Russia: Situation and treatment of ethnic Armenians, particularly in Moscow; availability of state protection (2009-July 2013)

1. Overview

According to RIA Novosti, a Russian news agency that "is partially government-subsidized, but maintains full editorial independence" (RIA Novosti n.d.), the 2010 Census in Russia showed that approximately 0.86 percent of the population are Ethnic Armenians (ibid. 2011).

Freedom House reports that, according to the SOVA Center for Information and Analysis, a non-profit organization based in Moscow that researches nationalism, xenophobia and political radicalism in Russia, among other topics (SOVA n.d.), racially motivated violence has declined between 2009 and 2011 as compared to 2008 (Freedom House 2012, 6).

In contrast, Minority Rights Group International (MRG) notes that radical nationalism and ethnicity-based violence were causes of "concern" throughout 2010, with the most violence occurring in Moscow and the surrounding regions (MRG 2011, 200). In 2011, then President Dmitry Medvedev stated that "[e]thnic discrimination" was a problem across the country, "'not just in a certain republic or a certain territory, in the Caucasus or in central Moscow'" (qtd. in RIA Novosti 5 July 2011).

SOVA Center indicated that in 2012, there was no decline of "[criminal] activity of the ultra-right" compared with 2009, and that there was a rise of "grass-roots violence motivated by xenophobia" (SOVA 26 Apr. 2013). The US Department of State's Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2012 similarly reports that in 2012,

[t]here was a steady rise in societal violence and discrimination against minorities, particularly Roma, persons from the Caucasus and Central Asia, dark-skinned persons, and foreigners. The number of reported hate crimes increased during the year, and skinhead groups and other extreme nationalist organizations fomented racially motivated violence. Racist propaganda remained a problem, although courts continued to convict individuals of using propaganda to incite ethnic hatred. (US 19 Apr. 2013, 46)

Amnesty International (AI) also reports that "[d]iscrimination on grounds such as race, ethnicity, gender, religion or political affiliation remained widespread" in 2012 (AI 2013, 219).

2. Attacks on Armenians in Moscow

Sources report incidents of attacks against Armenians in Moscow, including the following:

In October 2009, an Armenian man was beaten and kicked by a group of people near a subway station in Moscow (SOVA 30 Oct. 2009; Russia 30 Oct. 2012). The victim, who was also stabbed several times with knives, died due to his injuries (ibid.; SOVA 30 Oct. 2009). According to the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation, the crime was committed on "motives of national hatred" (Russia 30 Oct. 2012). Six men were sentenced from 8 to 19 years in prison for a number of ethnically motivated attacks committed by the group (ibid.). The seventh member of the group was "acquitted based on the judgement of the jury" (ibid.).

In September 2010, an Armenian man was shot to death in an apartment in Moscow (SOVA 22 Sept. 2010). An ultra-right group claimed responsibility for his death stating that he was killed in revenge because he had previously attacked a pregnant woman (ibid.). Further information on the incident could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

In 2010, a 17 years old Armenian girl was beaten by a group in the metro (ibid. 30 July 2010). According to SOVA Center, the girl and her family "were so frightened" that they fled the city without making a complaint to the police and without seeking medical help (ibid.).

In February 2011, an Armenian student was stabbed to death (SOVA 17 Feb. 2011). According to SOVA Center, the incident was being investigated in February 2011 (ibid.). Further information on the results of the investigation could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

In June 2013, an Armenian businessman was stabbed to death by a masked person near Lotte Plaza Hotel in Moscow according to the Armenian News Agency ArmenPress (12 June 2013). Further information on the incident could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

Further information on the treatment of ethnic Armenians could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

3. State Protection

Country Reports for 2012 writes that Russian legislation "prohibits discrimination based on nationality. However, government officials at times subjected minorities to discrimination" (US 19 Apr. 2013, 46). Freedom House similarly reports that in 2011, immigrants and ethnic minorities "face[d] governmental and societal discrimination and harassment" (2012, 6).

According to the report of the Russian Federation submitted to the UN Human Rights Council in February 2013, when "an offence is motivated by political, ideological, racial, ethnic or religious hatred or enmity, or by hatred or enmity towards any social group," it is considered to be an "aggravating circumstance" under the Russian Criminal Code (Russia 6 Feb. 2013, para. 34). Human Rights First reports that, according to Article 105(2)(k) of the Criminal Code, a murder "'with a motive of political, ideological, national, racial, religious hatred or enmity or a motive of hate or enmity towards a certain social group' [is] punishable 'by incarceration for eight to twenty years, or by a life term of incarceration or by the death penalty'" (Human Rights First n.d.). Human Rights First further points out that

[o]ther provisions of the Criminal Code that can be applied to violent hate crimes include article 111 (Deliberate infliction of grievous bodily harm), article 112 (Deliberate infliction of moderate bodily harm), article 115 (Deliberate infliction of mild bodily harm), article 116 (Assault), article 117 (Torture), defined as "the causing of physical or psychological suffering through systematic beatings or other violent actions," article 119 (Threatening murder or the infliction of serious bodily harm), and article 150 (Involving a minor in the commission of a crime). (ibid.)

