Russia
26.08.03
Urgent Interventions
Russia: attack of the Memorial Saint Petersburg and its staff
URGENT APPEAL - THE OBSERVATORY
RUS 001/0803/OBS 042
NGO assault / Physical attacks
Russian Federation
26 August 2003
The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a joint
programme of the FIDH and the OMCT, requests your urgent intervention
in the following situation in the Russian Federation.
Brief description of the situation:
The Observatory has been informed of the attack, on 14 August 2003,
of the office of the human rights organisation Memorial Saint
Petersburg and its staff.
According to the information received, on 14 August 2003, a young man
arrived at the Memorial office, allegedly looking for those in charge
of the anti-fascist commission, on the pretext that his sister had
been killed by a fascist group. The anti-fascist commission staff not
being available, the man was advised to return when the Chairman of
Memorial Saint Petersburg, Vladimir Schnitke would be back.
The young man came back later on with another man to see Mr Schnitke.
The two men threatened a member of staff with hammers, and tore off
the telephone cable so as to prevent her from using it. They gagged
her and tied up her hands. She was then locked up in a closet.
Afterward they went to Vladimir Schnitke's office and claimed they
belonged to the "Committee for the defense of Budanov", which nobody
appears to have heard of. This name probably refers to Colonel
Budanov, a Russian colonel convicted of having abducted and murdered
a young Chechen woman in 2000.
After having asked Schnitke where the main computer was, they seized
the Chairman's laptop computer and his mobile phone. Vladimir
Schnitke and a third member of staff were then gagged, their hands
tied up, and were locked up in the closet. The assailants blocked the
door of the closet, and pretended they had booby-trapped it. The
staff of Memorial was released later on that day, after a visitor
called the police.
The two men also stole Vladimir Schnitke's pocket computer, his diary
and his address book. They left a note saying "Free Buda...",
obviously referring to Colonel Budanov.
The Press Department of the Department of Internal Affairs (MVD)
declared that the attack was an ordinary burglary and that it was not
politically motivated. The police consequently opened an
investigation for burglary. However, the two men did not steal any
money nor other computers apart from Vladimir Schnitke's one.
The Observatory is very concerned by those events, and in particular
by the fact that the staff of Memorial were physically assaulted and
threatened. Moreover, the Observatory fears that the aim of the
attack was to obtain information on the activities of Memorial Saint
Petersburg, its members and contacts.
The Observatory recalls that under article 12(2) of the Declaration
on Human Rights Defenders, adopted by the United Nations General
Assembly on 9 December 1998, " the State shall take all necessary
measures to ensure the protection by the competent authorities of
everyone, individually and in association with others, against any
violence, threats, retaliation, de facto or de jure adverse
discrimination, pressure or any other arbitrary action as a
consequence of his or her legitimate exercise of the rights referred
to in the present Declaration".
Actions requested:
Please write to the Russian authorities urging them to:
i.Guarantee the physical and psychological integrity of all members
of Memorial Saint Petersburg in all circumstances;
ii.To ensure that no pressure or intimidation actions are exercised
on Memorial Saint Petersburg, and that the organisation can carry out
its activities without being subjected to outside hindrance;
iii.To conduct a fair, impartial and independent inquiry into these
events, in order to identify the authors, bring them to justice and
pronounce sentences proportional to the gravity of their crimes;
iv.To comply with the provisions of the UN Declaration on Human
Rights Defenders, in particular article 1, which states that
"everyone has the right, individually or in association with others,
to promote and to strive for the protection and realization of human
rights and fundamental freedoms at the national and international
levels", and above mentioned article 12(2);
v.More generally, to abide by the international and regional
instruments protecting human rights ratified by Russia, in particular
the Charter of Paris and the documents adopted under the OSCE's Human
Dimension.
