alexeeva also spoke about the Crisis Support Center that we run in our office in Washington D.C. The CSG works to help threatened members of the human rights movements.

Finally, the UCSJ leadership congratulated Alexeeva on her nomination for the Nobel Peace Price (together with Belarusian activist and political prisoner Ales Belyatski) and expressed full support for this nomination.

The gravestones will be transferred to the only remaining Jewish cemetery in the area.

Below is a translation of the letter Meylakh Sheykhet sent to the mayor of Lviv regarding a variety of issues involving Jewish cultural preservation, including the use of headstones as pavement:

Mr. Andriy Sadovy    

Mayor of Lviv

February 18, 2013

Dear Mr. Sadovy:

In response to your letter dated December 13, 2012 we would like to state the following:

On April 23, 2010 the Lviv City Council Executive Committee issued Decision No. 446 wherein it resolved to carry out the International Design Competition for Sites of Jewish History in Lviv in order to “motivate to reconsider and represent the important places in Lviv connected with the history of the Jewish community as part of a multicultural heritage of the city.”

Decision No. 446 is illegal as it involves land issues for the abovementioned places that can be decided upon exclusively by the elected members of the Lviv City Council.

In addition to the Lviv City Council Executive Committee the following organizers of the International Design Competition for Sites of Jewish History in Lviv were announced at a public hearing: Ukrainian-German project entitled Municipal Development and Rehabilitation of the Old City of Lviv jointly executed by the Lviv City Administration and German Society for International Cooperation GTZ (headquartered at the Center for Urban History of East Central Europe, Bohomoltsya 6 St., Lviv).

Decision No. 446 of the Lviv City Council Executive Committee was adopted in spite of its contents, which stated that the responsibility for the implementation of the competition was assigned to the Executive Committee, but during the public hearing, contrary to this, the responsibility for the competition was assigned to Sofiya Dyak, project coordinator at the Center for Urban History of East Central Europe.

As seen from the text of the Decision, the legal basis of the competition was grounded in the municipal regulations of the Lviv City Council Executive Committee, without providing justification for this decision from relevant substantive law of Ukraine and international agreements, including the Agreement with UNESCO for the preservation of Ensemble of the Historic City Centre that had been inscribed in the World Heritage List.

The Lviv City Council Executive Committee breached the competition procedure in several ways:

1. The pre-requisite conditions of the competition were not agreed with the Department of Cultural Heritage of the Lviv Regional State Administration, the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine and the UNESCO World Heritage Centre in Paris, France and with the Jewish community of Lviv and the world.
2. Contrary to the Decision No. 446 the Lviv City Council Executive Committee removed itself from liability for the competition, delegating the powers to a foreign organization that has not been designated by any authority in the Decision No. 446.
3. The requirements mentioned in points 1.1 … 1.4,2.2 … 2.3, 3.1 … 3.15 of the Decree No. 231/806 dated November 30, 2004 by the State Committee of Ukraine on Building and Architecture at the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine were not kept.
4. The Law of Ukraine on Architectural Activity as well as the Regulation for the Organization of Competitions was not taken into account in the Decision No. 466 of the Lviv City Council Executive Committee.
5. The competition lacks important provisions:

5.1     Restrictions according to the special status of areas inscribed into the UNESCO World Heritage List.

5.2     Special status of the land of burial sites at the Old Jewish Cemetery (Krakivsky market), places of mass execution by the German Nazis and the territory of the Yanivsky Camp, as recognized by the laws of Ukraine, international agreements between Ukraine and the United States as of March 4, 1994, the Vienna Convention 1969.

At the public hearing, the members of the City Council and Executive Committee, the Ukrainian community leaders, and representatives of the Jewish community of Lviv stated that the international competition and the way it was organized did not comply with the laws of Ukraine and international agreements, the interests of preserving the Jewish heritage in Lviv. It was stated that this competition had become a misrepresentation of historical truth, illegal appropriation of land, illegal granting of land to be used for the trading lots of the Krakivsky market and to build a hotel on Fedorova St. – the land, which belongs to the Lviv community – through unlawful delegation of crucial powers to foreign organizations, namely the German Technical Cooperation GTZ, project for the Municipal Development and Rehabilitation of the Old City of Lviv (Center for Urban History of East Central Europe, Bohomoltsya 6 St., Lviv).

The question of proper preservation of the cultural heritage is regulated not only by the above-mentioned provisions of the substantive law and international agreements, but also by the Protocol of 1996 following a meeting in Lviv, recommendations of USAID and the Government of Ukraine Decree dated December 21, 2010 and the Vienna Convention 1969.

