"There is a need for a target-specific federal program to promote tolerance in society - a kind of national plan, like the anti-corruption program," Natalia Rykova, executive director of the Moscow Human Rights Bureau, told a news conference at RIA Novosti.
She said according to the Bureau's data, 126 race-hate crimes were committed in the first five months of this year, in which 66 people were killed and 132 injured.
"There is a pressing need to develop a range of measures to prevent and counter such cases," she said.
Rykova stressed the role that the media plays in promoting ethnic and religious tolerance.
"Today, there are approximately 100 xenophobic publications in Russia, and not a single serious journal is free from xenophobia," she said.
Pyotr Shelitshch, president of the Russian Consumers Union, said socially disadvantaged groups "provide fertile soil for xenophobia."
"I consider it extremely important to put in place, as all developed countries do, mechanisms to protect the poorest sections of the population against rising prices," he said.
Vladimir Koptev-Dvornikov, president of the Moscow-based European Club, said it is essential to cooperate with the international community in combating intolerance in society.
