Source:

Amnesty International: Violations of rights of refugees and asylum seekers widespread [ID 11837]

"Das in Artikel 63 der Verfassung der Russischen Föderation verankerte Recht von Flüchtlingen und A-sylsuchenden auf Schutz vor Abschiebung bei drohender Gefahr für Leib und Leben (Völkerrechtsgebot des non-refoulement), der 1993 erfolgte Beitritt Russlands zur Genfer Flüchtlingskonvention sowie die Inkraftsetzung des neuen Flüchtlingsgesetzes 1997 waren wichtige Schritte zum Schutz der Rechte der sich in Russland aufhaltenden oder dorthin gelangenden Flüchtlinge. Allerdings ist die praktische Um-setzung dieses rechtlich verankerten Schutzes unzureichend.
Besonders die aus anderen Teilen des russischen Staatsgebietes stammenden Binnenflüchtlinge ge-nießen keinen spezifischen rechtlichen Schutz. Hierdurch entstehen vor allem für die rund 300.000 aus der tschetschenischen Teilrepublik geflüchteten Menschen, welche durch die humanitäre Tragödie be-reits besonders betroffenen sind, weitere große Probleme.
Beim Umgang mit Flüchtlingen aus benachbarten oder anderen Staaten kommt es vielfach zu Verstößen gegen die bestehenden Grundsätze, v.a. gegen das Gebot des non-refoulement. Zwangsmigranten, also Bürger aus den ehemaligen sowjetischen Republiken, die ihren bisherigen Wohnort verlassen mussten, werden zwar nach einem Gesetz von 1993 bei der Anerkennung ihrer Rechte als Flüchtlinge und der Ausstellung einer Aufenthaltsgenehmigung im Vergleich mit Flüchtlingen aus anderen Staaten beträchtliche Vorteile eingeräumt. Auf Grund des komplizierten Melde- und Registrierungssystems fehlt ihnen aber oftmals der zur Anerkennung notwendige Nachweis eines Wohnsitzes. Viele russische Be-hörden arbeiten außerdem sehr eng mit den Behörden aus den Herkunftsländern dieser Flüchtlinge zu-sammen, wenn sich diese um deren Auslieferung aus politischen Gründen bemühen.
Für die "sonstigen", hauptsächlich aus asiatischen und afrikanischen Ländern nach Russland kommen-den Flüchtlinge ist Russland oftmals nicht das erwünschte Zielland. Billige Flugverbindungen führen vie-le von ihnen über den Moskauer Flughafen Scheremetewo-2. amnesty international liegen Berichte vor, wonach Flüchtlinge schon im Flughafen-Transitbereich systematisch am Zugang zu einem fairen Asyl-verfahren gehindert und ohne eine Prüfung ihres Antrags abgewiesen und abgeschoben werden. Oft-mals sitzen sie unter unmenschlichen Bedingungen tage- oder wochenlang im Transitbereich fest. Es gibt sogar Berichte über Suizide unter den Flüchtlingen. Auch die Rechte der Flüchtlinge, die über ande-re Grenzpunkte in die Russische Föderation einreisen wollen, um dort einen Asylantrag zu stellen, wer-den vielfach verletzt. Und selbst wenn es ihnen gelingt, sich als Asylbewerber registrieren zu lassen und die Erlaubnis zur Einreise zu bekommen, sind sie oftmals nicht ausreichend vor einer unfairen Bearbei-tung des Asylbegehrens und vor Übergriffen durch Angehörige staatlicher Stellen geschützt."

11.03.2008 - Source: US Department of State

By end of 2007, government had registered 3,369 asylum applicants and refugees; officials continued to demonstrate widespread ignorance of refugee law ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2007") [ID 22624]

For further cases, please see the report.

"By year's end, the government had registered 3,369 asylum applicants and refugees, up from 3,196 cases in 2006. The government acted more expeditiously and with greater leniency in cases involving applicants who had been citizens of former Soviet countries than in the case of applicants from other countries. Officials continued to demonstrate widespread ignorance of refugee law.

Jong Koun Tchona, a North Korean seeking asylum in Russia, disappeared in November after being called to a Federal Migration Service office in Moscow. He later escaped from a detention facility in Khabarovsk, from which he understood he was to be forcibly repatriated to North Korea. The intervention of NGO Civic Assistance, the UNHCR, and the human rights ombudsman prevented Jong's deportation, and at year's end he and his Russian-citizen common-law wife were in hiding while seeking resettlement in a third country.

Russian authorities deported Uzbek citizen Rustam Muminov in October 2006 after a local court in Lipetsk had refused to order his extradition to Uzbekistan and ordered him set free. Muminov was deported after being arrested in Moscow, despite seeking refugee status. A Moscow court later ruled in October 2006 that the deportation had been illegal, and migration officials later admitted the deportation had been a mistake."

