In 1997 Runnymede Trust, organization on discrimination counteraction, published its report concerning relation to Muslims in Great Britain in which for the first time it used the notion of "Islamophobia" - as a version of xenophobia concerning Islam and Muslims. The concept, of course, existed long before the notion emergence, and not only in Europe - Ukraine also suffers from this problem which became aggravated in the nineties and later by a train of the most different factors.
This is repatriation of the Crimean Tatars and the land conflicts on peninsula connected with it. This is media representation of the Chechen war (into Russian and Prorussian - owing to partially common information field). This is racist interpretation in media of September, 11th in the USA, French "wars of suburbs", Beslan and the Northeast. It is necessary to mention also Victor Yushchenko's policy on the presidential post, strengthened activity of the Ministry of Internal Affairs under the direction of "racist" Yury Lutsenko - their not supported with statistics and logic hysteria concerning illegal migration from the countries of Asia and Africa which though "did not kindle" phobia in relation to Muslims, but warmed up xenophobia as a whole. All mentioned factors fertilized magnificent soil on which the flowers of Islamophobia magnificently bloom, as arabesques on walls of Algambra. Admire it or not.
The correct analysis of Islamophobia in Ukraine which would include comparison of relation to Muslims with the relation to other traditional objects of xenophobia (to Jews, Rums, etc) was not conducted yet. Individual researches concern intolerance in general, and among them it is possible to understand at the best that Ukrainians do not love not only Muslims, but also their own employers. "Unbelievers", however, are more not loved in the south of Ukraine and in Crimea, than in other regions. Logically: according to population census of 2001, 55-60 % of all "Muslims by origin" (persons belonging to nationalities, traditionally adhering to Muslim creed) of Ukraine live on the territory of Crimea. More than 90 % from them concern to the Crimean-Tatar community which has high enough level of religious consciousness. And social problems accompanying history of repatriation of the Tatars in Crimea, are not considered effectively, hence pressure in the region gets various forms, in particular, "is converted" into Islamophobia.
- Islamophobia globalizes local conflicts, forming an image of irreconcilable enmity between cultures, religions and civilizations, - the analyst Vyacheslav Lihachev comments on the situation. - Inveterate though unsuccessful, searches of training camps of Islamic extremists and terrorists in Crimea only escalate the situation, not less than persuasive associations of the situation on the peninsula from Kosovo to which resorts even the present Minister of Internal Affairs. Collisions between various groups of the society because of real economic interests, for example, land, change in Crimea by acts of vandalism concerning Muslim cemeteries or mosques. Not the last violin in these processes is played by local mass-media.
At the same time the problem is actual not only because of strengthening in the Ukrainian society of xenophobia moods of different degree of radicalism (finding their extreme expression in attacks because of hatred) but also because Muslims in Ukraine are in the worse position, than representatives of "traditional" Christianity. It is an issue not only of the Crimean Tatars who after returning to their historical native land start to equip their life from zero in conditions of hindrances and pressure – it is also an issue of Muslims-migrants who anyhow appeared in Ukraine. So, only one Uzbekistan for the last few years distinguished by the Andizhan massacre and strong pressure upon the Muslim part of its citizens, owing to what the quantity of Uzbeks sharply increased in Ukraine - at the expense of searching for refuges. And their integration into the Ukrainian society, as well as granting of the status of refugees with the subsequent resettlement in the third safe country, are a little problematic - owing to basic statement of the question by the Ukrainian state in classical measurement "rescue of the drowning by their own hands". It at is in the best case - when they are not prevented in rescuing themselves.
Representation of xenophobia problems in mass-media also frequently causes desire to beat one's head against the floor, and not in religious ecstasy. Pay attention only to "social talk-NOT-show" "Kiev Forum" on the topic "Ethnic issue in Kiev is there an occasion to anxiety?" which was broadcasted on KDR TRC in February of this year. Since the first phrase of the moderator, "Kiev is a multinational capital. Here live Armenians, Azerbaijanis, Georgians, Chinese, Vietnamese, Afro-Americans", and up to the end of the program the overwhelming majority of the visitors in the studio and the journalist who did a thematic plot, showed an explosive mix from incompetence and hysterics. Idea about foreigners is chaotic-stereotypic and remind of a classical passage of Les Poderevyansky "aksakals, jackals, donkeys, basmachi", the visitors of the studio advice Ukrainians to be sentimental, not to worry about murders because of hatred, not to discuss ethnic issues in general, and still much from this what is extremely difficult to name attempt of the adequate decision of the problem. But what is characteristic, they assume that the common sense is inherent in Ukrainians. Interestingly, on what basis.