Addresses:
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, President of the Russian Federation,
Kremlin, Moscow, Russia, Faxes:+ 7 095 206 8510, Email:
president@gov.ru
President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, c/o the Permanent Mission of
the Russian Federation, Avenue de la Paix 15, 1211 Geneva 20,
Switzerland, fax: +4122 7344044, e-
mail: mission.russian@ties.itu.int
Procurator General of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Ustinov,
Rossiyskaya Federatsiya, 103793 g. Moskva K-31, Ul. B. Dimitrovka, d
15a, Prokuratura Rossiyskoy
Federatsii, Generalnomu prokuroru Ustinovu V., Russian Federation,
Fax: + 7 095 292 88 48
Chairwoman of the Presidential Human Rights Commission of the Russian
Federation, Ella Pamfilova, Rossiyskaya Federatsiya,103132 g. Moskva,
Staraya ploshchad, d
8/5,pod 3,Predsedatele Komissii po pravam cheloveka pri Prezidente,
Pamfilove, Elle., Russian Federation, Fax:+70952064855
Nikolai Patrushev, Director General of the Federal Security Service,
Bolshaia Lubianka 1/3, Moscow, Russia, Faxes: + 7 095 975 2470
Ambassadeur, Skotnikov, Leonid, Av. de la Paix 15, CH-1211, Genève
20, Suisse, e-mail : mission.russian@ties.itu.int, fax: +4122 734 40
44
Minister of Internal Affairs, Boris Gryzlov, ul. Zhitnaya, 16, 117049
Moscow, Russian Federation, Telegram: Rossiia, 117049, Moskva,
Ministru vnutrennykh del, Fax: + 7
095 237 49 25
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Igor Ivanov, Smolenskaya-Sennaya pl,
32/34, 121200 Moscow, Russian Federation, Telegram: Rossiia, 121200
Moskva, Ministru
inostrannykh del, Fax:+ 7 095 244 2203
Paris - Geneva, 26 August 2003
Kindly inform the Observatory of any action undertaken quoting the
code number of this appeal in your reply.
The Observatory, an FIDH and OMCT venture, is dedicated to the
protection of Human Rights Defenders and aims to offer them concrete
support in their time of need.
To contact the Observatory, call the emergency line:
Tel and fax: FIDH : +33 (0) 1 43 55 20 11 / 43 55 18 80
Tel and fax OMCT : (+ 41 22) 809 49 39 / 809 49 29
E-mail : observatoire@iprolink.ch
RUS 001/0803/OBS 042
NGO assault / Physical attacks
Russian Federation
26 August 2003
The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a joint
programme of the FIDH and the OMCT, requests your urgent intervention
in the following situation in the Russian Federation.
Brief description of the situation:
The Observatory has been informed of the attack, on 14 August 2003,
of the office of the human rights organisation Memorial Saint
Petersburg and its staff.
According to the information received, on 14 August 2003, a young man
arrived at the Memorial office, allegedly looking for those in charge
of the anti-fascist commission, on the pretext that his sister had
been killed by a fascist group. The anti-fascist commission staff not
being available, the man was advised to return when the Chairman of
Memorial Saint Petersburg, Vladimir Schnitke would be back.
The young man came back later on with another man to see Mr Schnitke.
The two men threatened a member of staff with hammers, and tore off
the telephone cable so as to prevent her from using it. They gagged
her and tied up her hands. She was then locked up in a closet.
Afterward they went to Vladimir Schnitke's office and claimed they
belonged to the "Committee for the defense of Budanov", which nobody
appears to have heard of. This name probably refers to Colonel
Budanov, a Russian colonel convicted of having abducted and murdered
a young Chechen woman in 2000.
After having asked Schnitke where the main computer was, they seized
the Chairman's laptop computer and his mobile phone. Vladimir
Schnitke and a third member of staff were then gagged, their hands
tied up, and were locked up in the closet. The assailants blocked the
door of the closet, and pretended they had booby-trapped it. The
staff of Memorial was released later on that day, after a visitor
called the police.
The two men also stole Vladimir Schnitke's pocket computer, his diary
and his address book. They left a note saying "Free Buda...",
obviously referring to Colonel Budanov.
The Press Department of the Department of Internal Affairs (MVD)
declared that the attack was an ordinary burglary and that it was not
politically motivated. The police consequently opened an
investigation for burglary. However, the two men did not steal any
money nor other computers apart from Vladimir Schnitke's one.
