Russia has always been insular. A century of isolationist policies have seen to that. Geographical dominance and distance have also contributed to it for even longer.
But Russian nationalism has no color: both right and left revel in it. It is a strong sense of identity the Russians possess, which has been vibrant and ingrained for centuries, and is now transforming into something altogether different, something very much akin to nazi-like exceptionalism.
The strong sense of identity in Russians has given us gifts for centuries, whether that be expressed in Stravinsky's music, or Dostojevsky's novels. If the grandeur of Russia's legacy is now transmuted into a xenophobic movement, Russia can only lose.
But one should not lose sight of what is happening in Moscow. The xenophobic feelings are not driven by the Muscovites, but rather by the poor inhabitants of the city's exhurbs.
In that sense, Russia is trending in the same exact way the rest of Europe is. Immigrants are seen as the 'job-stealers' and they must be removed. Russia for Russians is no different than Greece for Greeks, and so forth.
A random crime committed by a migrant sparked what is probably the worst rioting in a decade. More than a thousand people were rounded up, with migrants getting the brunt of it.
Following the stabbing of a Russian citizens by an alleged migrant, for reasons yet unknown, the denizens of Biryuluyovo took to the streets and wrought havoc. MIgrants' houses and businesses and meeting places were smashed and set afire, cars were overturned and windows shattered .
The 'protesters' demanded that the migrants in the area be immediately deported, and the culprit of the stabbing be arrested. The rioters also promised to avenge the killing with blood, so the Russian authorities responded en masse by deploying nearly every available personnel.
Russian police however, think that this incident is not done. They fear that further rioting and violence will spread to other impoverished areas of the capital's outer districts. Ethnic tensions have been simmering for a long time, and Russian have very little acceptance or tolerance for foreigners.
One of the reasons for the rampant xenophobia is that a lot of the migrants come from the Stan provinces, once under the rule of Russian authorities, and who are predominantly Muslim. The numerous terror attacks in Moscow by Islamist extremists has consolidated and reinforced the xenophobia of the Russian citizens.
But the problem also stems from the use of migrants in an illegal way, by the authorities themselves. The biggest employers of black market labor are the city's municipal authorities. Another place where they are employed is in the massive Sochi olympic project. They are, in all sense, second class citizens, and the treatment they receive from their employers only reinforces their 'inferior' status in the eyes of the citizens.
To worsen the already fraught scenario of reprisal against migrants is the message coming from the Orthodox Church. Some of the things that issue from the Church are downright criminal, with calls that hint not so subtly at avenging the death of the murdered, which also plays into the anti Muslim propaganda.
In the meantime, an arrest is pending on the migrant that is suspected of carrying out the stabbing, but the hope of calming the situation might require a lot more than a simple act of justice, and the indictment of the murderous culprit.
Partial Source : Spiegel/ 10.15.13
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