- The society is frightened by threat of "Muslim terrorism", distend by mass-media, and Islam in itself starts to be perceived as dangerous threat, - Lihachev adds. - Positive image of ancient and wise religious culture recedes in the face of more demanded in mass-media modern stereotypes. The stereotypic media image of a Muslim causes associations more likely not with real carriers of Islam, but with maniacs-terrorists from American or Russian thrillers. Fear causes aggression; it is the normal mechanism of human mentality. People, who in the streets can be recognized as Muslims, quite often become objects of malicious sneers from the side of common passers-by or aggression from the side of teenagers-racists. Illegal, but already habitual militia checks based only on appearance, occur in the face of associates and only stimulate xenophobic treatment: if militia so diligently checks "these", means, "they" are really connected with criminals and are dangerous.
And meanwhile a problem of interaction of Muslims with the other part of the society which is not very benevolent exists and is not going to "resolve". The Mufti of the Spiritual Management of Muslims of Ukraine, Sheikh Ahmed Tamim violates the truth, saying that Islamophobia arises when Islam and Muslims appear to be too strongly included into policy. Half-million of Ukrainian Muslims in political and near-political activity are represented rather poorly; however the fact of existence of phobias concerning Muslims even in rather civilized capital proves to be true very quickly and easily.
It proves to be true, actually, by the experiment set by students of the faculty of social sciences and social technologies of NaUkMA in the autumn of 2009. The girl dressed in black clothes and niqab (cloth which covers face leaving a cut for eyes) who communicated in the street on simple topics - like "what is the time". The experiment purpose was to fix for the subsequent analysis spontaneous reaction of the Kiev citizens, not deformed by the further rationalization, - as it could be at carrying out of a questionnaire for which the respondent could definitely prepare himself. A bit later researchers carried out several interviews with representatives of a Muslim community of Ukraine to compare conclusions and to check themselves. As it appeared, street experiment had certain methodological lacks - only by means of the interview the researchers learnt that usually Muslim women in Ukraine do not wear black clothes, especially do not cover their faces by niqab. Nevertheless, such methodological discrepancy lifted a number of important questions: why, coming to Ukraine, Muslims should refuse from their traditional religious dress? Because of fear at the best to be made fun of, and, at the worst, even to get to hospital with physical injuries? On the other hand, "a Muslim woman" looked in full conformity with stereotypes of the society.
Actually, in this issue in relations between the Ukrainian citizens and representatives of a Muslim community there is very fragile balance. Almost worldwide (except traditionalist Saudi Arabia, multinational Great Britain, etc.), modern Muslim women go out without niqab. And it is exclusively on motives of convenience. Ukraine in this case is not an exception. Muslims of the XXI-st century prefer convenient trousers instead of long dresses, and hijab, which covers only hair, instead of hot and inconvenient niqab. On the other hand, are known cases when on the streets of Kiev appeared very religious Muslims who because of their own belief did not wish to uncover their faces. And they were poor. The most widespread types of discrimination concerning such women are stare, uncivil pointing of fingers and whispering behind their backs. And though there were no testimonies of physical violence in such cases, nevertheless it is possible to consider such form of discrimination as Islamophobia. Certainly, a Muslim woman in niqab with almost completely covered face, you will not often meet even in capital streets, but strangeness of the Ukrainian citizens in relation to an exotic appearance of the other person should not become an occasion to impolite discussion and, at last, discrimination.
But if you suddenly want to "live" life of a Muslim woman and on your own skin to feel scale of discrimination shades for this purpose it is not obligatory to cover your face and to put niqab on - discrimination starts much earlier, already at the stage of abaya dress. This detail of a Muslim religious suit represents a long dress, usually from a satin fabric with various oriental patterns. It is almost impossible to Europeanize abayas, therefore girls and women who for some reasons do not wish to wear abayas, are compelled to wear trousers with shapeless tunic because usual long dresses fit a body, thereby pushing the girl to infringement of religious canons. At the same time, girls who nevertheless wish to wear abayas in public places usually do not presume this religious "luxury". Frequently, Ukrainian Muslims walk in the streets in trousers and tunics, and only having arrived to destination point (public meetings of the community, various cultural centers) wear beautiful abayas. Certainly, it is possible to put forward an argument that in public transport it is very inconveniently to wear abayas; therefore trousers are an optimum variant. At the same time, in European and in oriental countries Muslims wear abayas much more often, and even in the streets of cities, in the underground, in public transport you will meet a Muslim woman more likely than even in the centre of Kiev. Therefore it is difficult to believe that the matter is just in some magically-exclusive inconvenience of the Ukrainian transport.
