A terrible crime nannies from Uzbekistan raised the critical issues of migration policy.
On the first day of spring, Muscovites brought flowers and toys to the metro station “Oktyabrskoye pole” to the house and on the street people’s militia, where yesterday played out a terrible tragedy. 38-year-old citizen of Uzbekistan, Gulchehra Bobokulov, who worked as a nanny in a family with two children, waited for care of parents and older child, and then killed 4-year-old girl, cut off her head and set fire to the apartment. After that she went to the subway station and, shouting “Allah Akbar”, waving his terrible burden, until it was detained by the police.
In view of the inadequate behaviour of the woman she was appointed forensic psychiatric examination. Law enforcement bodies do not exclude that she was under the influence of drugs. Despite the apparent similarity of the action Babakulova with rollers are prohibited in Russia of ISIL*, so far as the main causes of crime called personal problems, including a cheating husband, which led to insanity and crime. Later, the relatives of a woman from Uzbekistan reported that she suffered from schizophrenia, but if you check out Russia’s help is not taken.
Bobokulov already gave confession and took part in the investigative experiment. But the investigating authorities will probably continue to work, because in January, the woman went to Uzbekistan to renew the passport. According to some media, after this happened to her change, she allegedly started to read some sites in Uzbek, to neglect their duties. It cannot be excluded that at home Bobokulov was subjected to indoctrination by radical Islamists.
In any case, the enormity of this crime is shocking and will not only cause public outrage, but also discussion on a range of issues, in particular, on the issue of migration policy. Bobokulov, judging by the information messages that has not been the patent in the Russian Federation, a migration card while it is extended.
This high-profile case that may cause inter-ethnic friction, so you need to approach it very carefully. However, the Federal media decided about a nightmare scenario not just to inform. If the channel LifeNews covered the tragedy in detail, the First channel, “Russia 1”, “TV Center”, the Fifth channel, as has been explained a number of electronic media has distanced itself from the incident. Other major channels mentioned it in passing. The President’s press Secretary Dmitry Peskov denied reports that the Federal channels have received the recommendation not to cover this event. But their information policy he endorsed, explaining the silence, “a reluctance to show crazy”.
But is it really the right decision? The majority of online media the incident was covered in great detail, there are photos, and video from the scene. Even the Western media wrote about the tragedy, and some, like the British Independent, came out with the headlines “Russian woman with the head of a child near the Moscow subway were detained by the police”. Of course, the Federal channels did the right thing not to show horrific footage wrapped in the black Bobokulov.
But some informational interpretation of events they had to give. After all, people still learn and speak about such a horrible crime. And in case ignored it will grow into rumors, which will only get worse. By the way, on the eve of the tragedy on the same “Ground” published a detailed story about the American who killed his wife, a neighbor and two adopted children from Kazakhstan. In this case, “show crazy”, obviously it can.
— Usually our Central channels give information about bloody horrific crimes, — says the President of the national strategy Institute Mikhail Remizov. — So it seems to me that the reason such restraint — concerns about the national question. Precedents of terrorist activity of migrants from Central Asia are already numerous enough. For example, the activities of the so-called gang of GTA. Then, incidentally, also tried to retouch the Islamist trail in this group, highlighting the domestic version.
In this case try to explain this tragedy to personal and psychological reasons. They certainly can be, but in my opinion, does not contradict the interpretation of the incident as a blatant act of intimidation, which was laid out. But the fact that terrorist activity may be involved, or crazy people with drugs or psycho-techniques turned into a marionette, is not news.
Alarming feature of the current stage of development of terrorism is its artisanal character. Is terrorism on the principle of “do it yourself” when single or small group of people, having even a superficial indoctrination, can make demonstrative acts of violence, framed in political or religious rhetoric. As examples of the “knife intifada” in Palestine, shooting indiscriminately at the visitors in a Paris cafe. What happened yesterday in Moscow, too, can be considered as an example of such a “terrorism of individuals.”
Of course, the investigation must develop an in-depth version of the events. And it is obvious that to ignore it in the media is to hide our heads in the sand. Modern society does not allow to use such tactics in the war on terror, as a total silence. It just doesn’t work. Accordingly, tactics of resistance to terror is not suppression, and mobilization.
Here useful experience of Israel, which could become a model for Europe and for Russia, if we want to provide the resistance to this kind of psychological shock. It includes knowledge about the source of the threat and who is a potential enemy. Silence and retouching only hurts the mobilization of society in the face of terrorist threats.
In this case, we have enough examples of what a breeding ground for such threats, as and for the growth of domestic violence, is a migratory situation. This excessive migration, primarily from Central Asia. On the background of the fact that our TV in months-long talks enthusiastically about European migration crisis, ignoring the acute symptoms of the crisis of migration in the Russian Federation ridiculous.
“SP”: — Could this situation lead to some problems on ethnic grounds?
— The subject of protests following high-profile cases involving inter-ethnic violence, as a rule, is inadequate reaction of the authorities. Today we are not talking about the inadequate response of the police — she acted adequately. Not talking about the inadequate response of the investigative bodies — we don’t know how they classify this crime, the investigation. But inadequate response of political authorities from the point of view of understanding the challenges of migration situation, may be the subject of protest. And protest potential in this area will accumulate. Again, our media has done a lot for this detailed information, the European migration crisis. Against that background, the society will not be able to ignore the obvious symptoms of the same crisis in our country.
“SP”: — Opponents of the introduction of a visa regime with the countries of Central Asia point to the fact that it is even technically impossible to provide. Is this true?
