September 09, 2005
The Russian Federation of Jewish Communities has criticized the authorities for allowing an anti-Semitic publishers to attend a Moscow book fair. The Federation said on Thursday that the publisher, Russkaya Pravda (Russian Truth) openly advertised such titles as 'Jewish Nazism' along with other anti-Semitic and xenophobic publications during the annual Moscow International Book Fair that opened on Wednesday. The Federation has pushed authorities to take a more active stance against anti-Semitic groups and publishers, as the incitement of ethnic hatred and violence is banned under Russian law. In a statement released to the media it said the authorities failure to take action can be seen as an "encouragement of xenophobic, extremist publications", and it urged Russian law-enforcement agencies to take rapid action against Russkaya Pravda.
Whilst the state no longer officially condones anti-Semitism following the collapse of the Soviet Union, many rights groups accuse Russian leaders of being silent in the face of xenophobia, expressed in the occasional desecration of Jewish cemeteries and synagogues and more frequent skinhead attacks against dark-skinned foreigners.