If you want to repeat experiment of the Kiev researchers and to feel yourself a conservative religious Muslim, be ready to everything, after all the whole spectrum of impressions of associates can be (and during experiment it was) very diversified - fear, aggression, curiosity, as in relation to an exotic animal. "Let her go, but better she changed her clothes, for she looks like a ghost", "Let her go, if only not in large quantities", "I support skinheads and if I was a little bit younger I would be in their movement", here is just a part of comments to the situation which were received by researchers. In total about a quarter of all interrogated after the meeting with the Muslim for expression of their relation to her used words "Al-Qaeda ", "terrorist", "ninjia", "a phantom". Mainly they told about it to the interviewers, not to the "Muslim", but, however, it is already much. Samia, the interrogated Muslim, also notices that she constantly faces sharp looks unpleasant to her that young men name her a "terrorist" in spite of the fact that she does not wear niqab.
But not only appearance of Muslims (especially Muslim women) is an occasion to discrimination. Not less important is the issue of economic character. "When the life in Ukraine will be even more difficult, the relation to foreigners will worsen. In any person, without a difference who he is, people will search for the reason and will find it. If a foreigner and his family live in a good house, they have a good car, it means, these use our money which we should take from them", Wael, the respondent, marks. And as it is pretty difficult to distinguish Swedes, Americans, Germans and Frenchmen from fellow Ukrainians, rage for deterioration of social and economic condition as Muslims suspect, will vent on them as on outwardly different, after all "they beat not a passport, but a face".
In what way is it possible to lower xenophobia level (and Islamophobia as a side of its display)? Recently the world neoliberal scientific community is favorable to thought that the growth of the free market in the Middle East will open a way to social liberalization and will mark the termination of the era of extremism. Nasr Wali, the author of a book "Forces of Fortune: The Rise of the New Muslim Middle Class and What It Will Mean for Our World" which pushed to carrying out of discussion concerning the free market as the medium between the Western and Eastern world, gives reason for the position that financial interest as a main one will overshadow disagreements in religion and political views; confirming his position the author gives as an example the process of erection of Dubai, supposedly, the capital joined the Western and the Eastern world in uniform business of creation of a new city. In general, the modern neoliberal thought is favorable to such theory, and discussions are conducted only about details: How long such process will proceed? What vital aspects will approach faster: global or local?
And it is true, the Kiev experiment at first sight showed consolatory news - aggression level considerably decreases on a market. Sellers willingly contacted "a Muslim woman", offered goods on sale, sometimes not so neatly, "Buy pork, wife!" During the interview almost all said that "a market is a neutral territory” and all people have right to be here. Moreover, "everybody wants to eat, therefore "a Muslim" can go by market counters as she wants. Nevertheless the 54-year-old seller who sold to the improvised Muslim everything she needed, during the further interview convincingly proved that if he was 20 years younger he would join the movement of skinheads. We will notice that the impression of the experimenter of the dialogue with this person was quite good and did not differ by anything negative. Certainly, proceeding from the interview, we are not inclined to attribute xenophobic moods to all respondents who repeated a key maxim about neutrality of a market territory (and it, as it appeared, is extended enough). But this, though the only in the rigid radicalism, interview accurately shows that behind an affable smile of the seller can stand steady xenophobic belief. And the question how they will be shown out of the market when the motivation of financial benefit is absent remains opened. In addition interrogated Muslims in their interviews marked, in particular, that in expensive shops they are treated in much kinder way, than in the markets. Already mentioned Samia assumed that, “In boutiques sellers are paid for their kindliness". Again, a natural question arises - whether out of the working territory such affable attitude will remain?
Let us hope for the will of Allah in the decision of these problems. After all even the most sincere prayers will not make the world better. The issue of counteraction of discrimination as it is visible is rather sharp. To hope for an adequate state policy in this question is difficult - including consideration that the actual Minister of Internal Affairs, still being the head of the Crimean militia, acted with statements in favor of deportation of the Crimean Tatars and other people from peninsula.
By the magazine of social criticism Commons
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