The report of the Russian Federation submitted to the UN Human Rights Council states that members of several dozen criminal groups, engaged in serious crime motivated by ethnic, racial and religious hatred, were prosecuted in 2011 and 2012 (Russia 6 Feb. 2013, para. 39). According to the report, as of September 2012, 19 terrorist and 29 extremist organizations in Russia were banned (ibid., para. 41).

However, AI indicates that "[r]eports of unfair trials were numerous and widespread. A range of court decisions, including those concerning extremism [...], were affected by political considerations" (AI 2013, 220). Human Rights First also reports that, "although dozens of skinheads and neo-Nazi sympathizers have been sentenced to lengthy prison terms in recent years, many others responsible for hate crimes operate with relative impunity" (Human Rights First 18 Mar. 2013). Furthermore,

[t]here is no official data that tracks police responses to crimes with a suspected bias motivation, nor any record of the number of hate crimes brought to court.

As in many other countries, there is widespread underreporting of hate crime by the victims. [...] While cases of racist murders and serious assaults are likely to generate media attention and are tracked by independent monitors like the SOVA Center, the day-to-day, low-level harassment is thought to be widely underreported. (ibid.)

Further information on the state protection available to ethnic Armenians could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

References

Amnesty International (AI). 2013. "Russian Federation." Amnesty International Report 2013: The State of the World's Human Rights. [Accessed 16 July 2013]

ArmenPress. 12 June 2013. "Surveillance Camera Recorded Murder of Armenian Businessman in Moscow." [Accessed 18 July 2013]

Freedom House. 2012. "Russia." Freedom of the World 2012. [Accessed 17 July 2013]

Human Rights First. 18 March 2013. Innokenty Grekov. "2012: 'A Contradictory Year' in Russia's Struggle with Hate Crime." [Accessed 18 July 2013]

_____. N.d. "Hate Crime Report Card - Russia: the Framework of Criminal Law." [Accessed 16 July 2013]

Minority Rights Group International (MRG). 2011. "Russia." By Katalyn Halász and Nurçan Kaya in State of the World's Minorities and Indigenous Peoples 2011: Events of 2010. [Accessed 16 July 2013]

RIA Novosti. 5 July 2011. "Ethnic Discrimination Nationwide Problem - Medvedev." [Accessed 19 July 2013]

_____. 2011. "Russian Census 2010 Final Results." [Accessed 22 July 2013]

_____. N.d. "The Russian News & Information Agency RIA Novosti." [Accessed 22 July 2013]

Russia. 6 February 2013. National Report Submitted in Accordance with Paragraph 5 of the Annex to Human Rights Council Resolution 16/21* Russian Federation. (A/HRC/WG.6/16/RUS/1)

[Accessed 15 July 2013]

_____. 30 October 2012. The Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation. "In Moscow Six Young People Found Guilty of a Number of Especially Serious Nationality Hatred Motivated Offences." [Accessed 12 July 2013]

SOVA Center for Information and Analysis (SOVA). 26 April 2013. The Ultra-Right on the Streets with a Pro-Democracy Poster in Their Hands or a Knife in Their Pocket: Xenophobia and Radical Nationalism in Russia, and Efforts to Counteract Them in 2012. [Accessed 16 July 2013]

_____. 17 February 2011. "V Moskve ubit urozhenets Armenii". [Accessed 16 July 2013]

_____. 22 September 2010. "Ul'trapravaia gruppirovka vzyala na sebia otvetstvennost' za ubiistvo armianina." [Accessed 16 July 2013]

_____. 30 July 2010. Galina Kozhevnikova. "Manifestations of Radical Nationalism and Efforts to Counteract it in Russia during the First Half of 2010." [Accessed 19 July 2013]

_____. 30 October 2009. "V Moske ubit urozhenets Armenii." [Accessed 16 July 2013]

_____. N.d. "About." [Accessed 19 July 2013]

United States (US). 19 April 2013. Department of State. "Russia." Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2012. [Accessed 15 July 2013]

Additional Sources Consulted

Oral sources: Attempts to contact representatives of the following organizations were unsuccessful: Anti-discrimination Centre Memorial; Russia - Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation, Ministry of Justice.

Internet sites, including: Anti-discrimination Centre Memorial; ARKA New Agency; Arminfo; British Broadcasting Corporation; Centre for Eastern Studies; Coalition Against Hate; Coalition of Russian NGOs; ecoi.net; Factiva; Human Rights Watch; International Federation for Human Rights; Legislationline; Los Angeles Times; The Moscow Times; News.am; Novaya Gazeta; Novye Izvestia; Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders; Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty; RT.com; Russia - Ministry of Justice; Spiegel Online; United Nations - Integrated Regional Information Networks, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, United Nations Development Program, Refworld; World Policy Institute.