However, despite the need for implementation of the grant of the U.S. Embassy, ​​the Lviv City Council organized a controversial competition, disregarding the existence of the U.S. Ambassador grant for scientific research in this same area of ​​the medieval Jewish district of Lviv on 23-27, 28 Fedorova Street. Thus, the Lviv City Council turned a blind eye to the ongoing international cooperation in the project under the US Ambassador Grant, ​​abandoning substantial assistance to the city of Lviv in the study and restoration of the medieval Jewish Quarter, and ignoring the decision of the Government of Ukraine and the request of UNESCO.

In view of the activities of the German Technical Cooperation GTZ, project for the Municipal Development and Rehabilitation of the Old City of Lviv and Center for Urban History of East Central Europe, at 6 Bohomoltsya St., Lviv – the decision to delegate them the powers of the Lviv City Council Executive Committee has translated into a conflict of interests – a situation that contradicts the Rule of Law in Ukraine and its international agreements.

The Lviv City Council Executive Committee continues to ignore the need to honor the memorial places of the Jewish people in Lviv and the surrounding, tortured by the Holocaust, namely:

1. The Old Jewish Cemetery continues to be used at the behest of the Lviv City Council Executive Committee as a market place – the Krakivsky market – despite the status of this land as a burial site that forbids privatization and misuse of such land. Moreover, the Lviv City Council Executive Committee ignores the Decree of the Central Government dated December 21, 2012 – issued by the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine concerning the inscription of the Old Jewish Cemetery in Lviv into the National Register of Monuments of Ukraine as a historical monument of local importance.
2. The Lviv City Council Executive Committee continues to defend in court the illegal construction of the hotel on the Fedorova St. 23-28, ignoring legislation and international agreements of Ukraine, requirements of the World Heritage Centre in Paris, ignoring the unique surviving synagogue building complex Turei Zahav, built during 16^th -18^th century and not facilitating their authentic preservation. The construction of the hotel, if it were to happen, would ruin – with its physical weight, communication requirements and historical architectural disharmony – the historic environment and the remnants of Turei Zahav (Golden Rose) Synagogue.
3. At the Citadel – Concentration Camp Shtalag-328, the site of the Tower of Death, where the German Nazis killed 20 000 Jews, among many other POWs from the countries of the anti-Hitler coalition – now operates a fashionable restaurant and other recreational facilities, disharmonious to this memorial site.
4. Regarding the mass graves in Bilohorshcha, Lysynychi, Vynnyky, Brukhovychi, in Lviv on Pasichna Street – the Lviv City Council Executive Committee did not give any positive response to the documents submitted by our organization.
5. With the acquiescence of the Lviv City Council Executive Committee there is an anti-Semitic “Jewish tavern” called At the Golden Rose and an anti-Ukrainian restaurant Kryivka.

Your references to the untidiness of the territory of the local Jewish history only emphasize the idleness on the part of the Lviv City Council Executive Committee in ensuring proper care for the historic sites (which does not cost so much) because timely and proper cleaning, monitoring respect for the parking ban on the holy memorial site of the Great Synagogue on Arsenalna square and other areas are part and parcel of the public utility services of the city. Actions of the Lviv City Council Executive Committee must clearly meet all the substantive law of Ukraine and international agreements in the field of preservation of historical and cultural heritage.

Hence we request you to:

1. Consider this letter and provide an answer based on the legislation of Ukraine and international agreements, the requirements of UNESCO.

2. Void the Decision No. 446 dated April 23, 2010 of the Lviv City Council Executive Committee.

Yours faithfully,

Meylakh Sheykhet

Director

The vibrant Jewish culture and the spiritual life of the Ukrainian Jewish community in Lviv, Ukraine, much like elsewhere in the former Soviet Union, had been ruthlessly suppressed by the Nazi and Communist totalitarian dictatorships for many years. At present, there are only a handful of institutions doing what we do – preserving and sharing the wonderful examples of the Ukrainian Jewish culture. That is why it is so important that we carry on this important work and receive the support of people who care. Through field and archival research, exhibitions, lectures, gatherings, conferences and workshops touching upon the various aspects of the Jewish culture, history, and life, we seek to reach out to the wider public in order to highlight the richness and complexity of the Ukrainian Jewish legacy, to rediscover the forgotten local Jewish heritage and to preserve the lasting memory of it.

We welcome your support and invite you to contact us without hesitation so that together we can work on exciting projects for the sake of preserving and promoting the tangible and intangible heritage of humanity.

