In Makhachkala, the second "United Caucasian Forum" discusses xenophobia issues

The topic of the "United Caucasian Forum" that has opened today in Makhachkala is formulated as "Xenophobia in Russian Society: Implications for Russia and the Caucasus".

According to Anatoly Sidakov, the editor of the newspaper "Peace to the Caucasus", who represented North Ossetia and opened the forum, the problem of xenophobia is topical not only for Northern Caucasus, but for the whole Russian society. The Caucasian Forum will do everything to solve this problem, Mr Sidakov has added.

Elizaveta Barkinkhoeva, a human rights activist from Ingushetia and a member of the Ingush Public Council, voiced out the problems of the Ossetian-Ingush conflict and stated the need to find the ways out. According to the South-Ossetian writer Boris Gusalov, a special event should be organized for discussing the consequences of this conflict.

According to Abdurakhman Yunusov, the head of the information-analytical centre "Rakurs", one of the reasons for fomenting xenophobia is the activity of the media. In particular, he recalled how actively mass media disseminated the negative information associated with residents of Northern Caucasus.