MOSCOW, December 14 (Itar-Tass) -- The Public Chamber will soon form a working group for discussing the Manezh Square events of last weekend, Public Chamber member Anatoly Kucherena told leaders of ethnic youth movements and national communities in Moscow on Tuesday.

"The absence of tolerance and respect for one’s own and everyone else’ s rights is the main problem of our society,” another Public Chamber member Yelena Nikolayeva said. "We must hold a civilized dialog at the Public Chamber or at other floors and find ways of reconciliation and normal development,” she said.

Nikolayeva called for avoiding street actions or yielding to provocations until the conflict was settled. Otherwise, tensions will escalate, she said.

"The Public Chamber will meet on December 16 to discuss the prevention of similar events in the future,” Public Chamber Deputy Secretary Mikhail Ostrovsky said.

He noted that the Public Chamber would control the investigation of the murder of Spartak team fan Yegor Sviridov.

Problems related to the Saturday events on Moscow’s Manezh Square will be discussed at a joint meeting of the Presidium of the Council of Legislators and the Federation Council’s Commission for Nationalities Policy and Relations with Religious Organizations on Wednesday, Federation Council Chairman Sergei Mironov said earlier in the day.

"We will make a comprehensive analysis of the events, which took place in the city center last weekend, and the forces, which were behind those events,” he said. The lawmakers will also pay attention to similar actions of soccer fans in other Russian cities, he added.

"We will discuss which measures the authorities and the public must take to protect themselves from destructive forces, as well as the responsibility of law enforcers,” Mironov said.

Criminal attempts upon the security of citizens must be prevented, Mironov said. He said they would draft related proposals. "This country is multinational, so it needs a special executive agency forming and implementing a nationalities policy,” he said.

"One may keep saying that nationality of criminals is immaterial, but our police have a somewhat one-sided approach. It seems some people coming to stay in our cities have a lot of money and they pay off [the police to go unpunished],” he said.

The public demands a just investigation of the crimes, and extremists take advantage of this just demand, Mironov said. Extremists are another problem the government and the police need to tackle, he said.

Radicals took advantage of Spartak soccer team fans’ mourning to start unauthorized actions, Russian Interior Minister Rashid Nurgaliyev said on Sunday.

Yegor Sviridov, a Spartak team fan, died in an attack of hooligans in Moscow on December 6. "Suspects were identified, and some of them were arrested. Investigative procedures are in progress. No one will escape punishment,” the minister said.

"Obviously, radicals took advantage of the mourning events to incite a breach of law and to hold unauthorized events, which could have developed into clashes and riots,” he said.

He said the place of the unauthorized action was not accidental. "There are always many visitors, adults and children, on Manezh Square at this time of the day, especially on weekends and ahead of New Year holidays. The main goal of the police was to protect bystanders. Stones, metal pieces and other things were thrown at officers. Both policemen and civilians were hurt. Yet police prevented the illegal action thanks to their professionalism,” the minister said.

"The main mission of the police is to protect our citizens, their constitutional rights and freedoms, regardless their nationality, race or religion. There is no discrimination of criminals either,” he said.

On Monday Nurgaliyev informed President Dmitry Medvedev about the prevention of unauthorized actions of radicals and soccer fans in Moscow and St. Petersburg. The president approved the Interior Ministry’s work and said that the police had to right to use the entire range of its instruments in stopping such events.

About 5,000 young men representing various unions, from soccer fans to nationalist organizations, gathered on Manezh Square on Saturday noon to mourn Yegor Sviridov. The mourners lit flares and started to shout, "Russia for Russians.” The crowd moved towards the Manezh exhibition hall and tried to pass through police cordons. The young men were throwing things, including decorations from the square’s Christmas tree, at the police. Then, there was a brawl inside the crowd, and the police pushed the young men towards the Moskva Hotel.

Sixty-five people were detained. All of them are free now. Five policemen sustained minor injuries, and none of them needed hospitalization, Moscow city police spokesman Viktor Biryukov said.

It is impressible to mix up soccer and politics, Moscow city police chief Vladimir Kolokoltsev said after a Sunday meeting with Russian Soccer Union President Sergei Fursenko, representatives of Moscow soccer clubs and veteran fans.

"We are pretty much concerned about speculations on feelings of every normal person, such as love for sport and respect for sport teams, and about appeals for inter-ethnic hatred and intolerance,” he said in comment on the Saturday events on Moscow Manezh Square.

The organizers of the event had nothing to do with real soccer fans but sought their political goals, Kolokoltsev said. "People who gathered on the square yesterday demanded the abolition of Article 282 of the Criminal Code [which stipulates punishment for the incitement to inter-ethnic hate]. I am absolutely positive that most of the organizers of the disturbances had nothing to do with sports, but used the tragic occasion to attain their nationalist goals,” he said.

Meanwhile, Fursenko said it was impossible to use sport for attaining political goals. "Soccer is beyond politics. We will not allow to incite us to some actions. No party or movement can tell us what slogans to shout,” he said.

Spartak veteran fan Amir Khuslyutdinov said that Moscow soccer fans did not take part in the Saturday action on Manezh Square.

"We visited Kronshtadsky Boulevard, and not a single incident happened there. We do not want any provocateurs from political parties. Soccer and hockey are beyond politics,” he said.

Chechens will not take part in any actions in Moscow or other cities, Chechen head Ramzan Kadyrov said on Tuesday.

"The fake statement allegedly signed by Caucasian natives and posted on the Internet is designed by provocateurs who have led violent crowds to Moscow’s Manezh Square,” he said.

Kadyrov also called a lie the claims that vehicles were allegedly carrying young men from the North Caucasus to Moscow.

"That is sheer lie. I would even call it bullshit. No one is going anywhere, because nobody needs that,” he said.

"We are patriots of Russia, and we have sacrificed tens of thousands of lives to keep it integral. The people of Chechnya expressed their wish to stay within Russia at the referendum held in 2003. I am confident that never before Russia has had authorities who give such much attention to the Caucasus, its economic growth, the solution of its social problems and the development of culture of Caucasian peoples. So, I am sure that Chechens have not forgotten the high price paid for peace and order in the south of the country, for preservation of unity and integrity of Russia. They will never take a step, which may play into the hands of those who wish to destabilize the country,” he said.

"In case of the Manezh Square events, the blame must be put on people who incited the riots,” he said.

"I officially declare that not a single member of the Chechen people, either an official, or a public figure or a person whose opinion is listened to, will take part in any actions. What is more, I have ordered to convey my opinion to the near and dear of all the Chechens who live in Moscow and other regions of Russia. I officially say that if any Chechen boys take part in actions in Moscow in response to the Manezh Square riots, they will be put under pressure via their near and dear in line with our traditions and customs, which rule out disobedience of a younger to an elder’s order, in this case the order of the head of the republic,” Kadyrov said.

"Democracy does not mean the right to street riots or violence or to such appeals. Democracy means the triumph of law. A path to any form of democracy lies through strict compliance with the law. I am absolutely positive that, together with boys who committed crimes on Manezh Square being deceived by false slogans, it is necessary to prosecute those who incited [the boys] to the actions. I am also positive that all the politicians and public figures must clearly express their opinion of the events on Manezh Square, instead of making tentative comments and saying smooth phrases. One cannot be silent and bury one’s head in the sand in this situation, as inter-ethnic accord and peace in Russia are at stake,” Kadyrov said.

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