Document(s): Open document

05.10.2007 - Source: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada

North-Korean asylum seeker forcibly taken to Khabarovsk; he assumed that FSB was planning his deportation, escaped from building where he was held, and has been missing since then ("Procedures for registering a complaint against the police; effectiveness of such procedures; statistics on police abuse of authority [ALB102601.E]") [ID 21723]

Document(s): Open document

12.09.2007 - Source: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty

Moscow court rules that Uzbek refugee Yashin Juraev shall be released; Juraev was detained earlier this year after Uzbek authorities requested his arrest for alleged ties to unregistered Islamic group ("Court Frees Uzbek Refugee Threatened With Deportation") [ID 21132]

Document(s): Open document

06.2007 - Source: US Committee for Refugees and Immigrants

Annual report on conditions affecting refugees and asylum seekers in 2006 ("World Refugee Survey 2007") [ID 20695]

Document(s): Nepal - Sierra Leone
Full Report

06.2007 - Source: US Committee for Refugees and Immigrants

As many as one third of 55,800 persons whose expulsion government ordered were potential asylum seekers denied opportunity to apply for protection ("World Refugee Survey 2007") [ID 20696]

"Refoulement/Physical Protection: As many as one third of the 55,800 persons whose expulsion the Government ordered were potential asylum seekers denied opportunity to apply for protection according to the human rights organization Memorial. In the fall, in response to the arrest of Russian officers in Georgia on espionage charges, authorities launched a campaign against ethnic Georgians in Russia, including refugees from the ten-year Abkhazia conflict. The Government reported Georgians committed more than 27,400 administrative violations of migration rules and regulations governing their stay in Russia. It also reported that its judges ordered more than 5,600 expulsions of Georgians and actually deported around 4,000. (...) The Government forcibly returned at least three asylum seekers registered with the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Moscow to Afghanistan and presumably more from other locations. According to the Government, it expelled 62 Afghans in the first quarter of 2006, “including four by force,” and extradited 19 Uzbeks. (...)"

Document(s): Nepal - Sierra Leone
Full Report

06.2007 - Source: US Committee for Refugees and Immigrants

Refugees, NGOs, and press reported that police beat, arrested, and extorted money from persons who appeared to be non-Slavic, including Roma and those from Caucasus, Central Asia or Africa ("World Refugee Survey 2007") [ID 20697]

"Refugees, NGOs, and the press reported that police beat, arrested, and extorted money from persons who appeared to be non-Slavic, including Roma and those from the Caucasus, Central Asia, or Africa. According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, assailants committed more than 150 crimes “of an extremist nature” against non-Russians. Xenophobic attacks reportedly killed more than 50 persons and injured nearly 470 (up from about 30 and 410 the year before), mostly in Moscow.

In a 10-day period in late July and early August in Moscow, skinheads beat two Iranians outside Frunzenskaya Metro Station, shot a non-Slav looking veteran with an air gun, stabbed to death a 19-year-old man from Uzbekistan, wounded a Turkish national, and stabbed three people from Dagestan several times, hospitalizing two of them with life-threatening injuries. A bomb attack in August directed against central Asian traders in Moscow killed ten, including Uzbeks."

Document(s): Nepal - Sierra Leone
Full Report

23.05.2007 - Source: Amnesty International

Authorities forcibly returned at least one person to Uzbekistan in violation of international obligations; in some cases orders to extradite individuals to Uzbekistan were overturned by Russian courts ("Annual Report 2007") [ID 20136]

"In some cases, orders to extradite individuals to Uzbekistan where they risked being subjected to torture were overturned by Russian courts or their implementation was stayed in accordance with Russia's obligations under international human rights and refugee law. However, the Russian authorities forcibly returned at least one person to Uzbekistan in violation of its international obligations.

 • The Russian authorities opened a criminal investigation in October into the deportation of Rustam Muminov to Uzbekistan. He had been deported that month although the Moscow City Court had yet to rule on his appeal against his deportation order and he had informed Russian officials that he wished to apply for asylum. The European Court of Human Rights had issued a request to stay the deportation just prior to his removal."

Document(s): Open document

06.03.2007 - Source: US Department of State

Undocumented asylum seekers continued to face problems with law enforcement bodies; during 2006 two instances of asylum seekers stranded at airport; according to UNHCR, no asylum seeker arriving at Sheremytevo-2 Airport has been accepted since 1999 ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2006") [ID 19312]

"The UNHCR continued to be concerned about the situation of asylum seekers and refugees in the country. The UNHCR reported that undocumented asylum seekers continued to face problems with law enforcement bodies over their status in the country. (…) During the year the UNHCR reported two instances of would-be asylees being stranded at the Sheremytevo-2 Airport. Although authorities had been housing asylum seekers in a nearby hotel rather than requiring they remain in the transit zone, this arrangement ended when the hotel was sold. According to the UNHCR there was an Iranian family staying in the transit zone after seeking asylum upon arriving in the country after being turned back by German authorities. The family fled Iran after the mother had been imprisoned for dissident activities. None of these cases were recognized by either the Federal Migration Service or the UNHCR as a refugee. In the additional case, the would-be asylum seeker's claim was rejected by both Russian authorities and UNHCR.