With very best wishes,

Meylakh Sheykhet

Director, L’viv, Ukraine Bureau

Presentation of UCSJ’s work to preserve Jewish Heritage in Ukraine.

As UCSJ mentioned in our Letter to President Putin on Behalf of Maxim Efimov, Efimov fled from Russia after getting charged by local prosecutors for publishing an article that compared the Orthodox Church to the largest leading political party. In addition to getting charged, his private apartment was searched, his personal belongings seized and the Petrozavodsk City Court issued a decree to put him in a mental hospital by force after a dubious psychiatric examination. After his departure, Efimov was declared to be on the federal wanted list.

In the meantime he had applied for political asylum in many countries, including the U.S., Ireland, Estonia and Sweden. Estonia was the only country to grant it.

Efimov is quoted as writing, “Estonian President Toomas Ilves shook my hand and said that he was happy his country gave me temporary political asylum, since they respect freedom of speech in Estonia.”

During the Occupy actions, nationalist leaders gave a few presentations, while rank-and-file activists were responsible for security, and later on – for kitchen duties and gathering finances. As nationalists gained a more visible and active role, other participants of the Occupy camps attempted to reproach the aggression towards others, mismanagement of the kitchen and of funds and to ban nationalist propaganda, yet to no avail – due to organized opposition from nationalists who in return have proposed to ban “propaganda of liberalism”.

At the same time, it is worthwhile to note, that the participation of nationalists was small, as most autonomous neo-Nazis have ignored the protests, despite the calls from Belov, Demushkin and Daniil Konstantinov, the leader of the League for Defense of Moscow to stop focusing on fighting and killing migrants and antifa and instead entering into the open political struggle.

Party and organization building continued on the far-right. The “Novaya Sila” (New Force) of Vladimir Solovey announced its plans for anti-migrant campaigns in Moscow and St.Petersburg, Krasnodar and Stavropol, against Caucasus and in Siberia and the Far East, against alleged “colonial” policies of the authorities[2]. There were also organized visibility actions in Yekaterinburg, Rostov-on-don and notably in Moscow on May 17^th  with the “Let’s stop migration chaos!” including  participation of a well-known actor Anatoly Pashinin, who might well become the public face of the party.  On June 7^th the party submitted documents for registration.

The “Russkie” (“the Russians”) movement has continued to develop with the participation of infamous Dmitry “Shultz” Bobrov,  the former leader of Shults-88 gang that was banned as extremist for a number of murders committed by its members. It was established that the expert opinions of anthropologist Nikolay Girenko against Shultz-88 were among reasons for his murder in 2004. Bobrov now heads National-socialist initiative, which has launched the creation of its Moscow branch.[3]

The movement “Soprotivlenie” (“Resistance”) of Roman Zencoz also continued developing, notably in Voronezh, where it has organized environmental and healthy lifestyle actions, including “Russian jogging” that has continued to gain popularity.

Apparently, the rapid growth of the movement “Pravye” (more than 108 000 members in the group page Vkontakte, Russian equivalent of Facebook[4]) can also be attributed to the success of “Russian jogging”. The group doesn’t have any prominent leaders or a clear program, but is already noticeable in Moscow and St.Petersburg and at the moment, is preparing a running march Moscow-Minsk-Kyiv. Potentially, it could be quite influential also by recruiting a significant number of young people through sporting events.

The “International association of white political prisoners and prisoners of war” was established to provide support for imprisoned neo-Nazis.[5] Among founders are known ultra-right activist sentenced for life for numerous violent crimes, led by Nikolay Korolev, one of those responsible for the explosion in the Cherkizovskye market on 2006, who has killed 14 and injured over 60 people. It was reported that the Association has become an official branch of the pan-European network of imprisoned neo-Nazis, launched by Anders Breivik nad Korolev was approved by Breivik himself as the head of the branch.[6]

The appointment of Dmitry Rogozin, one of the leaders of the Congress of Russian Communities, into the newly formed Cabinet, has led to increased leverage for the groups associated and allied with the Congress and to new attempts to establish cooperation with the authorities, notably through “Pravo-Konservativny allians” (“Right-Conservative alliance”).

