Home
Latest images
Register
Log in
Africans 'under siege' in Moscow
A woman walks past graffiti reading "We love you!" with a swastika mocking migrants
Many African students in Moscow are afraid to go outside
Nearly 60% of black and African people living in Russia's capital Moscow have been physically assaulted in racially motivated attacks, says a new study.
Africans working or studying in the city live in constant fear of attack, according to the report by the Moscow Protestant Chaplaincy.
A quarter of 200 people surveyed said they had been assaulted more than once. Some 80% had been verbally abused.
But the number of assaults was down from the MPC's last survey in 2002.
The report's clear conclusion was that Africans living in Russia exist in a state of virtual siege, says the BBC's Rupert Wingfield Hayes in Moscow.
Extreme violence
Many of the African respondents said they:
* Avoided using the Moscow metro
* Were also careful to avoid crowded public places
* Did not go out on Russian national holidays or on days when there were football matches
Many of the attacks on Africans were pre-meditated and extremely violent, the report found.
One Nigerian migrant interviewed by the BBC had been repeatedly stabbed in the back and then shot.
Another man said his attacker had attempted to remove his scalp.
Officially there are some 10,000 Africans living in Moscow, but far more are believed to live there illegally - many as economic migrants.
The Moscow Protestant Chaplaincy is an English-speaking interdenominational Christian congregation that has ministered to Moscow's foreign community since 1962.
I put this into question. First off, I do not see any other news source to this other then BBC.
Second, these immigrants in Russia they interviewed, are they now living in England or what? Cause if they are, then they could also be people extending the truth? I know skinheads exist everywhere (there are tons in Calgary, Alberta (here), but they are never mentioned. I have a feeling that this whole statistic is thrown way out of proportion. But then again, that is what news is good at doing. Did you know 70% of statistics are made on the spot? See what I am getting at? Easy to fabricate the truth.
Edit: Also, it seems that this article did its job in providing fuel for the fire for all Russophobes I noticed on other forums. They are now going around saying "Russia needs to do something about immigrants being scalped" and so on. Funny thing is, who knows if it was a racily motivated attack? What if it was just a real screwed up guy? BBC wont say that nor will the russophobes. They now act as if Scalping is an every day business in Russia. And this is where our western nations and East will never get along; the stupid will always hate Russia and Russia will always hate us. To be honest, I don't blame Russia hating us, all our papers and politicians say is how evil they are. Maybe we should take a look in the mirror sometime.
Edit 2: Now I re-read this, and saw where the interviews are coming from. Now, if someone from Russia that can tell me about this group, and what they are like? An english speaking group in Russia? Usually these groups are hired goons also known as "the free press" and "Humanitarians"
Last edited by sepheronx on Tue Sep 01, 2009 12:17 am; edited 1 time in total
Clearly it was the latter. 