To the UNHCR's knowledge, no asylum seeker arriving at Sheremytevo-2 Airport had been accepted since at least 1999. UNHCR received three applications at the Sheremetyevo-2 PIC during the year. Most cases involved labor migrants entering or leaving the country, but a few cases involved asylum seekers. During the year the UNHCR continued to examine each case and seek resettlement on an emergency basis for those deemed to be in need of international protection."

Document(s): Open document

06.03.2007 - Source: US Department of State

Government in practice generally provided protection against refoulement, but rarely granted asylum; individuals who sought entry into the country without proper documentation were often denied access to Federal Migration Service; UNHCR stated that many refugee seekers at times faced detention, deportation, fines by police, and racially motivated assaults ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2006") [ID 20137]

"The law provides for granting of asylum or refugee status in accordance with the 1951 UN Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 protocol, but the government has not established a system for providing protection to refugees. In practice, the government generally provided protection against refoulement, the return of persons to a country where they feared persecution; however, it rarely granted asylum. Individuals who sought entry into the country without proper documentation and who sought to claim asylum were often denied access to the Federal Migration Service by border guards and Aeroflot airlinesand often returned them to their countries of origin, including in some cases to countries where they demonstrated a well‑founded fear of persecution. The UNHCR stated that many refugee seekers at times faced detention, deportation, fines by police, and racially motivated assaults, which sometimes even led to the loss of life.
The government cooperated with the UNHCR and the International Organization for Migration (IOM); both organizations assisted the government in trying to develop a more humane migration management system. The UNHCR reported improved communication with the Federal Migration Service on regulatory provisions and practices that do not meet international standards. The UNHCR reported that the number of active, registered cases of asylum seekers and refugees continued to decline during year. At year's end it had 3,196 such cases. In 2005 it had 3,789 cases. The government acted more expeditiously and with greater leniency in cases involving applicants who had been citizens of the former Soviet Union. Officials and would‑be applicants continued to demonstrate widespread ignorance of refugee law."

Document(s): Open document

06.03.2007 - Source: US Department of State

Uzbek citizen Rustam Muminov was deported in October for administrative violations; Moscow court ruled later that deportation had been illegal; during 2006 four cases of deportation proceedings reported to UNHCR ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2006") [ID 20138]

"Russian authorities deported Uzbek citizen Rustam Muminov in October for administrative violations, after a local court in Lipetsk had refused to order his extradition and ordered him set free. In 2005, Uzbek authorities sought his extradition on charges of being a member of HT. Muminov was deported after being arrested in Moscow, despite seeking refugee status, and a Moscow court later ruled in October the deportation had been illegal. Migration officials later said the deportation had been a mistake.

During the year four cases of deportation proceedings were reported to the UNHCR, including the case of Rustam Muminov.

In another example in 2005, authorities in Tatarstan deported an Uzbek student, Marsel Isayev, to Uzbekistan, where he was held incommunicado for 10 days after he refused to cooperate with authorities, according to the migrants' rights NGO Civic Assistance. The student was reportedly pressured by Russian authorities to provide false evidence against classmates accused of being members of the banned HT. Isayev appealed his deportation unsuccessfully to the courts; intervention of Human Rights Ombudsman Lukin was also unsuccessful. Marsel Isayev, was deported based on a court decision for violating registration rules. His family remained in Tatarstan.

According to NGO Civic Assistance, during the year Bakhrom Dadazhenov was accused of associating with an extremist group in a high‑profile case in Arzamas, Nizhniy Novgorod. The court proceedings were reportedly based on fabricated evidence. NGO Civic Assistance's intervention helped prevent his family's deportation, and they were seeking asylum in a foreign country.

In November two brothers from Uzbekistan were deported from the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk for allegedly violating Russian immigration laws and were handed over to Uzbek authorities. The two, who had lived in Krasnoyarsk since the beginning of the year, were arrested in September on charges of participating in HT.

An FSB spokesperson reported to the press that 19 Uzbek citizens had been extradited since January. The fate of many deportees is unknown to their families."

Document(s): Open document

30.11.2006 - Source: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty

Supreme Court rejected a challenge to a recent order by prosecutors to deport 12 Uzbek nationals and one Kyrgyz citizen to Tashkent ("Russian Court Rejects Challenge To Andijon Extraditions") [ID 17760]

Document(s): Open document

03.11.2006 - Source: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty

Moscow City Court overturned a lower judicial panel's decision to deport Uzbek asylum seeker Rustam Muminov; court has ordered that his case be re-examined ("Russian Court Overturns Uzbek's Deportation Order") [ID 17501]

Document(s): Open document

27.10.2006 - Source: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty

FSB states that Uzbek asylum seeker who was deported to Tashkent is active member of Islamist group that government regards as terrorist organization ("Russia Says Expelled Uzbek Member Of Terrorist Group") [ID 17453]

Document(s): Open document

25.10.2006 - Source: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty

Uzbek asylum seeker whose extradition was recently rejected by court was forcibly returned to Uzbekistan on residency violation; Uzbekistan claims he was involved in uprising in Andijan ("Russia Deports Uzbek Asylum Seeker") [ID 17457]