In this connection, it is important to note that the etho-nationalistic approach has apparently prevailed in the official approach to internal policies in regards to various ethnic divisions. The “Council of intra-national relations” was created, to continue the main theses outlined in the controversial article by Putin “Russia: National (Ethnic) Question”.[7]

Initiatives to propose laws that would place bans on “propaganda of homosexuality” have continued. Such bills have already became laws in Ryazan, Arkhangelsk, St.Petersburg, Kostroma and are also on the table in Novosibirsk, Samara, Kirov, Kaliningrad, Krasnoyarsk, Irkutsk, Moscow, as well as on the federal level. The laws are slowly being challenged in courts, yet the courts are likely to side with the legislators (which has already happened in Arkhangelsk). LGBT community has been uniting forces with the Human Rights movement to counteract the laws that clearly curb freedom of expression and lack legal certainty in their definition of “propaganda”. A number of joint initiatives have been discussed at the “Human rights without prejudice”[8] conference, where it was one of the main topics at a round-table, organized by LGBT, human rights, green and leftist groups in Moscow. The Russian LGBT Network, Moscow Helsinki group and international Youth Human Rights Movement have also initiated a joint appeal signed by a number of other organization to the EU-Russia summit pointing out to a number of threats to freedom of expression in Russia, particularly new legislation on assembly, in the case of Pussy-Riot punk band charged with “defaming religious feelings” and penalization of so-called “propaganda of homosexuality”.[9]

Among new development in the review period is a massive fight among Uzbek and Kyrgyz migrants in Moscow, with at least 2 people seriously injured, just before the anniversary of ethnic clashes in the South of Kyrgyzstan in 2010.[10] Although Ferghana.ru news agency reports that such fights are a frequent occasion, it is not often that they are reported by the mainstream media in Russia.[11]

The theme of “ethnic crime” received a new development with a fight on June 5th in Moscow among three football fans and three Chechen young men. Magomed Eldiev and Bekhan Rizvanov were charged with attempt to murder Alexey Usachev, who received multiple knife wounds.[12]  An attempt to detain alleged perpetrators in the Moscow student dormitory where they lived led to clashes among riot police and Chechen students, among which 18 were arrested. The president of Chechnya Ramzan Kadyrov has asked a number of bar attorneys to represent the students,[13] but at the same time has made a public statement that he is concerned with reports of crimes committed by Chechens due to “idle mode of life” and that if they cannot behave they should return to Chechnya.[14] The statement has played into the usual evaluations of such incidents as “interethnic” conflicts.

The meeting was dedicated to a number of problems: xenophobia situation in Ukraine according to the results of 2011, the findings and recommendations of the Fourth ECRI Report on Ukraine, which was released to the public on February 21, as well as on the problem of fighting xenophobia in the context of the UEFA Euro 2012 competition, which is to take place later this year in Ukraine and Poland.

The meeting was opened by the report of UCSJ expert Vyacheslav Likhachev, who presented the 2011 results of the  monitoring of xenophobia in Ukraine. According to data collected by UCSJ, last year saw an increase in hate crime, as well as in the general amount of illegal activity by the radical right. According to Vyacheslav Likhachev, the situation is especially worrying in connection with the UEFA competition soon to take place, as well as in the context of the autumn parliamentary elections. The speaker turned the attention of the representatives of the authorities to the necessity of increasing the efforts to counteract xenophobia, to at least slow the negative trend in this sphere.

The second main speaker was the sociologist Alexei Shestakovsky, who presented the conclusions and recommendations of the latest ECRI report.

The subsequent discussion was moderated by Yana Salahova, a specialist on counteracting racism and xenophobia from the International Organization of Migration representative office. The representatives of the non-governmental organizations and the state authorities discussed particular steps possible aimed to prevent a further worsening of the situation. Special interest was shown in the Ministry of Justice-approved project of a Strategy to Combat Discrimination, which is controversial.

Public authorities have once again shown interest in the problems of nationalism. President Dmitry Medvedev said that the fight against extremism and in particular the opposition to attempts to “play the ethnic card” must be one of the main areas of work for the recently renamed police. In response to the publication of an article by Vladimir Putin, “Russia: the National Question,” the Ministry of Regional Development has prepared a draft concept of the federal program called “Strengthening the unity of the Russian nation and the ethnic and cultural development of the peoples of Russia”.

Also, the Federal Migration Service (FMS) sent the Government a draft of the “Concept of State Migration Policy through 2025″, on the development of which experts have worked for over 10 years. The Concept is based on the necessity of foreign migrants for economic development in Russia. Accordingly, the main objective of migration policy is in the words of Konstantin Romodanovsky, director of the Federal Migration Service, “make sure profit from migration exceeds the costs.”

Questions of migration also came up in the presidential election, despite the lack of pre-election debates and discussions. On February 7, the Prime Minister and presidential candidate Vladimir Putin said that he does not support introducing a visa regime with the republics of the former USSR. Meanwhile, presidential candidate and businessman Mikhail Prokhorov has called for the closure of the borders between Russia and Central Asian countries and the introduction of a visa system.