The Observatory is very concerned by those events, and in particular
by the fact that the staff of Memorial were physically assaulted and
threatened. Moreover, the Observatory fears that the aim of the
attack was to obtain information on the activities of Memorial Saint
Petersburg, its members and contacts.
The Observatory recalls that under article 12(2) of the Declaration
on Human Rights Defenders, adopted by the United Nations General
Assembly on 9 December 1998, " the State shall take all necessary
measures to ensure the protection by the competent authorities of
everyone, individually and in association with others, against any
violence, threats, retaliation, de facto or de jure adverse
discrimination, pressure or any other arbitrary action as a
consequence of his or her legitimate exercise of the rights referred
to in the present Declaration".
Actions requested:
Please write to the Russian authorities urging them to:
i.Guarantee the physical and psychological integrity of all members
of Memorial Saint Petersburg in all circumstances;
ii.To ensure that no pressure or intimidation actions are exercised
on Memorial Saint Petersburg, and that the organisation can carry out
its activities without being subjected to outside hindrance;
iii.To conduct a fair, impartial and independent inquiry into these
events, in order to identify the authors, bring them to justice and
pronounce sentences proportional to the gravity of their crimes;
iv.To comply with the provisions of the UN Declaration on Human
Rights Defenders, in particular article 1, which states that
"everyone has the right, individually or in association with others,
to promote and to strive for the protection and realization of human
rights and fundamental freedoms at the national and international
levels", and above mentioned article 12(2);
v.More generally, to abide by the international and regional
instruments protecting human rights ratified by Russia, in particular
the Charter of Paris and the documents adopted under the OSCE's Human
Dimension.
Addresses:
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, President of the Russian Federation,
Kremlin, Moscow, Russia, Faxes:+ 7 095 206 8510, Email:
president@gov.ru
President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, c/o the Permanent Mission of
the Russian Federation, Avenue de la Paix 15, 1211 Geneva 20,
Switzerland, fax: +4122 7344044, e-
mail: mission.russian@ties.itu.int
Procurator General of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Ustinov,
Rossiyskaya Federatsiya, 103793 g. Moskva K-31, Ul. B. Dimitrovka, d
15a, Prokuratura Rossiyskoy
Federatsii, Generalnomu prokuroru Ustinovu V., Russian Federation,
Fax: + 7 095 292 88 48
Chairwoman of the Presidential Human Rights Commission of the Russian
Federation, Ella Pamfilova, Rossiyskaya Federatsiya,103132 g. Moskva,
Staraya ploshchad, d
8/5,pod 3,Predsedatele Komissii po pravam cheloveka pri Prezidente,
Pamfilove, Elle., Russian Federation, Fax:+70952064855
Nikolai Patrushev, Director General of the Federal Security Service,
Bolshaia Lubianka 1/3, Moscow, Russia, Faxes: + 7 095 975 2470
Ambassadeur, Skotnikov, Leonid, Av. de la Paix 15, CH-1211, Genève
20, Suisse, e-mail : mission.russian@ties.itu.int, fax: +4122 734 40
44
Minister of Internal Affairs, Boris Gryzlov, ul. Zhitnaya, 16, 117049
Moscow, Russian Federation, Telegram: Rossiia, 117049, Moskva,
Ministru vnutrennykh del, Fax: + 7
095 237 49 25
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Igor Ivanov, Smolenskaya-Sennaya pl,
32/34, 121200 Moscow, Russian Federation, Telegram: Rossiia, 121200
Moskva, Ministru
inostrannykh del, Fax:+ 7 095 244 2203
Paris - Geneva, 26 August 2003
Kindly inform the Observatory of any action undertaken quoting the
code number of this appeal in your reply.
The Observatory, an FIDH and OMCT venture, is dedicated to the
protection of Human Rights Defenders and aims to offer them concrete
support in their time of need.
To contact the Observatory, call the emergency line:
Tel and fax: FIDH : +33 (0) 1 43 55 20 11 / 43 55 18 80
Tel and fax OMCT : (+ 41 22) 809 49 39 / 809 49 29
E-mail : observatoire@iprolink.ch