TAJIK HUMAN RIGHTS ACTIVISTS CONDEMN RUSSIAN HANDBOOK FOR LABOR MIGRANTS
In late October the Russian publishing house Vzglyad v Budushee (Look into the future) based in St. Petersburg issued a handbook for foreign labor migrants in Russia. On the first page of the handbook, labor migrants are pictured as tools – a broom, a paint roller, a brush and a spatula, while Russian citizens look like normal people – a policeman, a doctor, a guide, etc. Such depiction of the labor migrants was considered humiliating by human rights activists in the major countries of origin for labor migrants, and Tajikistan was among the first to express concerns. The issue received wide publicity in local and regional media, and the publishing house currently undergoes checking by the Prosecutor General.
The handbook contains fifty pages and has three chapters: legal advice to labor migrants, recommendations for preventing HIV/AIDs, and other useful recommendations. It was issued in four languages: Russian, Uzbek, Tajik and Kyrgyz. The head of the publishing house Aleksey Hmyrov said that ten thousand copies of the handbook were published for the first time a year ago, and received no negative feedback at that time. The handbook is spread in St. Petersburg’s centers that work with migrants and centers for HIV prophylaxis. They are also available at public transport in certain directions.
Russian and Central Asian human right activists, Diasporas and even the Tajikistan’s embassy in Russia have condemned the handbook for the way it represents labor migrants. The head of the center “Migration and Right” Gavhar Juraeva thinks that by presenting migrants as tools, the authors of the handbook have depersonalized and humiliated them. Farrukh Sattorov, head of the public organization “Young Students of Tajikistan” in St. Petersburg stated that presenting humans as construction tools is “ethically unacceptable, and the authors of the handbook seek a reverse effect – to humiliate migrants.”
Tajikistan’s embassy in Russia criticized the handbook stating that “certain people or groups that intentionally create an environment of hatred among nations and nationalities will never reach their goals; as such actions will never get support in a civilized world.” The embassy expressed hope that discreditable conduct of the handbook publishers will be seriously examined by the Russian authorities, and that relevant measures will be taken to preclude such cases in the future. Meanwhile, Tajikistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs requested a halt to the dissemination of the handbook in Russia, as it “does not correspond to the level of friendship and understanding that exists between our states and our people.” In addition, it was noted that the Tajik version of the handbook has many orthographic and stylistic mistakes, which does not credit the translator and the publishers of the handbook.
The scandal around the handbook is an especially sensitive issue for Tajikistan in light of an ongoing effort to project a positive image of Tajik labor migrants in Russia. The program seeks to curb elements of xenophobia towards Tajiks in Russia and improve their conditions of labor. As the director of the center “Migration and Development” Muzaffar Zaripov notes, the current image of Tajiks in Russia is not the best, as it was formed in early 1990s largely by representatives of Tajik rural areas. Therefore, Tajiks are mainly perceived as seasonal workers, and not like people that may contribute to developing the Russian Federation. This perception is often directed at, for example, members of the Tajik intelligentsia, which are frequently met with suspicion on arrival in Russian airports.
Despite the scandalous depictions, the content of the handbook is considered to be useful by most human rights activists and intended users of the handbook alike. In fact, it does contain information that helps labor migrants register in the accepting country, gives tips on finding a job and where to pass a medical examination, how to stay protected from HIV and so on. It is interesting to note that in the concluding section, migrants are advised to not wear their national clothing in Russia, as “it attracts a lot of attention, which is not always needed.” The content gives the impression that the authors of the handbook indeed had good intentions when compiling the material.
It should be recalled that Tajikistan is a major source country for labor migrants to Russia. Based on various estimates, about 500,000-700,000 Tajiks are currently working in Russia. The amount of remittances they have sent to their families in Tajikistan during the last five years is estimated at US$ 10 billion. It is highly unlikely that the discontent of human rights activists will affect the flow of labor migrants to Russia from Tajikistan. The economic needs of migrant workers will remain regardless of how they are perceived or treated in the accepting country. The handbook scandal, however, provides an opportunity to raise such issues as intolerance, xenophobia and mistreatment of labor migrants in accepting countries and to demonstrate that their rights can be defended.