Document(s): Open document

25.09.2006 - Source: Prima News

Ingushetia: Police arbitrariness with respect to forced migrants widespread ("Good statistics demand torture") [ID 16952]

Document(s): Open document

06.2006 - Source: US Committee for Refugees and Immigrants

World Refugee Survey 2006 ("World Refugee Survey 2006") [ID 18190]

Document(s): Open document

23.05.2006 - Source: Amnesty International

Student deported to Uzbekistan in October 2005 despite application for asylum in consideration and stated fear of torture ("Annual Report 2006") [ID 15388]

"The Russian authorities forcibly returned at least one person to a country in former Soviet Central Asia despite a serious risk of torture and other grave human rights violations. Student Marsel Isaev was forcibly deported from the Russian Republic of Tatarstan to Uzbekistan in October, despite the fact that his application for asylum was under consideration by the Russian authorities. In his asylum application he had stated that he feared that in Uzbekistan he could face torture as a suspected member of the banned organization Hizb-ut-Tahrir."

Document(s): Open document

29.03.2006 - Source: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty

Since the start of this year, 19 members of banned Islamic group Hizb ut-Tahrir, wanted on terrorism charges, deported to Uzbekistan ("Russia Deports 19 Suspected Terrorists To Uzbekistan In 2006") [#47829], [ID 11823]

Document(s): Open document

08.03.2006 - Source: US Department of State

Government has not established a system for providing protection to refugees ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2005") [#46144], [ID 11824]

"The law provides for granting of asylum or refugee status in accordance with the 1951 UN Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 protocol, but the government has not established a system for providing protection to refugees. In practice, the government generally provided protection against refoulement, the return of persons to a country where they feared persecution; however, it rarely granted asylum. Individuals who sought entry into the country without proper documentation and who sought to claim asylum were often denied access to the Federal Migration Service by border guards and Aeroflot airlines and often returned them to their countries of origin, including in some cases to countries where they demonstrated a well-founded fear of persecution. The UNHCR stated that many refugee seekers at times faced detention, deportation, fines by the police, and racially motivated assaults, which sometimes even led to the loss of life.

The government cooperated with the UNHCR and the International Organization for Migration (IOM); both organizations assisted the government in trying to develop a more humane migration management system. The UNHCR reported improved communication with the Federal Migration Service on regulatory provisions and practices that do not meet international standards. Through August 31, the UNHCR had registered 414 new cases, or 606 persons, as asylum seekers or refugees. In total it had 3,789 active, registered cases. The government acted more expeditiously and with greater leniency in cases involving applicants who had been citizens of the former Soviet Union. Officials and would-be applicants continued to demonstrate widespread ignorance of refugee law.

According to the UNHCR from the beginning of the year through June, the Federal Migration Service granted refugee status to 16 people. From 1993 through June, Russian authorities granted refugee status to 568 persons. From the beginning of the year through July 31, two cases of deportation proceedings were reported to the UNHCR. In one case the deportee successfully appealed to the courts to block the deportation through the intervention of a UNHCR-provided lawyer. In another example, authorities in Tatarstan deported an Uzbek student to Uzbekistan, where he was held incommunicado for 10 days, after he refused to cooperate with them, according to the migrants' rights NGO Civic Assistance. The student was reportedly being pressured to provide false evidence against classmates who were accused of being members of the banned Hizb ut-Tahrir."

Document(s): Open document

08.03.2006 - Source: US Department of State

According to UNHCR, undocumented asylum seekers continued to face problems with law enforcement bodies ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2005") [#46144], [ID 11825]

"The UNHCR continued to be concerned about the situation of asylum seekers and refugees in the country. The UNHCR reported that undocumented asylum seekers continued to face problems with law enforcement bodies over their status in the country. The government does not issue documents to asylum seekers who are awaiting review of their requests for asylum; consequently, they remain vulnerable to fines and detention, as well as being denied access to government-provided assistance. At Sheremetyevo Airport, authorities systematically deported improperly documented passengers before they were able to file asylum claims with the Federal Migration Service, including persons who demonstrated a well-founded fear of persecution in their countries of origin. Legally bound to provide food and emergency medical care for undocumented travelers, the airlines returned them to their point of departure as quickly as possible; airlines were fined if an undocumented passenger was admitted to the country but not if the passenger was returned to the country of origin. The treatment of asylum seekers in the transit zone reportedly was harsh.

During the year the UNHCR reported that there were continued instances of would-be asylees becoming stranded at the Sheremetyevo-2 airport, although authorities began housing them in a nearby hotel rather than requiring they remain in the transit zone. According to the UNHCR there were three cases involving six people who sought asylum upon entering the transit zone of the airport. None of these cases were recognized by either the Federal Migration Service or the UNHCR as a refugee. Russian authorities deported two people, and the remaining four were transferred to the hotel, where they remained at year's end.