One reason for the lack of more disagreement among the candidates is that the energies of the opposition were not directed toward candidates but the movement “For Fair Elections” in which the nationalists also took part in meetings on February 4 in at least in 20 cities.

Nationalists also help rallies particular to their interests. A notable event was the public right-wing campaign “Mirzayev must be in prison!” held in four cities, including Moscow and St. Petersburg, on February 18. The reason for organizing these events was the decision of a court to free athlete Rasul Mirzaev, accused of the murder of 19-year-old Ivan Agafonov.

In Moscow, according to various estimates, from 150 to 600 people gathered at the rally, and after its completion, some participants formed a convoy and headed to Manejnaya Square, chanting anti-Caucasian and other slogans and attacking those they passed who were not of Slavic appearance.

Nationalists were further angered by the dismissal of the Supreme Court of the appeal against the life sentencing of Alexei Vojvodin, the leader of the neo-Nazi group that carried out assassinations and attacks on foreigners in St. Petersburg. Specifically, he is charged with organizing the murder of anti-fascist anthropologist Nikolai Girenko in 2004.

In worse news for human rights organizations and LGBT groups, on February 29, deputies of the St. Petersburg Legislative Assembly adopted a bill to ban “the propaganda of homosexuality and pedophilia among minors.” Those who are found promoting homosexual activities among youth will be fined $16,000.

Unfortunately, the governor did not direct his efforts toward preventing violent crime. In February, according to the SOVA Center, as a result of racist and neo-Nazi attacks,  at least 12 people were injured, two of which (a native of Central Asia from St.Peterburg and anti-fascist Nikita Kalinin from Samara) have died. Violent incidents were reported in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Vladimir, Volgograd, Moscow and the Samara regions.

Such extreme actions may be supported by a sizable portion of the Russian people. On the eve of presidential elections the Public Opinion Foundation conducted a study which showed that the slogan “Russia – for Russians” is supported by a minority of respondents (11%). The same number supports the actions of Nazi skinheads (10%).

Still, the Federal list of extremist materials was updated four times. Its number increased from 1074 to 1081 and includes materials from the radical Islamist sites hunafa.com and djamaattakbir.com, leaflets by “Hizb ut-Tahrir”, and the book ”Russian World Order” by science fiction writer Yuri Petuhov.

By Daniil Meshcheryakov, Executive Director of the Moscow Helsinki Group

Politically active groups continued to advocate for a nationalist agenda within the broader protest movement. In recent discussions organized by the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation called “The Nationalist threat in Russia: Trends, Prospects and Countermeasures” the results of 2011 were discussed, including the rise of xenophobia and a decrease in the number of hate crimes due to better law enforcement.

January marked the beginning of the electoral campaign in Russia, and the most important political event was the publication of an article by Prime Minister Vladimir Putin called “Russia: the National Question” in the state newspaper. The caused a strong reaction from the public. The fact that the Prime Minister published an article on this subject shows its importance. Some of the articles provisions may be included in his presidential platform. However, experts doubt their feasibility. There are human rights concerns as well. It includes a proposal to tighten the registration standards for migrants in order to counter the flow of “illegal migrants” and social conflict. Also, despite the recognition of the importance of education in developing adequate attitudes to cultural, ethnic and religious diversity, Putin chose to focus on efforts such as introducing compulsory examination of migrants in the Russian language, Russian history, and Russian culture.

The wave of social activism caused by the falsification of election results in December 2011 has resulted in a number of internal discussions within the civic movement on whether or not to cooperate with the nationalists. They have decided not to. The anti-fascist activists were united in honoring the memory of murdered human rights journalists Stanislav Markelov and Anastasia Baburova in 22 Russian cities. This caused a violent reaction from the neo-Nazis who attacked participants in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Voronezh.

On January 21, a rally of several hundred Moscow football fans was organized to demand the investigation of the attack on the fan of the Spartak football team member Alexey Ershov, who was wounded by Andronick Simonyan, an ethnic Armenian, in September, 2010. The protesters made sure that the case had been sent to court, echoing a similar incident last year. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Putin met with football fans regarding the upcoming World Cup to be held in Russia in 2018 and promised to pay proper attention to the “national question” in Russia.

According to the Sova Center, in January 2012, at least 11 people suffered from racist or neo-Nazi attacks. One native of Azerbaijan was killed and 10 people were assaulted. The federal list of extremist materials, was updated in January four times and seven new items were added to it, including several related to Islamic fundamentalism and a brochure titled “Expansion from the South. Stop it?!”.