RUSSIA - Jan 24 - MPs Seek Ban On Jewish Groups.

A group of nationalist parliament members write to the prosecutor-general asking him to ban all religious and ethnic Jewish organisations as "extremists" in the latest sign of growing anti-Semitism and chauvinism in the country. As world leaders prepare to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp in Poland, some 500 nationalists, including 19 members of the Russian Duma, the lower house of parliament, wrote that the hatred of Jews was justified. They argued that most criminal cases of ethnic hatred were started by Jews while "Russian patriots" were simply acting in self-defence when promoting their nationalistic slogans. "Let us assure you, Mr Prosecutor-General, that there are a large number of well-established facts which lead to the indisputable conclusion: the negative assessment by Russian patriots of typical Jewish qualities and [their] actions against non-Jews are based on true facts and what is more these actions are not accidental, but prescribed by Judaism and have been practised over the past 2000 years", the letter said. "Therefore, statements and publications against Jews are self-defence, which may not be stylistically correct, but justified in its essence". The letter, signed by 15 members of the nationalist Rodina (Motherland) party and four members of the Communist party, is the latest signal of growing chauvinism and xenophobia which over the past few years has spilled into mainstream Russian politics. "A few years ago nationalistic statements were considered unacceptable. Now they are entering the main-stream of Russian politics", said Galina Kozhevnikova, the author of a recent report on radical nationalism in Russia. She says that while it would be wrong to say that Pres Putin - who is due to attend the Auschwitz memorial - provokes xenophobia, "he does little to prevent it either". The letter comes less than two weeks after two Rabbis were attacked in a Moscow subway by a group of youths. Alexander Lakshin, a US citizen and one of the victims of the attack, said he and his friend with two teenage brothers-in-law were on their way home when they were chased by a group of young people. "We told the kids to run for their lives. But they could not run fast enough, so we took their hands and dragged them through the underpass", Lakshin said. Lakshin managed to protect the children, but was kicked to the ground and beaten. "They shouted the usual 'kill the Yids' and smashed a bottle on my head". Bleeding, he managed to escape to a 24-hour grocery store. "There were two security guards there and we asked them to call the police. But all they said was: 'Please leave - you will stain our shop with your blood'". According to Global Forum Against Anti-Semitism, an Israeli government body, the number of violent anti-Semitic incidents in Russia rose from four to 55 in the past year. Another report on global anti-Semitism released by the US State Department says the number of skinheads who have committed most of these crimes has increased from few dozen in 1992 to more than 50,000 in 2004. Attacks by skinheads and neo-Nazis are not limited to Jews. People from the Caucasus, Muslims and Africans are regularly subjected to ethnic crimes. According to recent opinion polls, 53% of Russia's population subscribe to the idea of "Russia for the Russians", 48% think that the influence of Jews in politics and business should be restricted and 43% say there should be restrictions on natives of the Caucasus living in Russia. Two nationalistic parties gained 20% in the last parliamentary elections. Xenophobia is the main election platform of the Rodina party, which was brought to life by Kremlin spin-doctors before last year's parliamentary elections to take votes from the Communists and guarantee a majority for the pro-Kremlin United Russia party. However, over the past year, Rodina's nationalistic ideas appear to have gained their own momentum. "We have historic experience of this. This is how fascism started in Germany in 1933", said Lakshin.