There were 114 points of immigration control (PICs) at border crossings and international airports. To the UNHCR's knowledge, no asylum seeker arriving at Sheremetyevo-2 airport had been accepted as such by the PICs since at least 1999. Most such cases involved labor migrants entering or leaving the country, but a few cases involved asylum seekers. During the year, the UNHCR continued to examine each case and seek resettlement on an emergency basis for those deemed to be in need of international protection."

Document(s): Open document

08.03.2006 - Source: US Department of State

International agreements permit persons with outstanding warrants from other former Soviet states to be detained for periods of up to one month ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2005") [#46144], [ID 11826]

"International agreements permit persons with outstanding warrants from other former Soviet states to be detained for periods of up to one month while the prosecutor general investigates the nature of those warrants. This system was reinforced by means of informal links among senior law enforcement and security officials in many of the republics of the former Soviet Union. Human rights groups continued to allege that this network was employed to detain opposition figures from the other former Soviet republics without legal grounds. According to Memorial, some detainees were kept in custody for more than one month. Authorities detained 12 Uzbek citizens, 1 Kyrgyz citizen, and 1 ethnic Uzbek with Russian citizenship in June on a request from Uzbek authorities. The arrests occurred in the aftermath of violence in the Uzbek city of Andijon. Their relationship to events in Andijon was unclear. They requested asylum in Russia because they feared persecution if they were sent back to Uzbekistan. At year's end the 13 were still in detention, with a judge rejecting their claims that the detentions were illegal. The Russian citizen was released and apparently fled the country. Two other Uzbek citizens were detained in Novosibirsk in November under a similar request from Uzbek authorities. A teacher of Arabic from Uzbekistan was detained in Saratov Oblast and spent a year in custody from 2002 to 2003 before the authorities decided not to carry out the Uzbek warrant of extradition. He was then released, but abducted by unknown parties in July 2004 and transported back to Uzbekistan where he was jailed."

Document(s): Open document

17.02.2006 - Source: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty

UNHCR and Human Rights Watch: Uzbek refugees, wanted in Uzbekistan for involvement in Andijon-uprising in May 2005, systematically denied asylum and even deported in violation of international law; almost certainly exposed to torture and abuse in Uzbekistan ("Uzbekistan: Tough Times for Uzbek Refugees Abroad") [#44506], [ID 11827]

Document(s): Open document

18.07.2005 - Source: Amnesty International

Ivanovo: At least 3 of 14 ethnic Uzbek men currently detained in Ivanovo tortured by electric shocks while being questioned at offices of Organized Crime Squad ("Russian Federation - Further Information on UA 180/05") [#34324], [ID 11828]

Document(s): Open document

01.07.2005 - Source: Amnesty International

At least 13 Uzbek men believed to be in imminent danger of deportation from Russia to Uzbekistan, where they would be at risk of incommunicado detention, torture and unfair trials ("Russia Federation - UA 180/05") [#33520], [ID 11829]

Document(s): Open document
Open document

16.06.2005 - Source: US Committee for Refugees and Immigrants

Annual report on conditions affecting refugees and asylum seekers in 2004 ("World Refugee Survey 2005") [#32917], [ID 11830]

Document(s): Open document

03.06.2005 - Source: Council of Europe - Parliamentary Assembly

Long delay in the processing of asylum claims; Moscow reportedly has not allowed unaccompanied children without legal guardian to lodge asylum claims ("Honouring of obligations and commitments by the Russian Federation [Doc. 10568]") [#32710], [ID 11836]

"348. The Advisory Committee to the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities in its 2002 opinion expressed concern about the long delay in the processing of asylum claims, in particular in Moscow and the Moscow region, where asylum seekers may have to wait for more than two years before being able formally to initiate the application procedure. It was also concerned that the Migration Service in Moscow reportedly has not allowed unaccompanied children to lodge asylum claims unless they have a legal guardian. We hope this problem will be properly addressed by the Federal Migration Service and regional authorities and have taken note that according to the Russian authorities a draft new federal law on refugees has been under preparation since 2002."

Document(s): Open document

08.07.2004 - Source: Schweizerische Flüchtlingshilfe

Position of the Swiss Refugee Council on asylum seekers from Chechnya (as of July 2004) ("Tschetschenische Asylsuchende: Positionspapier der Schweizerischen Flüchtlingshilfe") [#24067], [ID 11849]

Document(s): Open document

02.04.2004 - Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees

Afghan asylum seeker killed in a racially-motivated attack in Moscow ("Asylum seeker killed in Moscow; Ingush camp for Chechens closed") [#21067], [ID 11831]

"The UN refugee agency has expressed concern about the latest in a string of violent attacks on asylum seekers in Moscow. [...]

