No expected surge of xenophobia amid two years of war – experts

The number of hate crimes is decreasing.

The vandalism in Ukraine remains not condemned publicly and not properly investigated by the law enforcement officers. The right-wing forces are now fighting in the ATO area and have no time to search for and beat the Nigerian students. Meanwhile, the Interior Ministry has decided to establish cooperation with the monitors.

Such conclusions were expressed by the human rights activists while presenting the report “Two Years of War: Xenophobia in Ukraine in 2015”, the Human Rights Information Center correspondent reports.

According to the document, the number of violent crimes on grounds of racial and national intolerance has slightly decreased in Ukraine. However, the human rights groups recorded the first in last five years murder motivated by racial hatred. The total number of recorded incidents is 19 (against 24 incidents in 2014).

“As a comparison, the most problematic period was 2006-2008, when we recorded about 90 victims, including 4-6 killed. Today, we can safely observe that the current situation in Ukraine with the exacerbation of national sentiments and a sort of legitimization of right-wing movements has not led to an increase in hate crimes,” said Vyacheslav Likhachev, head of the monitoring group for the rights of national minorities.

The experts also noted that the component associated with the deliberate provocation of Russian special services had declined.

“In particular, it refers to propaganda as the main component of a hybrid war. A lot of attention there is paid to promotion and provocation of hate and xenophobia. Therefore it is sometimes difficult to determine during monitoring what incident is a provocation and what is not. Only the court rulings could draw a line. But there are no rulings…” said Joseph Zissels, executive vice president of the Congress of National Communities of Ukraine.

The work of the monitors is complicated by the lack of access to some areas. It is very difficult to find witnesses in the occupied territories (Donbas, Crimea) who could confirm the information.

“If we find such a person, we fear that he or she could become the next victim, which we will record. It is also a big problem as no representatives of international missions and journalists are there,” said Tetiana Bezruk, co-coordinator of the monitoring group for the rights of national minorities.

The experts note that the overall improvement happened because of the work of the law enforcement agencies. The communication with the Interior Ministry has been finally established. This refers not only to the exchange of information but also to investigation into the incidents. In 2015, about 60 proceedings were opened under Article 161 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (violation of citizens’ equality based on their race, nationality or religion preferences).