After the terror attack in Moscow, migrants from Central Asia suffer xenophobic backlash in Russia.
Videos of the police savagely beating and holding the accused attackers surfaced on Russian social media channels in the hours following the attack. One of the videos seemed to show a suspect having part of his ear severed and then shoved into his mouth. According to police, the men were migrant workers in Russia with either temporary or expired visas.
It makes sense that the incident has surprised and grieved Russians. However, in the days that have passed, it seems that some people's xenophobia towards Central Asian migrant labourers in general has been sparked by that feeling as well as the unsettling films.
Posts on the social media site showed users searching for cabs and requesting that their trips be cancelled if the driver was Tajik. In an alleged conversational shot, someone said, "If you are Tajik, please cancel my ride."
One of the suspected attackers worked at a barbershop in the city of Ivanovo, which has apparently received a barrage of criticism. According to a Russian daily newspaper, Moskovsky Komsomolets, the shop owner informed Russian journalists that death threats had been ringing her phone "non stop" and that she was pregnant and unsure of what to do. I'm terrified to step outside.
Because of this, migrant labourers play an increasingly important role in the Russian workforce, especially during times of war, putting Russian President Vladimir Putin in a difficult situation.
Putin urged for Russia to be united on Wednesday, possibly fearing a rift in Russian society.
"We must always remember that our nation is multicultural and multireligious. As we always do — Muslims, Jews, everyone — we must always treat our brothers, the representatives of different faiths with respect," the speaker declared.
Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, and Kazakhstan are among the Central Asian nations that made up the former Soviet Union. These migrants have long been a key supply of inexpensive labour in Russia.
They have typically worked in occupations like cab drivers, truck drivers, and grocery employees—jobs that many Russians consider to be beneath them. Remittances, or the money they send home, have played a significant role in the development of their own nations.
However, many now feel threatened. According to renowned attorney and immigrant campaigner Valentina Chupik, the number of calls from Russian refugees seeking legal aid increased dramatically from 150 per day prior to the attack to over 6,000 as of Saturday, and "those numbers are changing with every passing minute."
Chupik, an immigrant welfare-focused NGO called Tong Jahoni, is originally from Uzbekistan and currently resides and works in Illinois. Her group only provides pro bono legal assistance to immigrants in need of assistance in Russia. She stated that although it is evident that the police are repressing immigration, she feels that the incident in Moscow is a front for something more sinister in society.
Pretending to actively combat ethnic crime and foil terrorist acts is how the police are attempting to project their authority. They are actually robbing migrants. She said, "I have numerous reports of police stopping migrants and stealing anything they wanted.
"Russian police continued to racially profile non-Slav migrants and ethnic minorities and subject them to unsubstantiated ID checks and detentions, often prolonged, in inhumane conditions," according to Human Rights Watch's annual report on global human rights violations. A few people have experienced physical abuse.
According to Temur Umerov, a Central Asian specialist at the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Centre in Berlin, xenophobia in Russian society has grown significantly as a result of Moscow's war in Ukraine, especially among those who identify as Nazis or neo-Nazis.
"They are fighting for Russia, whether it be online or on the real front (in Ukraine), so it gave them permission to speak their minds freely and not be shut down or criticised by other parts of society," he added.
Following last Friday's attacks, an examination of many pro-war Russian Telegram communities and their postings revealed a marked rise in xenophobia.
"We need to boycott the service they provide: don't eat in their cafes, don't get your hair cut with them, don't ride in their taxi, don't buy anything from them at all," a fan commented on a GreyZone channel with half a million followers. We must get the message out.
One member, who had 200,000 followers on another channel, said that there was no room in Russia for sympathy for migrants. The user said, "It is important to remember that they are the real executioners and murderers of good Russian people, not victims at all." "They deserve contempt and to be sent back to their home, the cesspool that is Tajikistan, right away. There is no reason to feel sorry for them."
Umerov estimates that there are about 7 million migrants in Russia, with Central Asians making up about 80% of the population.
He claimed that "migrants are more willing to work in much more difficult and harsh conditions and earn much lower salaries than ordinary Russians."
The pay that Russia offers, along with the remittances that migrants send home to their families, fill important positions in the Russian labour market and increase the GDPs of the countries where migrants originate.
Remittances were a contributing factor in the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development's September 2023 prediction that Central Asia's GDP will expand by 5.9% in 2024. According to the analysis, Tajikistan was predicted to have the highest GDP growth in the region, with 7.5% predicted in 2023 and 2024, partly due to "the inflow of remittances from Russia."
Umerov pointed out that the economy has become more dependent on migrant labourers since Putin began his full-scale invasion of Ukraine two years ago.
"Several areas of the Russian economy depend heavily on migrants. Without the labour force of migrants, various sectors may not be as stable as they are, according to Umerov. "Russia is in dire need of it; without it, it would be impossible."
Russia is anticipated to lack 4.8 million workers by 2023, according to research by the Institute of Economics at the Russian Academy of Sciences, which was reported by the newspaper Izvestia in December and cited by Reuters. Some of the major industries impacted by this shortage are retail, driving, and construction.
The number of Russian workers available has significantly decreased as a result of the invasion of Ukraine. Thousands of Russian men have been called up to fight in Ukraine, where estimates place the death toll at several thousand. Following Putin's call for a partial mobilisation in September 2022, hundreds of thousands more are thought to have left the nation.
Without providing any hard proof, Putin and his advisors—including heads of both the foreign and domestic intelligence services—have attempted to claim that Ukraine was somehow engaged in the attacks since the attack on Crocus City Hall.
Western countries and Ukraine have quickly disproved that idea.
Despite all the evidence indicating that the attackers were radicalised by the jihadist group ISIS-K, which is known to target recruits in Tajikistan, Putin has not placed the responsibility on Emomali Rahmon, the president of Tajikistan.
Putin and Rahmon held a conversation, according to the Kremlin on Sunday. It also stated that Tajikistani and Russian special services "are working closely in the field of countering terrorism, and this work will be intensified."
Putin, according to Umerov, is walking a tightrope. The Russian president cannot be considered to be turning friends into foes in a world where he has so few allies due to his assault on Ukraine, which has enraged the West.
Umerov stated, "Putin simply cannot acknowledge that there are issues in Russia-Tajikistan relations, particularly at this time." "One of Putin's closest allies is Tajikistan, and Russia cannot choose which nations to forge relationships with given its current state of isolation."
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