UNHCR has expressed "deep regret" over the death of Afghan asylum seeker Abdul Wase Abdul Karim on Wednesday. In what appears to have been a racially-motivated attack, he was beaten up on March 25 by skinheads wielding metal bars in a metro station in south Moscow. He died in hospital six days later, without ever regaining consciousness.
[...]
Karim, a member of the Afghan Tajik minority, arrived in the Russian Federation in May 1998 after fleeing the Taliban regime in Herat. He registered with UNHCR in May 2000, and received a "pre-registration" number with the Moscow Migration Service, but did not manage to enter the national refugee status determination (RSD) procedure before his death.
[...]
Karim's murder is the latest in a series of violent attacks on asylum seekers in Moscow. In September 2001, Angolan asylum seeker Massa Mayoni was killed in a similar attack. Last August, an Ethiopian asylum seeker was injured in another attack that appeared to be racially-motivated. Other less serious assaults on asylum seekers have often gone unreported.
[...]"

Document(s): Open document

09.2003 - Source: European Council on Refugees and Exiles

Country report on major policy and legal developments in asylum law and statistics on asylum applications in 2002 ("Ecre Country Report 2002: Russia") [#16387], [ID 11832]

Document(s): Open document

28.10.2002 - Source: Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (formerly Global IDP Project)

Norwegian Refugee Council - Global IDP Project: Situation of internally displaced persons ("Profile of internal displacement: Russian Federation") [#9340], [ID 20259]

Document(s): Open document

06.2002 - Source: US Committee for Refugees and Immigrants

USCR: According to the US Committee for Refugees the Russian Federation hosted about 28,200 refugees and asylum seekers at the end of 2001 ("World Refugee Survey 2002") [#7425], [ID 11833]

"At the end of 2001, the Russian Federation hosted about 28,200 refugees and asylum seekers in need of protection. These included 21,141 refugees registered with Russia’s Ministry of Interior (MOI); 79 mandate refugees recognized by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR); 742 asylum seekers whose cases were pending with the MOI; about 5,900 asylum seekers from outside the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) who were registered with UNHCR; and 330 Afghans granted temporary protection during the year.
[...]
More than 625,000 persons registered with the MOI as “forced migrants”—overwhelmingly from countries in Central Asia and the Caucasus—were living in “refugee-like” conditions in the Russian Federation at year’s end. In addition, more than 150,000 Afghans without legal status were living in Russia and considered by the U.S. Committee for Refugees (USCR) to be living in refugee-like circumstances.

At year’s end, more than 474,000 persons remained internally displaced in the Russian Federation. These included about 160,000 inside Chechnya; 160,000 in the neighboring republic of Ingushetia; 10,000 in neighboring Dagestan; 30,000 elsewhere in the northern Caucasus region; some 100,000 persons displaced during the previous (1994-96) war in Chechnya (mostly ethnic Russians, who were registered with the MOI as “forced migrants”); and more than 14,000 “forced migrants” in Ingushetia who were displaced in 1992 during the conflict over the disputed Prigorodnyi region of North Ossetia.
[...]
The number of formally recognized refugees in the Russian Federation has dropped considerably since 1998, largely because many refugees from countries of the former Soviet Union de-registered after Russia’s 1997 law, “On Refugees” (hereafter, “refugee law”), eliminated several of the benefits accorded to refugees. The decline also reflects the far-lower refugee recognition rates, in recent years, by various government ministries and agencies responsible for implementing Russia’s refugee law and its companion law, “On Forced Migrants” (hereafter, “forced-migrant law”). The MOI granted refugee status to only 236 persons in 2001, continuing a downward trend from 277 persons in 2000, 382 in 1999, 510 in 1998, and 5,751 in 1997."

Document(s): Open document

06.2002 - Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees

UNHCR: Limitations to the scope of application of the refugee law ("Analysis of the courts practice in the Russian Federation as pertaining to refugee status determination") [#7771], [ID 11840]

"Under Article 2 of the RF refugee law, entitled “Limitations to the scope of the present federal
law”, point 2 stipulates that the refugee law “shall not apply to foreign nationals and stateless
persons who have left their country of nationality for economic reasons or due to hunger,
epidemic, natural or man-made emergencies”. In the case Muhamad Sadiq Zarguna v. Rostov
RMS, considered by the Pervomaiski District Court of Rostov-on-Don (22 November 1999)
the applicant, a female Afghan national, came to Russia in 1996 from Uzbekistan and applied
for refugee status to the Rostov-on-Don RMS. The RMS rejected her claim, arguing i.a. that
the applicant, prior to her arrival to Russia, had sojourned in Uzbekistan for twelve years,
where she was legally working, and that it was for economical reasons that she had further
travelled to Russia.
The court, after noting that the applicant had stayed in Uzbekistan “on a temporary basis,
having been sent there to work under contract”, looked at the substance of the claim, i.e. the
reasons alleged for not being able or willing to return to her country of origin. Hence, the court
found that the applicant was a refugee “sur place”, 1) being outside of Afghanistan at the time
when the communist regime in that country collapsed and 2) not being able to return to her
country of origin because of her active involvement in the former ruling political party
(PDPA). The court cancelled the RMS decision as being unlawfu."

