We have analyzed the cause of xenophobia present during the Putin administration?nationalism?in political, economical, and social aspects. Xenophobia, a fear or contempt of that, which is foreign, especially of strangers or foreign people, is present ...
We have analyzed the cause of xenophobia present during the Putin administration?nationalism?in political, economical, and social aspects. Xenophobia, a fear or contempt of that, which is foreign, especially of strangers or foreign people, is present all over the world. Recently, the phenomenon has prevailed in England, France, Germany, and Russia. As for Russia, a government-led nationalism is playing a huge role in evoking xenophobia.Xenophobia present in Russia is targeted towards ethnic people from Caucasus, North East and South East Asia, Africa, and people with non-Slavic appearances. As its degree is intensifying, Russian ethnic people who are opposed to the phenomenon are subject to xenophobia as well. Such acts of xenophobia, by attacking people in groups, are led by an organization called Skinhead and their methods are becoming more sophisticated than ever. However, those who have committed horrible crimes are not usually brought to justice because many government officials and citizens sympathize with the group.Xenophobia, a result of the government-nationalism, is affecting Russia in political, economical, and social aspects. In the political arena, xenophobia is proven by the activities of the government, political parties, and ultra-right organizations. The government has legislated the Anti-Extremist Legislation in an effort to take sanctions against xenophobia; however, no one is arrested for violating the law and Putin is showing a tolerant attitude towards xenophobia in the official occasion. Foreigners’ position in the country is narrowed as a law regulating foreigners’ business activities in Russia and limiting the number of immigrants, has taken effect in the country. Also, political parties are using propaganda to evoke racism and nationalism while Skinhead-advocating media and ultra-right organizations are engaging in various related activities.In the economical sense, xenophobia is prevalent in Putin’s resource nationalism aimed at achieving “a strong Russia”. Putin, during his first presidency, has achieved a great economic growth and based on his confidence in Russia’s booming economy and vast underground resources, he has implemented resources-driven policies in his second presidency. The stoppage of energy supply to Europe in 2006 and 2007 and the TNK-BP incident in 2008 prove that nationalistic oppression in the energy production and transportation has become apparent in the nation. In the social context, xenophobia has resulted in the dispute with Chechenya and many other ethnic groups in Russia. During the era of the Soviet Union, many immigrants in Russia were the main provider that triggered disputes among foreigners and Russians harbored animosity against the people of Caucasus through two wars against Chechenya.As such, xenophobia present in Russia has resulted from the efforts to consolidate nationalism aimed at achieving “a strong Russia” during Putin’s presidency. Therefore, one can draw a conclusion that nationalistic activities?they were evident in the political, economic and social aspects?were the main provider of xenophobia. It is a responsibility for a nation to implement nationalistic policies in order to enhance national prosperity and defense; nevertheless, there is high possibility that an exclusive attitude towards foreigners will inflict negative damages on Russia in the future. That is because Russia’s decreasing population and labor shortage can only be solved by encouraging immigration. Therefore, efforts to control an exclusive attitude towards foreigners and to improve the awareness of Russians on the matter should be made on the governmental level.