— The physical construction of borders and visa or other forms of control of migrant flows are different matters. Today the overwhelming majority of migrants entering the country via official channels. Moreover, when the entry is filled in migration cards entering the objective point of arrival. If they do not choose employment, they have no right to do it. That is, control measures are applied already now, just assume they are outdoor access to the Russian labour market. Whereas the necessary measures to translate selection in the country of origin.
The visa regime is not an iron curtain, but the system that applies in most developed States in respect of Third world countries. Using this mechanism, they provide a positive selection of migration flows in countries of origin, at a very early stage. Of course, this will also raise the question about the physical security of the border. But this is something that Russia in any case need to be addressed. Technically, the introduction of the visa regime with Uzbekistan and Tajikistan with some effort feasible.
Availability of visas makes illegal population in the country. Remember how before the election the mayor created the camp where he was detained illegals awaiting deportation. The lion’s shares of these illegals were citizens of Vietnam. Why? Because with this government there is a visa regime, respectively, and have criteria of legality or the illegality of their stay in the country. In the case of immigrants from Central Asia to the regulatory authorities is difficult to establish the legality of their status, the current mechanism does not allow this.
The President of Fund “Migration XXI century”, former Deputy Director of the Russian Federal migration service Vyacheslav Postavnin refers to those who opposed the visa regime. But he agrees that migration policy in many problems.
— It is unlikely the visa regime can be a panacea for such situations. If a person is sick, no visa regime will not help. In addition, to date, the introduction of the visa regime is unrealistic. People who talk about this, assume that we have a secure border with the republics of Central Asia. Actually it is not. For six thousand kilometres there is just field. Therefore, if we introduce visa regime, it can aggravate the situation, when the people, instead of the official points will be to walk across the border.
“SP”: — But most migrants don’t arrive on foot, on planes, trains?
— Yes, but you know what it’s like to issue a few million visas for citizens of Uzbekistan? This is a huge number of additional employees of the Embassy. You need to create a wide consular infrastructure in Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and other countries. This huge amount of money and work.
“SP”: — If not visa, how to solve problems in migration policy?
— The current situation shows that we are not okay with the migration situation. We have a lot of migrants, and, no matter what we say, they seldom controlled. These people are in the situation of Poluyanov, and it’s scary. The humiliation of self-esteem sooner or later comes out.
You need to look at immigration policy is pragmatic. We have too many primitive approach to this issue. They believe that at any moment we can close borders and prevent people to to go. But this stage has long passed. The world has become global. And except for maybe North Korea, no country can completely block the migration flows. Migration has become an objective phenomenon that cannot be undone. It can only reduce, organize, and take control. In any case we will have to live with migration.
“SP”: — the question Arises — how?
— In my opinion, today it is not done in any way. Migration controls have only a baton. The FMS is engaged in that issues the documents, usually for money. And as such work with migrants, the office does not. No one ensures that migration work for development, migrants arrived in those regions where they are needed to pay taxes to the budget.
Abstracting from what happens now in Europe (and it’s not as scary as we tell you), in the West, migration to development. Only Pension Fund in the USA annually gets $ 30 billion from migrants, including illegal ones. And they don’t take the money — motivate them so that they bring and pay.
America rose to the migrants, they work in factories, heavy industries. Yes, they are exploited, it’s the principle of migration. But do not forget that workers are people. We have the same paradigm of migration policy is still to the Soviet principle of “legal residence”. Any migrant can be hailed on the street, and if he has no document to take him off the Protocol or to demand a bribe, even if the document he had just stayed home. Nobody cares, if it brings benefits to society, pays taxes, and so on.
Yesterday’s case is symptomatic. If we will have problems in the country, they will be internal, and will begin with ethnic differences.
Publicist Egor Kholmogorov visited the site of an impromptu memorial and convinced that talking about what happened at the state level.
— The policy of concealment of the wrong, in what I witnessed, having visited today at the station Oktyabrskoye pole. The whole day people were bringing there flowers and children’s toys. Of course, they talk among themselves, but there is a typical factory of rumors. The General meaning of the incident is understandable, but it tells quite accurately and very exaggerated. Of course, they talk about why “on TV” about the tragedy nothing. And many attribute this to, allegedly, the personal prohibition of the President.
The representatives of our bureaucracy, which decided that the best tactic is to remain silent, in fact, substitute of the President in this matter. Unfortunately, our bureaucracy was invented, it’s working only on 9 January, that is undermining confidence between the government and the people.
We need honest debate on these issues. Excuses that it will lead to ethnic riots — not true. It’s not the fear of riots, which will not, and the unwillingness to seriously discuss the issue of changing migration policy.
“SP”: — Many experts and politicians say that the ethnic dimension of this tragedy to do with it, in the case of mental illness that can happen to anyone…
— This woman clearly copied the style of movies of ISIS. Black clothes, beheading, public demonstration is a very definite style. Regardless of whether it is a follower of this group or has committed a crime under the influence of psychosis, it copied the style of this structure. So no need to say that there are no ethnic or religious aspect.
Maybe it’s not only in the subconscious, and the FSB will establish its relationship with these structures. But even if not, out it is this symbolism, and not any other. So it’s not a common crime, and to pretend that this is the usual “domestics” — no.
* “Islamic state” (ISIS) the decision of the Supreme court of the Russian Federation of 29 December 2014 it was recognized as a terrorist organization, its activity on the territory of Russia is prohibited.
