Earlier this month the International Helsinki Federation for Human Rights (IHF) released a stinging report on the human rights situation in the Republic of Mari El.
The report starts with a good summary of the history of Mari El and its current socioeconomical situation.
The report accuses The Russian Federation of escalating harrassment of Mari national activists. The report cites a mountain of evidence of discrimination, harrassment and violence against anyone trying to advance the Mari national identity.
Specifically the report mentions all recent state elections of having been rigged in favor of politicians controlled by Moscow. The report also outlines the different ways the current presidential administration of Mari El is repressing the Mari language and culture by way of economical, political, cultural and violent repression.
As recently as August 27th 2005, yet another prominent Mari activist was beaten so severely that he suffered multiple fractured bones. As usual the assailants are “unknown” to the local police. It’s amazing how many violent crimes in this small country are committed by people nobody knows about.
The report concludes with a number of recommendations to the Russian Federation and the Republic of Mari El and the international community. The recommendations to the Russian Federation and the Republic of Mari El encourage more dialogue with Mari activists, stopping of all forms of harrassment, introducing political reforms and such. None of those recommendations are going to get implemented as long as the Soviet era tyrants rule Mari El and Moscow.
The report asks the international community to hold the Russian Federation accountable to the numerous international obligations the Russian Federation in terms of freedom of expression, assembly and association as well as preserving living minority cultures and languages in any country. None of that is likely to also make it into the agendas of any visiting statesman, with the possible exception of the statesmen from Finland and Estonia, of course.
I’ve written about the human rights situation in Mari El before:
The people of Mari being systematically persecuted by Russians
Pro-Russian propaganda against ethnic minorities at its best
-TPP