Document(s): hcr-rus-caselaw0702.pdf

06.2002 - Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees

UNHCR: Refugee application must be submitted within 24 hours in case of illegal crossing of the Russian Federation State borders ("Analysis of the courts practice in the Russian Federation as pertaining to refugee status determination") [#7771], [ID 11841]

"Under Article 5.1.7 of the RF Law on Refugees, the failure to submit a refugee application
within 24 hours in case of illegal crossing of the RF State border leads to non admissibility of
the refugee application, i.e. refusal by the migration services to consider the application on its
merits. Under the same article, however, it is provided that in the event of circumstances
beyond the applicant’s control, the time limit may be extended, but not beyond the period of
the said circumstances.
In the practice, migration services tend to listen to asylum-seekers’ justifications for having
missed the time-limit and offer them a genuine possibility to overcome the non-admissibility
obstacle of Article 5.1.7. The reason possibly lies with the huge size of the country as well as
the lack of awareness of the federal border guards as to the referral of asylum claims. This
being said, decisions of non-admissibility of refugee applications based on Article 5 of the
refugee law (mainly the time-limit to submit a refugee claim and the “safe third country” rule)
account for more than 50% of the negative decisions."

Document(s): hcr-rus-caselaw0702.pdf

06.2002 - Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees

UNHCR: Periods for filing a complaint with the court ("Analysis of the courts practice in the Russian Federation as pertaining to refugee status determination") [#7771], [ID 11842]

"Article 239-5 of the RSFSR Civil Procedural Code sets up the following periods for filing a
complaint with the court:
• Three months from the day when a person found out about violation of his rights or
freedoms;
• One month following notification of the negative decision;
• One month following the filing of the claim, in case of silence by the administration.
Article 10.3 of the RF refugee law sets up the same periods for appeal as the RF Civil Code:
• One month after the receipt by the person of a written notification of the decision or after
the expiration of a month‘s period since the date of the submission of the application if the
person received no written reply thereto;
• Three months after the denial of refugee status recognition became known to the refugee.
Under the Civil Procedural Code, these periods can be restored by the court if there is a good
excuse for not respecting them. Hence, the party who missed the deadline must provide an
explanation and good reasons justifying the violation of the deadline. After evaluation of these
reasons, the court may either dismiss the case or accept the reasons as valid ones and proceed
with the consideration of the case on its merits."

Document(s): hcr-rus-caselaw0702.pdf

06.2002 - Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees

UNHCR: Requirement of material evidence or proof ("Analysis of the courts practice in the Russian Federation as pertaining to refugee status determination") [#7771], [ID 11843]

"Under Article 3.3 of the RF refugee law, the decision to issue an asylum seeker’s certificate, to
recognise someone as a refugee or to deny the substantive examination of the claim, shall be
taken after completion of a questionnaire on the basis of an individual interview as well as on
the basis of examining the credibility of the data obtained about the person and about his or her
family members.
There has been a number of decisions by RMS on denial of a refugee claim under Article 3.3
on the ground that the applicant did not present an evidence proving that he/she had a wellfounded
fear of being persecuted in case of return to his/her country of origin. Courts usually
do not support this ground for rejection of a refugee claim, and maintain that there is no such
requirement under the law, for the applicant to prove that he has a well-founded fear of being
persecuted in case of return to his country of origin."

Document(s): hcr-rus-caselaw0702.pdf

06.2002 - Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees

UNHCR: War refugees ("Analysis of the courts practice in the Russian Federation as pertaining to refugee status determination") [#7771], [ID 11844]

"Maybe because of the existence, in the Russian refugee law, of a provision (Article 12)
foreseeing complementary protection, under the form of temporary asylum, for asylum seekers
not falling under the definition of a refugee according to Article 1 of the law, the regional
migration services and the courts of law have been reluctant, so far, to grant refugee status to
asylum seekers who left their country of origin for reasons related to war or generalised
violence. Such court practice has been developed particularly in relation to Afghan asylum
seekers."

Document(s): hcr-rus-caselaw0702.pdf

06.2002 - Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees

UNHCR: The principle of family unity ("Analysis of the courts practice in the Russian Federation as pertaining to refugee status determination") [#7771], [ID 11845]

"The RF Law on Refugees, under Article 3.4, provides that any family member under the age of
18 should undergo refugee status determination. The same article provides that the lack of
established circumstances under Article 1.1 for one family member does not preclude granting
him/her refugee status on the basis of the principle of family unity. This two-step approach is
sensible, as it gives priority to refugee status determination on individual grounds."

Document(s): hcr-rus-caselaw0702.pdf

06.2002 - Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees

UNHCR: Temporary Asylum ("Analysis of the courts practice in the Russian Federation as pertaining to refugee status determination") [#7771], [ID 11846]

"Article 12 of the RF refugee law provides the opportunity for receiving temporary asylum. This
complementary protection regime is open to persons who “have no grounds to be recognised as
refugees (…) but cannot be expelled from the territory of the Russian Federation for
humanitarian reasons”. Article 12 further stipulates that the procedure for determining and
granting temporary asylum needs to be further established by appropriate governmental
regulation. On 9 April 2001 the RF Government approved Resolution # 274 on the granting of
temporary asylum on the territory of the Russian Federation. Before then, the relationship
between Article 1 of the law, on the definition of refugee, and Article 12, was analysed by the
judiciary."

