Russia condemns racism, xenophobia and nazism. Xenophobic violence flares in South Africa in September 2019

Patriot on Sunday

01/12/2019

Xenophobic violence flares in South Africa in September2019

In spite of the legal mechanisms developed and functioning in the framework of the United Nations, OSCE and the Council of Europe that disavow, condemn and aim to prevent the glorification of Nazism, racism and xenophobia, what we see today in a range of countries is a blatant propaganda of Nazi ideas and values, the rise of national radicalism and intensified attempts to split the society on ethnic and language grounds.

The Russian Federation is especially concerned about the increasingly active campaign to revise the history of the Second World War, cynical attempts to whitewash war criminals and their accomplices, those who developed and implemented the racial supremacy theory, and to present Nazi collaborators as participants in national liberation movements, and efforts by political elites of a number of Western and East European countries to destroy historical memory.

Another cause of concern is a growing number of xenophobic and racist incidents, manifestations of aggressive nationalism and chauvinism, and other forms of racial and religious intolerance in the world while inaction in the face of manifestations of racism and intolerance have been justified by references to allegedly absolute character of the freedom of opinion.

The Russian Federation views all that as a direct threat to the basic values of democracy and human rights, and as a major challenge to international and regional security and stability as a whole and annually introduces to the UN General Assembly the draft resolution "Combating glorification of Nazism, neo-Nazism and other practices that contribute to fuelling contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance". In 2019, a total of 121 States voted for the resolution. The USA and Ukraine voted against, and 55 state delegations, including all the member-countries of the European Union, abstained.

The resolution condemns the glorification of the Nazi movement including by erecting monuments and memorials and holding public demonstrations to glorify the Nazi past, the Nazi movement and neo-Nazism. The Russian Federation and those who hold the same views as we do are convinced that we are referring here not to the political correctness but to the most blatant cynicism and blasphemy towards those who had liberated the world from the horrors of national-socialism.

The resolution underlines that such actions amount not to the respect but to clear and outright abuse of the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, as well of the right to freedom of opinion and expression. More than that, such actions can fall under the Article 4 of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination that requires the Convention States Parties to prosecute them criminally.

The document introduced to the UN General Assembly also underlines that such practices fuel contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination and xenophobia, contribute to the spread and multiplication of various extremist political parties, movements and groups.

In this regard, the Russian Federation urges all UN members to support its initiatives in this sphere as well as voting for them at diverse international organisations and forums and being their co-sponsors.