Document(s): hcr-rus-caselaw0702.pdf

06.2002 - Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees

UNHCR: Subjection to expulsion while pending in the refugee determination procedure ("Analysis of the courts practice in the Russian Federation as pertaining to refugee status determination") [#7771], [ID 11847]

"Because of existing gaps in the Russian refugee status determination procedure, asylumseekers
often cannot prove to the law enforcement bodies their status of asylum-seekers in the
country and, as a result, interior bodies consider them as illegal aliens, with all further
consequences. UNHCR is aware of several instances when asylum seekers were subjected to
expulsion procedures, while they were still pending in the refugee status determination
procedure. Sometimes, lacking financial means to carry-out deportation, local bodies of
interior may release the asylum-seekers. In other instances, UNHCR managed to resettle to
third countries asylum-seekers pending imminent deportation. In some cases asylum-seekers
were eventually deported to their country of origin or to a transit country where from they had
entered the Russian Federation."

Document(s): hcr-rus-caselaw0702.pdf

01.2002 - Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees

UNHCR: Position on asylum seekers from the Russian Federation ("UNHCR Paper on Russian Asylum Seekers from the Russian Federation in the Context of the Situation in Chechnya") [#7554], [ID 11850]

Document(s): hcr-chya0102dt.DOC
hcr-chya-0102.doc

13.11.2001 - Source: Council of Europe - European Commission against Racism and Intolerance

Refugee determination procedure ("Second report on the Russian Federation: Adopted on 16 March 2001 and made public on 13 November 2001 [CRI(2001) 41]") [#4815], [ID 11838]

"27. According to the 1997 law, the refugee determination procedure is divided into two steps: firstly, the registration of a person as an asylum seeker and, secondly, the assessment of the merits of his/her claim. ECRI is concerned that access to the asylum determination procedure is too difficult. This is due in part to the provisions concerning asylum applications in cases of illegal entry into the country and in case of previous transit through a “safe third-country”.

However, in some regions, potential asylum seekers meet additional difficulties in accessing the procedure, which relate to problems in registering their asylum applications and their residence. In theory, asylum seekers should be able to register their asylum applications and to obtain, on this basis, residence registration. However, there are reports that the competent authorities often refuse registration of the asylum claims on the basis of unlawful requirements. It should be noted in this respect, that, in violation of federal law, presidential decrees and the Constitution, some regional normative acts made, in the past, the granting of refugee status conditional on unlawful requirements such as possession of registration of temporary stay, presence of kin ties in the region or other additional circumstances. Although these acts are no longer in force, in practice, asylum seekers are still reported to face problems in registering their asylum applications and, as a result, in obtaining residence registration. Without residence registration asylum seekers are perceived as illegal immigrants and not as persons seeking international protection. As mentioned in Section II of this report, this exposes them to the risk of refoulement, but also to harassment, violence and requests for bribes on the part of the police. Asylum seekers are widely reported to be regularly checked for proof of lawful residence (during checks UNHCR cards are in some cases ripped up by police officers on the ground that they do not constitute a valid title for residence), arrested, and subjected to extortion of money. Another consequence of the lack of residence registration is that asylum seekers are not eligible for social services, medical care, the right to work and to free education for their children. ECRI is aware that in some cases the authorities have taken steps to address this situation.

For instance, in Moscow, where a considerable number of asylum seekers tend to concentrate, waiting lists for registration of asylum claims have been created and asylum seekers cards conferring certain rights are to be issued. However, ECRI strongly feels that in general asylum seekers’ access to the asylum procedure should be further simplified and that the authorities should ensure that the basic needs of these persons are met while the examination of their claims is pending. More generally, ECRI reiterates here, with regard to asylum 13 According to Article 4.7 of the 1997 refugee law, the certificate of registration of an application serves as a basis for legalising the residence of the asylum seeker in the Russian Federation Second report on the Russian Federation seekers, its observations concerning the discriminatory impact of the system of residence permits."

Document(s): Open document

13.11.2001 - Source: Council of Europe - European Commission against Racism and Intolerance

Humanitarian status ("Second report on the Russian Federation: Adopted on 16 March 2001 and made public on 13 November 2001 [CRI(2001) 41]") [#4815], [ID 11839]

"28. Article 12 of the 1997 refugee law contains a provision introducing the concept
of humanitarian status for persons who do not qualify for refugee status under
the definition of the Convention. ECRI notes that, in 2001, the Russian
Federation adopted a resolution “On Granting Temporary Shelter in the
Territory of the Russian Federation” that defines the conditions for granting
temporary shelter to foreign citizens in accordance with Article 12 of the Federal
Law on Refugees."

Document(s): Open document

10.2000 - Source: UN High Commissioner for Refugees

UNHCR: Refugee legislation, determination procedure, humanitarian status and political asylum ("Background information on the situation in the Russian Federation in the context of the return of asylum-seekers") [#6873], [ID 11848]

Document(s): hcr-rus1000-return.PDF